Jasmin Reyes

Period 7

Agriculture Essay
Aquaculture was first practiced in Egypt and China more than 4,000
years ago during China's Tang Dynasty. Aquaculture in the U.S. however, is
relatively new. It began here during the late 19th century and first reached
commercial success later in the 1960's and 1970's. Aquaculture is the
production of aquatic organisms for human use and is an increasingly
important source of seafood for many countries. Aquaculture is one of the
fastest-growing U.S. and global agricultural economies. There are two
methods of aquaculture, the first is fish production through the use of fish
farms, and the second is catching fish natural in their wild habitat and
importing them.
A fish hatchery is a place for artificial breeding and hatching of
fish and shellfish. Fish possess high amounts of vitamins and fats that are
essential to our human diet. They provide some populations with up to half of
their protein intake. More and more nutritionists are recommending that
adults increase the amount of seafood in their diets, because of this the
aquaculture market will be strained to keep up with the growing demand due
to rapid population growth:
The FAO has predicted that the world population in 2050 will reach 9
billion. With this predicted increase in world population, assuming that
everyone eats two portions of seafood a week, it would require a total
worldwide increase of fish production to around 195 million tons by the year
2050. As supplies from the oceans are diminished due to overfishing, the
required production of fish will not be met. Alternatives should be found to
meet the demands of the increase in world population (International
Association of Seafood Professionals).
Fish farms are a consistent supply of fish. Fish farming is when fishes
are raised in tanks or enclosures and fed manufactured fish supplements to
help quicken their development. Typical species found in a fish farm include
salmon, catfish, tilapia, cod and shell fish. Although fish farming is very
profitable, it can harm the environment. Hatcheries ignore the lifecycle for
many species, and as a result can genetically change the behavior of the
fish. However, Aquaculture production of some species and in some areas is
being done in a way that minimizes environmental impact. Several
conservation organizations such as Monterey Bay Aquarium, Environmental
Defense, and Blue Ocean Institute publish seafood cards that rate farmed
catfish and tilapia (PBS).

The second method is exporting wild caught fish. Wild-caught seafood

is a big business in the United States. With locally caught fish subsistence
fishery is more common, subsistence fishing is where the catch is shared and
consumed directly by the families of the fishermen, rather than being sold at
the market. Commercial fishermen generally harvest seafood with a variety
of pots, nets, or fishing line. Fishing methods vary in scale and operation
depending on the species and area being fished. A commercial fishery could
be just one person on a small boat casting nets by hand, or a huge fleet of
boats processing tons of fish at one time. However, fishing can harm the
environment. Some fishing methods can accidentally capture other marine
animals or damage sensitive habitats such as coral reefs.
India ranks third in the world in aquaculture today. India is a major
supplier of shrimp to Japan, Europe and the U.S. In past decades, India has
sustained its population with seafood though wild caught fish and shellfish,
however, today India is a leader in fish and shrimp farms. India has recently
improved yields and consistency to environmental regulations. Compared to
India, the U.S. is the fourth largest importer of farmed shrimp, and currently,
over 70% of the seafood that Americans consume is imported from India,
and at least 40% of our seafood imports are aquaculture products. Success
with aquaculture in the United States requires high rate and high yield
production systems that are both environmentally and economically
sustainable and yield a high quality product (PBS.com).
Today, fish production plants are being intergrated with irrigation of
biofuel plantations. Using this new technology, water is used in two ways,
first for fish production, then for biofuel crops like sugarcane. Fish farms can
also be powered with hydroelectric power generators, using damns or
hydroelectric turbines. The use of this renewable energy can be found in fish
farms in Peru and Chile.

Works Cited
AquaFacts. (n.d.). Retrieved from Fisheries Technology Associates .
IAFI. (2014, June 20). Retrieved from International Association of Seafood
Professionals.
Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture. (2002-2015). Retrieved from PBS.com.