The American Soybean Association (ASA) has expressed support for the Obama Administration's budget request for aquaculture research that could increase demand for soymeal in aquafeed, and potentially lower the reliance on imported seafood.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) requested an increase of US$2 million for aquaculture research, some of which would be spent on studies on life-cycle cost analysis of aquaculture, marine fish hatcheries for stock enhancement, the environmental impacts of escapes from aquaculture, as well as sustainable feeds.

ASA expressed its support for aquaculture research in a letter to Gary Locke, Secretary, US Department of Commerce, the Department that has oversight of NOAA. More than 80 percent of the seafood Americans consume is imported, and at least half of those imports are farmed seafood. Major aquaculture-exporting nations include China, India and Vietnam.

"This funding is critical to NOAA's research efforts that will help study the potential for offshore aquaculture," said ASA President Johnny Dodson. "Soy farmers are working with NOAA and the USDA under the auspices of the NOAA-USDA Alternative Feeds Initiative to support a broad spectrum of approaches to better understand marine fish nutrition."

Aquaculture is the fastest growing form of food production in the world, and most of this growth is offshore and overseas. Seafood imports are the second biggest contributor to the US trade deficit at over US$9 billion per year.

"With increasing seafood demand and declining capture fisheries, global aquaculture production will have to increase by 500 percent by the year 2025 to meet the projected needs of a world population of 8.5 billion people," Dodson said. "We'd like to see the US capture its share of this growing market."

ASA is the policy advocate and collective voice of its 22,000 producer-members on domestic and international issues of importance to all US soy farmers.