Technological Innovations Make Seafood Production More Sustainable
Aquaculture is an environmentally responsible source of seafood. Kasha Cox, Executive Director of Global Aquaculture at Merck Animal Health, discusses the innovations that make aquaculture one of the most efficient protein production methods.
What role does aquaculture play in supporting conservation efforts and addressing climate change?
Farmed fish reduces impact on fisheries and limits the impact of bycatch, supporting sustainability for wild species. Aquaculture also reduces the strain on already depleted wild stocks of fish by providing farmed fish to consumers.
Aquaculture provides diversity in the food supply through efficient protein production, and therefore we are building resiliency into our food supply.
How is innovation transforming the aquaculture industry?
There are several ways that innovation is transforming the industry – from enabling proactive management and using targeted, data-driven practices that make aquaculture more sustainable to providing the ability to benchmark operational performance to enhance efficiencies and limit environmental impacts. The latest technology and innovation allow for better handling techniques, early disease intervention, vaccination, monitoring, and necessary methods during harvest. For example, remote monitoring will enable farmers to see what is happening in their net pens from their computers or mobile devices. In addition, new technological devices, such as Integrated Pest Management (IPM), collect data that can be mined for trend forecasting to better understand disease transmission.
What role would Merck’s technologies play in the expansion of aquaculture here in America?
One of the biggest concerns in America is aquaculture's impact on the environment. Through improved operational efficiencies, better vaccination programs and products, early disease intervention, and improved handling and animal welfare, we can mitigate negative impacts on the surrounding environment and negative effects between farmed fish and wild stocks. By limiting environmental impacts and improving efficiencies, we can provide a more sustainable protein that can mitigate the impacts of harvest on wild fisheries.
As with any food and protein production industry, the aquaculture sector strives to limit waste, increase animal welfare, and deliver a high-quality, sustainable product to the consumer. Technology adoption and innovation will be the keys to achieving a sustainable future, and aquaculture is at the forefront of becoming the most sustainable and least impactful protein production industry on the planet. At Merck, we are constantly innovating technology and biopharma products to address some of the most challenging issues the industry faces.
Can you discuss some of the aquaculture technology that is available at Merck and how it makes aquaculture more sustainable and efficient?
At Merck Animal Health, we deliver solutions that combine biopharmaceuticals and industry-leading technologies to provide greater value to our customers.
New innovations for aquaculture include:
Merck Animal Health’s Aquatic Gas Optimization (AGO) solutions deliver a revolutionary approach to enhancing the sustainability and performance of wild and farmed seafood. From oxygen infusion to carbon dioxide removal, our solutions deliver an unprecedented return on investment while enhancing fish welfare across a variety of applications.
Remote monitoring and adjustment of fish handling equipment - Vaki fish friendly pumps and sorters – is managed by our SmartFlow software to optimize operations.
BioLogic Data Collection Module (DCM) streamlines data collection and data management. The application increases efficiency, improves accuracy, and provides the integration of peripheral hardware via Bluetooth connections. In aquaculture this data collection is used for broodstock, feed trial, and, other research.