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According to conference chairman, Alessandro Lovatelli, aquaculture officer at the FAO, the maximum sustainable potential from wild capture fisheries been reached, but aquaculture is growing. And this is necessary because to keep up with food consumption and the growing population, we need more fish for protein. It is predicted that the world population will grow to over 9 billion by 2050.

In 2012, total world aquaculture production was 90.43 million tonnes. Of that figure, 66.6 million tonnes was for food fish (fish for human consumption), 23.78 million tonnes was aquatic algae (mainly marine macroalgae) and 22.4 million tonnes was non-food (mainly, pearls, shells etc).

Fish farms are expected to produce nearly two-thirds of global food fish supply by 2030, and the rise in seafood demand gives countries the opportunity to expand and improve responsible fish and shellfish farming practices, with increased focus on offshore mariculture.

Currently Asia is the only continent producing more fish than capture fisheries (54%), and geographically, tilapia is the most widespread species for aquaculture production in the world.

However, it was acknowledged that offshore mariculture does bring many challenges:

• Land and water
• Cost and energy efficient productivity
• Ecosystems impacts
• Feeds: Fishmeal and fish oil
• Technology and knowledge
• Biosecurity and health
• Finance and investment
• Conducive policy

Jose Aguilar-Manjarrez made the point that we are running out of land, and there is increased pressure on freshwater resources. He said that the opportunity lies offshore, but many countries that have a coast are not practicing offshore mariculture.

Many issues relating to offshore mariculture have been discussed during the first day of the conference. Kathrine Hawes, principal at Aquarius Lawyers, looked at the legal aspects of OSM; independent consultant, Carson Roper, discussed aquaculture certification; Francesco Cardia, project manager at the FAO, updated delegates on the status of the cage aquaculture industry in Saudi Arabia; and Robert Orr, CEO of Cuna de Mar looked at investment.

A number of technical innovations were also discussed, including the offshore farm cage bridle and anchoring system used in Norway; the development of an air diffusion system for oxygenation in Mediterranean cage culture; and new solutions for net management and cleaning.

Day two of the conference will update delegates further on subjects including stock management, fish nutrition and feed management, and integrating offshore mariculture with renewable energy.

The Offshore Mariculture Conference 2014 is being held in Naples, Italy, where over 100 delegates have gathered to learn more about the latest developments in the offshore mariculture sector. The conference is taking place 9-11 April, with a visit to a fish farm being held in the third and final day.