Most of the shrimp we import is “farmed”—grown in huge industrial tanks or shallow, man-made ponds that can stretch for acres. In some cases 150 shrimp can occupy a single square meter (roughly the size of a 60-inch flat-screen television) where they’re fed commercial pellets, sometimes containing antibiotics to ward off disease. If ponds aren’t carefully managed, a sludge of fecal matter, chemicals, and excess food can build up and decay. Wastewater can be periodically discharged into nearby waterways. “Bacteria and algae can begin to grow and disease can set in, prompting farmers to use drugs and other chemicals that can remain on the shrimp and seep into the surrounding environment,” says Urvashi Rangan, Ph.D., executive director of the Consumer Reports Food Safety and Sustainability Center. Those shrimp-farming practices raise a variety of concerns—not just about how safe shrimp are to eat but also about the environmental damage that can be caused by farming them that way. For shoppers the dilemma starts at the grocery store, where it’s difficult to know what to buy. Labels and names can be confusing, meaningless, or—worse—deceptive. Sellers may not always tell (or even know) the truth about the origins of the shrimp they offer. And the allure of a label proclaiming that shrimp are “natural” or “wild” can obscure the fact that some expensive varieties aren’t necessarily fresher or more flavorful.

FEFANA has enlarged its series of booklets with the launch of two more publications concerning categories of products that are essential for animal nutrition and ultimately for animal health: “Amino Acids in Animal Nutrition” and “Vitamins in Animal Nutrition”.

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Aquatic Animal Drug Approval Partnership (AADAP) Program will shortly release the 2nd Edition of the Quick Desk Reference Guide to Approved Drugs for Use in Aquaculture. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted several new drug approvals since the 1st edition was published in 2011, and the 2nd edition reflects these changes.

By David ‘Wilco’ Drew, Managing Director, AgriProtein, Cape Town, South Africa (AQUAFEED: Advances in Processing & Formulation Vol 7, issue 1)

A study on the utilization of raw fish processing wastes (FPW) generated on each of the five (5) main islands (Molokai, Maui, Kauai, Big Island and Oahu) of Hawaii, and their potential for conversion and use on each of the respective islands as a feed or fertilizer.

Projected prices for soybeans and soybean oil are reduced in this month\'s WASDE report. The range for the season-average soybean price is lowered 10 cents at the midpoint to $9.60 to $10.60 per bushel based on marketing to date and lower expected prices for the second half of the marketing year.

For developing countries rich in geothermal activity, using the earth\'s heat offers new possibilities for agriculture and aquaculture

Globally, salmon farmers produce 14.8 billion meals every year from only .00008 per cent of the world’s oceans and creates 121,000 direct and indirect jobs around the world and stimulates thousands more spin-off jobs and economic growth in a wide variety of other sectors.

The latest FAO data available (2011) has been used to create an interactive map, providing an overview of total fish consumption per capita (kg) and fish contribution to total animal proteins (%) by country, territory and continent. You can mouse over the map to view the data for an individual country.

In the long term, demands for fishmeal and oil can only increase with the growth of aquaculture and the terrestrial farming industry

The long-term outlook for the global salmon industry remains positive, with low supply growth for the next two years likely to send prices skyward once again on the back of strong demand, and recently set records may be short-lived.

A report by Victoria Chomo, Cassandra De Young, International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD): This article offers a preliminary view of what is known and suggests areas for further research.

The Turkish seabass and seabream industry has been steadily increasing production volumes for the last decade or so, to the point where Turkey is now the world’s major producer of seabass and also closing the gap on the Greek seabream sector. At the beginning of 2015, it now appears that the production growth stage of the Turkish expansion is winding down and the focus is instead switching to turning production into profit.

Shrimp imports to the top ten markets were 8% more compared with the corresponding period a year ago. Shrimp prices in general were firm during the third quarter of 2014, but remained below the extremely high rates recorded in 2013. Export prices, however, weakened during the October-December 2014 period, when the large traditional markets carried out year-end purchases. The trend persisted into January this year.

Global oilseed production for 2014/15 is projected at 532.2 million tons, up fractionally from last month on small changes in non-US production. Global soybean production is unchanged at a record 315.1 million tons with Brazil soybean production projected at 94.5 million tons, Argentina at 56.0 million, and Paraguay at 8.5 million.

Scientists have recently discovered markers for genes that determine how well black tiger shrimp resist WSSV. They are now planning to examine whether the same genes affect the resistance to white spot disease in white shrimp.

There are currently two methods to combat salmon lice: delousing with medications and biological delousing. However, both methods offer problems. Trial results from NOFIMA indicate that selective breeding may be the answer.

Food security will remain a significant issue for the Arab countries due to supply uncertainty and a growing population.

Global production of soybeans in 2014/15 is forecast 686,000 metric tons higher this month to 315.1 million. However, with higher U.S. demand, global ending stocks of soybeans are forecast 1.5 million tons lower to 89.3 million.

The 2014/15 U.S.season-average soybean price range projection is unchanged at $9.45 to $10.95 per bushel, according to in this month\'s WASDE report. The soybean meal price is projected at $350 to $390 per short ton, up $10 on both ends of the range. Global oilseed stocks are projected lower, mostly reflecting reduced soybean stocks for Brazil and the United States and reduced rapeseed stocks for Canada and India.