June 23, 2016
AquaVision'16: Skretting director calls for better stewardship over aquaculture
Steven Rafferty, managing director of the Skretting Group and member of the Nutreco Executive Committee, brought the 11th edition of the AquaVision aquaculture conference to a close, but not before calling for a better stewardship within the industry.
The June event saw an attendance of more than 375 delegates from 35 countries. During the conference, Rafferty remarked that aquaculture contributes significantly to the world’s nutritious food as the global population is expected to reach nine billion people by 2050. With industry progress, he encouraged the sector to be more forthcoming and transparent with details about its actions and ambitions.
"When John Naisbitt, the bestselling 'Megatrends' author, was our keynote speaker 10 years ago, he told us that aquaculture has a great story to tell, but criticised us for not telling it. At the same time, he recognised that through the efforts of international NGOs, the public was drowning in criticism of aquaculture but starved of positive information from the industry. Fast forward to this year and we have heard many similar messages. I believe we still have a fantastic story to tell and we should all make the effort to become much more vocal," Rafferty added.
There is, in addition, a need for increased cooperation among actors of the aquaculture industry in order to raise the sector’s international reputation. "We are in the same water; we cannot operate alone. It is our obligation to look after this industry together, and that has been a constant theme running through this conference and many pervious AquaVisions," Rafferty commented.
Aquaculture is also facing the widespread threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) which requires critical attention and response. Rafferty reiterated Nutreco CEO Knut Nesse’s concern - expressed at the start of AquaVision 2016 - for collaboration across the entire aquaculture value chain to cut antibiotics use.
"At Skretting and Nutreco, we see this as a genuine showstopper. I would therefore urge everyone to engage and look at what they are doing with regards to antibiotics, and let's work together to remedy the situation," Rafferty concluded.
The 12th edition of AquaVision will be held on June 18-20, 2018.
