January 21, 2014

 

EU aims to boost organic aquaculture

 

 

The Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research (Nofima) has coordinated a new EU project on organic aquaculture in order to identify obstacles in regulations and rules that must be changed to increase the production of organic fish.

 

Many consumers want to buy organic fish, but in Europe it is still hard to find certified organic fish in the grocery shops, unlike organic milk, vegetables and meat.

 

"Based on official numbers, below 1% of fish farmed globally today is organically produced", says project leader Ingrid Olesen at Nofima.

 

The complete project title of the EU-project is «OrAqua - European Organic Aquaculture - Science based recommendations for further development of the EU regulatory framework and to underpin future growth in the sector».

 

The OrAqua project's overall vision is the economic growth of the organic aquaculture sector in Europe, supported by science based regulations in line with the organic principles and consumer confidence.

 

OrAqua will suggest improvements for the current EU regulatory framework for organic aquaculture based on (i) a review of the relevant available scientific knowledge; (ii) a review of organic aquaculture production and economics, as well as; (iii) consumer perceptions of organic aquaculture.

 

The project will focus on aquaculture production of relevant European species of finfish, molluscs, crustaceans and seaweed. A multi stakeholder platform will be established to ensure interaction with all relevant stakeholders throughout the project.

 

The project will assess and review existing knowledge on fish health and welfare, veterinary treatments, nutrition, feeding, seeds (sourcing of juveniles), production systems, including closed recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS), environmental impacts, socio-economic and aquaculture economic interactions, consumer aspects, legislations and private standards for organic aquaculture.

 

The results will be communicated using a range of media and techniques tailored to involve all stakeholder groups. Further, Multi Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) and SWOT analysis will be used to generate relevant and robust recommendations. A wide range of actors from several countries will participate and interact through a participatory approach.

 

The 13 OrAqua project partners form a highly qualified and multidisciplinary consortium that includes four universities, five aquaculture research institutes, three research groups in social science, a fish farmer organisation, a fish farmer and two organic certification/control bodies.

 

Recommendations on how to improve the EU regulation, executive dossiers and a Policy Implementation Plan (PIP) are the expected main outcomes of the project. The project will also deliver recommendations on how to enhance economic development of the European organic aquaculture sector.