by Dr Neil Auchterlonie, Technical Director, IFFO
The
fishmeal industry is an extremely complex sector and one of the things I enjoy
in working for IFFO is gaining an in-depth understanding of the whole value
chain in fishmeal and fish oil production and its complexities across the
globe.
Fishmeal businesses link their production through from capture fisheries into
the production of high value feed ingredients, subsequently into feed and
aquaculture systems and products, being a central foundation to the
availability of farmed aquatic protein around the world. These materials are the building blocks of
farmed fish, as I have often mentioned in this column.
Several media reports in recent months illustrate that the IFFO staff’s general
enthusiasm for the fishmeal industry is not always shared, nor is our belief in
the importance of an evidence-based and factual approach as a crucial way of
communicating the industry’s activities.
A reading of some of the reports of fishmeal production by
non-specialists would, unfortunately, provide that reader with a picture of the
situation that is quite a departure from reality.
As one example of this, recent items on fishmeal, whether they be on
television, social media or the internet seem to portray the fishing industry
generally as a “free for all” and there is regular reference – incorrectly – to
levels of overfishing around the world.
The implication is that fisheries are left unmanaged, and in a perpetual
state of decline. Sadly, there is little
reference to fishery management, regulation and enforcement and the way that
industry generally works closely with government and regulators in managing
stocks.
Nowhere is the situation of good management better presented than in Peru, the
location of a recent trip by IFFO staff to visit members and stakeholders
in-country. These are important visits
for a trade association like IFFO because it provides an opportunity to engage
directly with our members and listen to the issues that are at the heart of the
fishmeal production companies.
Read more, HERE.
The Aquaculturists
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