Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands, 7 October 2023

Celebrating its 40th birthday, the Dutch Aquaculture Society (Nederlands Genootschap voor Aquacultuur) hosted an informative symposium under the theme of “Aquaculture in sustainable food production” at the Wageningen University and Research in the Netherlands. Chaired by Prof. Em. Johan Verreth, the event highlighted sustainable aquaculture production and many other interesting aspects. Speakers covered a range of topics highlighting industry progress and sharing learnings in improving the sustainability of aquaculture. These included Kingfish production in the Netherlands (Vincent Erenst), a pilot study bringing sustainable shrimp from Ecuador to the consumer in the Netherlands (Willem van der Pijl), a novel approach to seafood protein (Nina Collsaet) and a consumer perspective (Arnout Fischer).

Framing the discussion, the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in improving the sustainability of aquaculture, Louise Buttle, Sustell™ Lead for Aqua & Global Key Account Manager at dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition & Health noted that according to the FAO, 3 billion people rely on blue foods as a source of protein (20% of daily protein intake), while globally, aquatic foods provide about 7% of all proteins.

Louise said, “Aquaculture is an important part of the blue foods system (seafood from aquaculture and fisheries) and this talk underscored the vital role of metrics in aquaculture's journey to improve sustainability and meet growing protein demands. However sustainable production within planetary boundaries will only be possible when sustainable raw materials are available, when metrics are available to measure and reduce the environmental impact, and where there is a reduction in fish loss and waste (from farm to fork).”