World Aquaculture 2020 A Brief Overview

World Aquaculture 2020 – A brief overview

This document provides a synthesis of six regional aquaculture reviews: Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Near East and North Africa, North America and sub-Saharan Africa. Global aquaculture production, including aquatic plants, in 2018 was 114.5 million tonnes, with an estimated value of USD 263 billion. The Asia-Pacific region continued to be the major producer. Globally, aquaculture provides over 50 percent of fish for human consumption. In 2018, aquaculturists were reported to farm about 622 species or species items including 387 finfishes, 111 molluscs, 64 crustaceans, seven frogs and reptiles, ten miscellaneous aquatic invertebrates and 43 aquatic plants. From 2000-2018, aquaculture production in freshwater, brackish water and marine water increased at a compound annual growth rate of 5.7 percent, 7.7 percent and 5.2 percent respectively while total aquaculture production grew at an annual growth rate of 5.6 percent. Global food supply and per capita consumption of fish and fish products continued to increase faster than human population growth. Aquaculture is striving to innovate in order to increase production and sustainability. Progress in biosecurity and fish health management, feed formulation and utilization, and genetic resource management are showing good, but uneven progress. The aquaculture sector faces challenges including competition for land and water resources, as well as external factors such as climate change, conflict, economic uncertainties and most recently the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic and other stresses such as droughts and tsunamis, revealed that the aquaculture industry has not engaged sufficiently in disaster preparedness. International and national mechanisms are being put in place to increase the sustainability, good governance and social license of the sector to address these challenges. The diversity of the sector, the opportunities for good jobs and commitments by governments to good governance will help the sector meet these challenges.

World aquaculture 2015: a brief overview

FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Circulars Global aquaculture production in 2015 reached 106 million tonnes, with an estimated value of US$163 billion, although the average annual growth rate of world aquatic animal production slowed to 6.4 percent in the period 2001–2015. Bringing together information from six regional reviews, this report examines how the aquaculture sector has performed over the past five years and draws lessons for ensuring sustainable growth and expansion in the years ahead.

Coastal fisheries: Emerging initiatives toward the sustainability objectives