Interview With Seafood Chef Barton Seaver: “U.S. Offshore Aquaculture Just Makes Sense”
October is National Seafood Month. Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS) interviewed renowned seafood chef Barton Seaver on his unique and historical perspective on today's seafood industry and the numerous possibilities that an expanded U.S. aquaculture industry can bring.
What kind of demand are you seeing for fresh, high-quality seafood as we come out of the pandemic, and how does aquaculture help meet that demand?
During the pandemic, it was wonderful to see so many Americans turn to seafood as a home-cooked meal, and we saw a corresponding spike from retailers. My hope is that this leads to deeper confidence and competence and a desire to cook more seafood in the home, a greater fluency with seafood, and an understanding of its health benefits and delicious culinary qualities.
This is a natural time for people to engage in a conversation about where their seafood originates. I believe that America has a great narrative to share about domestically produced seafood, but we also have a great narrative to share about the potential in our waters for increased aquaculture production.
What are some technology and innovations in aquaculture to best serve America’s seafood needs?
I am a big fan of evolving science around novel feed ingredients for aquaculture species, such as algae, and other protein sources, like soldier fly larvae. Other sources ideal for aquaculture are those that can be produced sustainably to reduce impact on wild stocks while delivering a compelling culinary product.
Additionally, I am enthusiastic about the expansion of species that innovators and entrepreneurs are looking to farm. To date, with large-scale aquaculture, we have been farming the species for which there was an existing market. However, many species are very well suited to being farmed that the public is not yet familiar with, such as cobia, barramundi, arctic char, and many others.
Why is it important that the U.S. expands its offshore aquaculture industry?
The U.S. boasts not only the talent, but the educational institutions, intellectual property and innovations that the global aquaculture sector needs. But, for too long, we have shipped that talent overseas instead of anchoring it in our own U.S. waters.
There is a lot more U.S. under the water than above it, in terms of our exclusive economic zone, and our best waters for aquaculture are, in fact, under our control. So we have an opportunity to set a global example of how this can and should be done, not to mention the economic benefits of creating jobs in a sustainable blue sector.
Aquaculture is not just food production; it is also food justice, equity, innovation, and technology – these are all exciting fields that can attract talent from many disciplines. So, I see this as an opportunity for the U.S. to be a leader in a spectacular new food system. We need to pay attention to equity and access issues around aquaculture and ensure that both big and small can thrive. When we are the architects of something new, let’s make sure we learn from the past and build a future of what we want to see.
What is the role of chefs in educating consumers about the benefits of farmed fish?
The first role that chefs need to play is the student. So many chefs and consumers alike still carry a legacy bias against aquaculture products. To be fair and honest, the bad reputation of aquaculture was somewhat earned by poor practices at the outset of this young industry. But so much has changed and has changed radically for the good! Once chefs truly understand current best practices that are widely used as well as the potential for continued improvement, then they can use their platform as resources in terms of news articles, interviews, and community outreach.
How would you describe improvements to aquaculture practices?
Improvements include genetic selection (not modification), selecting the best in breed, and site selection as to how aquaculture happens. Other improvements are relatively simple and obvious ideas, such as making feed that floats so the fish have more time to eat before it sinks past them. Many people don’t understand how young this industry is; only 60 years ago, the first net pen went into the water!
I am so enthusiastic about both these simple and obvious improvements, as well as the scientific and deeply researched innovations that are happening. As we are starting to understand the limits of terrestrial food production, and as we ask ourselves the heart-wrenching question of how we feed the expected nine billion people, we can look to the 99% of livable space on this planet that is underwater and aquaculture sure makes a lot of sense.