Arctic Char In Aquaculture

Arctic Char were first investigated as an aquaculture species because it was expected that they would have low optimum temperature requirements and would grow well at the cold water temperatures present in numerous areas of Canada. It was also "correctly" anticipated that the Arctic Char would be welcomed as an alternate selection to Rainbow Trout and thus could provide producers with a unique product and a niche in seafood markets.


Canadian Arctic char are farmed in the Yukon Territory, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, Quebec and Manitoba. Operators in Iceland, Norway and the USA also raise Char. There are several different strains of Arctic Char being used in aquaculture. The most common strains used in Canada are derived from Nayuk Lake and Fraser River stocks.

Good Aquaculture Attributes

The majority of Arctic char produced today are raised in land-based systems. Arctic char eggs are hatched within specialized hatchery facilities where the young fish remain until they reach ~100 grams and can be transferred to larger grow - out tanks. The initial early rearing stages of growing can take almost a year for the juveniles to reach 100 grams. Once in the production farm Arctic char exhibit a rapid growth spurt from juvenile to adulthood, with most stocks reaching market weight (1-2.5kg) within the next 12 months.

Well Suited to Land Based Aquaculture

Land-based Arctic char rearing systems are considered to be among the most environmentally responsible fish farming designs. Facilities that utilize designs based on the principles of Recirculation Aquaculture technologies are among the most cutting edge farms. Arctic Char exhibit unique characteristics that make the species favorable to land based secure production, chief among those is its natural desire to shoal and live in high density populations. Read More Here

Excellent Market Reception

The Arctic Char is highlighted as a “Best” choice by the Monterey Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide for Healthy Oceans. The New England Aquarium lists farm raised Arctic Char as an ocean friendly species. They call it an excellent choice. Read more here

Alternative Aquaculture Systems

Industry Overview

The Aquaculture industry blossomed rapidly, and became a significant supplier of food over the last couple of decades. Aqua Farming is now practiced worldwide, each year it increases in scope and significance. The aquaculture industry grew out of necessity, the chief reason being that the traditional practice of hunting and gathering of food by fishing became unsustainable in many areas of the world. Read More Here



Growth Trough Innovation

The need for change in seafood supply lead us to Aquaculture and now the need for changes in the way we farm fish has lead us to developing alternative methods to conduct aquaculture in a more sustainable manner. One of new technologies that are having a tremendous impact upon the way we farm fish is land based farming in enclosed tanks using water recycling systems. Read More Here

An innovative combination of fish and vegetable farming methods that is experiencing renewed interest and rapid growth around the world is Aquaponics. This farming method is essentially the rebirth of age old practices and is now used to farm vegetables, herbs and fish synergistically. It is an eco-friendly way to naturally produce quality food for home use or for sale. This scalable farming method is being embraced by many small home growers and even large operations that are using the process and methods as a means of producing sustainable fish and plant crops. Read More Here

Aquaculture Industry Size

Aquaculture, probably the fastest growing food-producing sector, now accounts for nearly 50 percent of the world's food fish. The reason for this is very simple, aqua farming is the best and most sustainable method to meet the demand for fresh seafood products that our population creates. It is now a widely held view that the worldwide biomass of wild fish and shellfish (stocks) are continuing to be depleted at a rate that surprises even those scientists that made dire predictions a few short years ago. Read More Here.

The Need for Aquaculture

Aquaculture is probably the fastest growing food producing sector in the world. During the past three decades, aquaculture has expanded, diversified, intensified and made technological advances. The potential of this industry to enhance local food security, alleviate poverty and improve rural livelihoods has been well recognized

The present level of aquaculture production was driven out of necessity. Just as Agriculture became imperative to the existence of mankind, so now has Aquaculture become the only sustainable method of producing high quality seafood. One needs only to review commercial fishery statistics to see that the world's demand for fish and seafood has exceeded the levels that hunting and gathering wild fisheries can support. Recent data suggests that aquaculture now accounts for over 50% of the entire worldwide seafood supply. It is estimated that at least an additional 40 million tonnes of aquatic food will be required by 2030 to maintain the current per capita consumption.

Read more at this page

When all the fish are gone?

Here is a great picture and memory:

After a good night’s sleep, you awake to a great sunny morning and reflect upon the wonderful relaxing experience that you enjoyed last night. The memories of that great meal you shared with your special someone rests in your mind. The feeling of comfort and closeness you discovered, over the candle light casting shadows at your secluded table while soft music played, is still fresh in your thoughts.

The seafood was the best choice, it sure made a hit. The succulent flavors blended well with the mood and with the wine, bringing a mutual feeling of pleasure and satisfaction that a good dinner often brings. It was a night to remember, that brought you the same age old enjoyment that good friends, good food and good wine, has done for years. Yes it was great you say. Let us thank the folks that made it possible.

Now Picture this:

You have some slack time and you are wondering around the internet, reading about things that mean something in your life and you are gathering a better understanding of the world. In keeping with your concerns and important issues, the state of the world’s food supply, the quality of food and the price of food are all issues that you read about because you know that they will make an everyday difference in your life. After reading and researching on the subject for awhile you come upon information relating to one of the world’s largest sources of protein and nutritious food, which is fish and seafood.

This maybe is where your bad day starts, as you realize that humankind cannot any longer count on or rely upon wild fish stocks to meet the demands of the future or even satisfy the demands of today.

Perhaps you also wonder where all the fish have gone? If you do, you can also take some satisfaction in knowing that you are not alone. Many of the world’s scientist, governing bodies and think tanks are grappling with the crisis and are searching for alternative ways for making the best of our ocean, river and inland lake fish resources.

It is now written in “factual stones” that the populations of worldwide wild fish and shellfish (stocks) are continuing to be depleted at a rate that surprises even those scientists that made dire predictions a few short years ago. The huge hunting and gathering efforts that has long dominated the World’s supply of seafood are failing. Even with today’s increased overall fishing effort and increased focus upon catching and substituting less desirable fish species, collapse and failure of the wild fishing industry is near, and the lack of sustainability of the fishing effort against available wild supplies is impossible to escape.

Now picture a light:

Once one contemplates the facts and reviews the information it becomes obvious that we should endeavor to do more with what we have and employ a level of husbandry to reduce our reliance upon capture fisheries in the same manner as we reduced our need to hunt and gather other food supplies like grain and animals. Yes I am talking farming.

Fish farming is now supporting over 50% of the entire world’s supply of fish and seafood. The reason for this is very simple, it is the best and most sustainable method to meet the demand that our population creates. Without Aquaculture the wild stocks of fish would have collapsed years ago, as the demand for supply has far outpaced the ability of wild stocks to produce and it has done so for numerous years.

There has been much written of late on the reports of poor populations of many of our fisheries. TAC (total allowable catch) predictions for next year look downright scary. If we continue to ignore solutions to the problem we will continue to have the problem.

If one were to have to "wonder around" today and gather the grains, cereals, poultry, beef and other products needed to ensure survival, it would be a much different world.

In order to meet the demand for high protein foods we have to continue to supplement the available supply by controlled husbandry to help achieve a better yield from a diminishing resource.

Yes we need to continue farming fish and we are learning how to do it much better than before. That learning curve is also called growing, like our plants, animals and fish we have also grown and gained a better understanding of how to do things right, and we will continue to grow and fill the need.

Robert Freeman

Aquaculture sees surge in worldwide production

A new report by an international team of researchers, published September 07 in the online edition of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), states that Aquaculture now accounts for 50 percent of the fish consumed globally.

Once considered to be a fledgling industry not so long ago, "Aquaculture is set to reach a landmark in 2009, supplying half of the total fish and shellfish for human consumption," the authors wrote.

Way back when, 20 or so years ago, I entered the field of aquaculture after witnessing first hand the ever increasing year to year decline in the traditional fishing industry. Back then we all felt to be on the verge of something new and big, today we can look back and see just how far the industry has come. The growth has been tremendous but it has certainly not been without challenges.

The report states that between 1995 and 2007, global production of farmed fish nearly tripled in volume, in part because of rising consumer demand for long-chain omega-3 fatty acids. Oily fish, such as salmon, are a major source of these omega-3s, which are effective in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to the National Institutes of Health.

This growth has placed ever increasing pressure on marine resources due to the need for large amounts of feed made from wild fish harvested from the sea. "The huge expansion is being driven by demand," said lead author Rosamond L. Naylor, a professor of environmental Earth system science at Stanford University and director of the Stanford Program on Food Security and the Environment. "As long as we are a health-conscious population trying to get our most healthy oils from fish, we are going to be demanding more of aquaculture and putting a lot of pressure on marine fisheries to meet that need." Sourcing sustainable feed ingredients is one of the largest challenges faced by the industry today.

One way to make salmon farming more environmentally sustainable is to simply lower the amount of fish oil in the salmon's diet. According to the authors, a mere 4 percent reduction in fish oil would significantly reduce the amount of wild fish needed to produce 1 pound of salmon from 5 pounds to just 3.9 pounds. In contrast, reducing fishmeal use by 4 percent would have very little environmental impact, they said.

"Reducing the amount of fish oil in the salmon's diet definitely gets you a lot more bang for the buck than reducing the amount of fishmeal," Naylor said. "Our thirst for long-chain omega-3 oils will continue to put a lot of strain on marine ecosystems, unless we develop commercially viable alternatives soon."

Naylor and her co-authors pointed to several fish-feed substitutes currently being investigated, including protein made from grain and livestock byproducts, and long-chain omega-3 oils extracted from single-cell microorganisms and genetically modified land plants. "With appropriate economic and regulatory incentives, the transition toward alternative feedstuffs could accelerate, paving the way for a consensus that aquaculture is aiding the ocean, not depleting it," the authors wrote.

Link to Full Story

Responsible Aquaculture Program

I spent time lately reading many of the arguments "pro and con" that that seem to pop up when Aquaculture is the topic. Numerous opinions have been expressed and there doesn't appear to be a shortage of media attention in certain areas. That robust activity is welcome. It exists in discussions of any industry or of any practice. As educated consumers we are entitled to review information, decide one way or another and make our choices.

Aquaculture isn’t a new idea, people have practiced Aquaculture for a few thousand years, yet in the modern world today, we still debate just about every news release on the subject. Sometimes we read news statements that are generally based in fact and other statements that contain a few elements of truth designed and emphasized to trigger certain feelings within the population.

Sadly there are a few attention focused presentations within the media that carry very little true research value or census value, and lean toward a more mumble and jumble “argument” that almost always attempts to pigeon hole an industry while presenting the “we told you so attitude” directed at the normal consumer. The reasoning behind this isn’t within my ability to explain.

Last year I wrote a few pages concerning the history and needs satisfied by Aquaculture. In other writings I also talked about the need for improvement.

The Global Aquaculture Alliance efforts to improve the way that Aquaculture is conducted should not go un-noticed.

Statements from the website:

The Responsible Aquaculture Program was developed to promote best management practices for aquaculture operators. The RAP program encourages the culture of safe, wholesome seafood in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. More importantly, it is also intended to improve the efficiency and long-term sustainability of the aquaculture industry.

The Responsible Aquaculture Program began as a straightforward set of "Guiding Principles for Responsible Aquaculture" that promote a cooperative approach to establishing aquaculture operations that reflect environmental, economic, and social sustainability. The principles call for minimal ecological impacts, water conservation, improved feed and drug use, and reductions in effluents.

The Global Aquaculture Alliance is an international, nonprofit trade association dedicated to advancing environmentally and socially responsible aquaculture. GAA recognizes that aquaculture "the culture and farming of fish, shellfish and other aquatic organisms" is the only sustainable means of increasing seafood supply to meet growing food needs.””

Give the link a look.

If we didn’t farm anything period, full stop, where would we be? Can we feed 6 billion people on politics or advertising? Everyday people supply veggies, meats and fish to the world. Managing the resources will play a major factor in the future. Increasing the "food" and ecomonic value of the resources is a factor best left out of media spins.



Rob Freeman