I’m grateful for the opportunity to attend the recent Global Salmon Initiative Summit, which brought together stakeholders from aquaculture farms, research institutions, global health, suppliers, NGOs, and the finance sector.
We dove deep into the positive growth and challenges facing the salmon aquaculture industry. Several key points stood out to me:
𝟭. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝘀𝗵? 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝗮𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲: Aquatic foods provide 20% of global protein and are richer in essential nutrients like iron, zinc, folate, and calcium compared to wild capture. While we need a suite of options to provide sustainable protein sources, aquaculture now surpasses wild caught fish in terms of total production and giving it attention to ensure it is done sustainably is critical.
𝟮. 𝗔𝗱𝗱𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: The food system accounts for 33% of global greenhouse emissions and 80% of deforestation. Climate change is also impacting fish health, where water temperatures consistently above 17°C causing micro-damages and immune system issues for fish. We need to adapt production practices and innovate to mitigate these effects.
𝟯. 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: We have powerful tools that could help us respond to changing conditions and challenges, ranging from our own Tidal technology for monitoring, to innovation around feed ingredients impact aquaculture carbon footprints. Precision genetics could help lead to lice-resistant genetic strains or sterile fish in case of fish escapes.
On the operational side, I was struck by how much innovation is already happening around sustainability. For example, Nova Sea AS have implemented hybrid and electric boats and trucks, and fully recycled sea cages.
𝟰. 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀: While salmon often dominates the conversation at 20% of total value, it only represents 2% of total aquatic production by mass (91% is from Asia). We must broaden our discussions to include other aquaculture species; <5% of funding currently goes to freshwater aquaculture, as noted by the Gates Foundation, even though 73% of aquaculture is produced inland.
𝟱. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗘𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗢𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿: Victory Farms emphasized the importance of community involvement—they should be stakeholders, not just spectators. Janicke Eckhoff shared the importance of connecting with younger generations.
𝟲. 𝗘𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: It's vital to dispel misconceptions, such as the idea that salmon is "full of antibiotics” (“the last time we used antibiotics was in 1997"). Effective communication can shift public perception and bring focus to aquaculture as a solution for sustainable food security.
There was so much to reflect on — Thanks to Sophie Ryan and team for organizing such a meaningful summit!
#Aquaculture #Sustainability #Innovation #FoodSystems #GlobalSalmonInitiative