Aquaculture refers to the breeding, rearing, and harvesting of plants and animals in all types of water environments including ponds, rivers, lakes, and the ocean.Researchers and aquaculture producers "farm" all kinds of fish, shellfish, and plants.
Marine aquaculture is also a resource-efficient way of increasing and diversifying U.S. seafood production and can expand and stabilize the U.S. seafood supply in the face of environmental change and economic uncertainty.
What is Marine Aquaculture?
We have a lead role in science and management of marine aquaculture—the growing of species that live in the ocean. U.S. marine aquaculture primarily produces oysters, clams, mussels, shrimp, and salmon as well as lesser amounts of cod, moi, yellowtail, barramundi, seabass, and seabream.
Marine aquaculture can take place in the ocean in cages, on the seafloor, or suspended in the water column or in on-land, man-made systems such as ponds or tanks. Recirculating aquaculture systems that reduce, reuse, and recycle water and waste can support some marine species.
Economic Impact
In 2013, U.S. aquaculture produced $1.4 billion annually, which accounted for 20 percent of all U.S. seafood production and fishery products by value. Still, we have less aquaculture production than much of the world and import more than 90 percent of our seafood. Expanding aquaculture is a way we can address our nation’s $13 billion commercial seafood trade deficit.
In addition to closing the deficit, aquaculture has the potential to generate tens of thousands of new jobs on America’s waterfronts. Aquaculture provides a year round source of jobs and economic opportunities that supplement seasonal tourism and commercial fishing. The industry also creates diverse types of jobs in other sectors, such as seafood processing, equipment manufacturing, marketing, agriculture, and food services.
Benefits of Aquaculture
Seafood is a healthy, low-calorie protein with unique nutrient qualities that give it health benefits that no other food provides. U.S. dietary guidelines recommend that Americans double their seafood consumption to receive maximum health benefits, which is more seafood than wild-caught fisheries alone can supply. That’s where aquaculture comes in. Aquaculture is one of the most resource-efficient ways to produce protein with fewer environmental impacts relative to other animal proteins. It can be produced using less freshwater and land resources and with fewer greenhouse gas emissions.
Fish, in general, convert feed efficiently and have a small carbon footprint relative to other popular protein sources. Farmed-raised fish complement wild harvests as a way to provide more sustainable seafood to consumers.
Aquaculture Technology
Compared to other forms of agriculture, marine aquaculture is new and dynamic. The science and technology that drives aquaculture innovation helps grow an industry, and can adapt to new opportunities and changing environmental conditions. Our scientists are focusing their efforts on many exciting new areas, including:
- refining growing methods for existing aquaculture species
- developing aquaculture techniques for new species
- addressing ocean acidification
- improving feeds, vaccines, and vaccine delivery systems
- engineering solutions for growing fish in both offshore waters
- and recirculating systems, advancing genetic, genomic, and breeding programs
- refining ways to enhance species and habitat health through restoration
Future of Aquaculture
We work across multiple federal and state agencies as well as with private, academic, and non-governmental organizations to examine scientific issues that will lead to greater efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and environmental compatibility in marine aquaculture. We are working to address the technical and scientific barriers to marine aquaculture in a number of ways including through in-house research at our science centers, grants, and cooperative agreements with academic and other stakeholders.
Past research projects have responded to key scientific, engineering, environmental, and economic questions such as health and nutrition, best management practices, ecosystems monitoring and management, engineered production systems, and legal and operational frameworks for aquaculture.
