LSU AgCenter aquaculture specialist Greg Lutz displays a small alligator to members of the audience during a recent AgCenter Global Agriculture Hour presentation. (Photo by Olivia McClure, LSU AgCenter)

News Release Distributed 05/15/15

BATON ROUGE, La. – This time of year, most Louisianians are acutely aware of the importance of aquaculture thanks to a unique commodity produced in this state: crawfish.

But aquaculture is also an increasingly important enterprise globally, said LSU AgCenter aquaculture specialist Greg Lutz. It is the fastest growing food production sector, he told attendees of the May 14 Global Agriculture Hour hosted by AgCenter International Programs. The amount of farmed fish doubled between 2000 and 2012, and today, it constitutes half the seafood consumed globally.

Asia leads the world in aquaculture production. The top three species produced are carp, tilapia and catfish.

Lutz and the AgCenter have been involved in helping producers as aquaculture’s popularity surges worldwide, including in Nigeria and Honduras. Farming fish in such places is generally low-tech and requires a lot of hands-on work. But it is work that locals are often eager to do. Lutz recalled arriving at 6 a.m. at a farm during a trip to Nigeria to find workers already there, waiting to get started.

Those farms provide a livelihood and a food supply for many people in developing countries. Though aquaculture is not new – pond production systems date back thousands of years – it is gaining traction now for many reasons, Lutz said.

“Aquaculture species are very good at converting whatever you feed them into edible protein – much better than chickens or hogs or beef – and that means a more resilient food system,” Lutz said.

Fish and shellfish have good nutritional value, and at the same time, their production aids rural economic development. Equipment costs can be kept low. Simple tanks made with wire, posts and plastic liners have become common sights in Latin America, Lutz said.

Aquaculture is naturally efficient, Lutz said. Aquatic animals require less food and energy because they don’t have to hold up heavy skeletons. But that efficiency can be a blessing and a curse.

“Sometimes we push Mother Nature too far,” Lutz said.

Colombia, for example, faces a problem with people putting out fish cages without permits and overloading the system, he said. That creates less oxygen and more bacteria, which end up killing fish.

Aquaculture, or the production of fish and shellfish, is essentially underwater agriculture, Lutz said. That means any variables that affect farming, especially economic forces, also affect aquaculture.

In Louisiana, catfish was once a key commodity, but fewer than 300 acres remain in production, Lutz said. Ethanol production drove up corn and feed prices, leaving catfish ponds around Louisiana empty.

Fortunately, Lutz said, Louisiana’s aquaculture sector remains diverse and strong, contributing $492 million to the economy in 2014. And worldwide, a more sustainable, entrepreneurial approach to aquaculture has been developing. Realizing that marketing – not production alone – is part of the equation has helped, he said.

“Tilapia personifies that,” Lutz said. “It was once a poor man’s fish. Now it’s in served in fine restaurants around the world.”

People are finding creative ways to make money in the business, too. Many large processing plants have grinders and other equipment to make their own fish meal and fish oil, Lutz said. Some tilapia processors use the oil for biodiesel and send the skins to Europe for collagen extraction.