Document Actions

Changes in Baltic Sea aquaculture: More output with less environmental load

The production of farmed fish can be considerably increased and the adverse environmental impacts reduced if the location of the establishments is carefully planned.

Oct 06, 2011

This will also allow us to promote the economic objectives while taking the environmental considerations duly into account.

That was the view shared by numerous experts reflecting on the means to develop aquaculture at an international conference at the House of the Estates in Helsinki, Finland on 4-5 October 2011.

The conference was organised by the Nordic Council of Ministers, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute. Europe is growing more and more dependent on fish imports, and in Finland the trend has been even more rapid than elsewhere. Less than 20 years ago almost two-thirds of the fish we consumed was domestic, now this share is only a quarter. According to experts, we can well respond to the growing demand for fish through sustainable increase in aquaculture production.

The four cornerstones on which a solid foundation of aquaculture must rest in the future are: ecological efficiency, economic profitability, social acceptability, and aquaculture as a lucrative economic activity. A new approach to developing the sector ensures the ecological sustainability of the activity while creating conditions for its profitability. One concrete way to achieve this is to plan the location of the operations so that we can designate areas that are the best suited for aquaculture production and where increased production causes the least damage.

The main problem in the Baltic Sea is nutrient loading. As a contributing factor to this problem aquaculture is a small one, but in the future it could become a means to improve the status of the Baltic Sea. Fishing is an efficient way to remove nutrients from waters, but all the fish caught does not find demand in human consumption. This fish could be used as raw material for fish feed. Thus aquaculture production in the Baltic Sea could produce more valuable fish for the consumers while reducing the nutrient levels in seawater.

As part of the conference there is a separate session on water recirculation aquaculture systems on 6 October 2011. This new production method saves water and nutrients, and new technologies are constantly opening up new opportunities. In Finland water recirculation is used in the farming of e.g. sturgeon, European whitefish and pikeperch.

Aquaculture Forum 

Declaration from the conference

Contacts

Further information:
Riitta Rahkonen, Research Director, Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute, tel. +358 (0)40 153 77 62
Asmo Honkanen, Research Director, Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute, tel. +358 (0) 40 529 36 99
Orian Bondestam, Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, tel. +358 (0)400 392 011

Related content
  • Aquaculture Forum (Event)

    Globally, aquaculture has been the fastest growing food production sector over the past two decades. In contrast to the world trend, production in the EU – and especially the Baltic Sea region – has stagnated or even declined slightly during the 2000s. The goal of this conference is to provide a forum for authorities, aquaculture industry, researchers and other stakeholders for discussing the opportunities and challenges for aquaculture in Northern Europe.

  • Council of Ministers for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Agriculture, Food and Forestry (MR-FJLS) (Organisation)

    MR-FJLS consists of one council of ministers covering four policy areas: Fisheries and Aquaculture, Agriculture, Food and Forestry. The core tasks of MR-FJLS involve promoting sustainable use of nature and genetic resources.
  • Helsinki Declaration on Competitive and Sustainable Aquaculture in the Baltic Region (Declaration)

    Declaration adopted by the participants at the Aqua Culture Conference in Helsinki, October 4-6, 2011.
  • The Ísafjördur declaration: Importance of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors

    At its meeting of 2 July 2009, the Nordic Council of Ministers for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Agriculture, Food and Forestry (MR-FJLS) discussed the importance of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors in international trade and the need for promoting responsible and sustainable fisheries and aquaculture management and adopted the Ísafjörður declaration: Importance of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sectors.
  • Landbaseret akvakultur (Publication)

    Anbefalinger vedrørende bæredygtigt fiskeopdræt i Norden