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Clifford Spencer Part two: Getting radical with aquacultural technology
... continued from december 2017 o further assure the public over environmental safeguards in aquaculture production, and to give massive reductions in water use then with these Recirculating Aquacultural Systems and Biofloc Technology based fish farms. It is technically feasible to employ a slow-sand filter for final wastewater discharge, particularly if these farms still generate reduced waste streams. In the event of fish “spillage” into rainwater runoff channels/ditches there would be the discharge of all rain water runoff collected from the catchment of a particular RAS or BFT farm to exit via a slow sand filter. Like everyday use on modern pig and poultry farms enhanced biosecurity measures includes the use of foot dips, suitable perimeter fences, restricted access conditions, good security procedures and the use of regulated and supervised visitor access. The farm is a declared biosecurity zone, where livestock would not be allowed to leave the farm site expect under regulated procedures overseen by the regulating authority. Professionally engineered and managed bio secure fish farming operations, can exist in ecologically sensitive areas without impacting the environment or threatening biodiversity. We can now safely farm any fish species in any geographical locality of the world without posing a risk to neither the environment nor the biodiversity make-up of ecosystems. As often is the case the holdback in the fish-farming sector (in what is permissible) falls at the door of policy makers and regulatory authorities. These bodies continue to ignore innovations that leading industry practitioners can provide and which can positively change lives. The innovations such as those described should be incorporated as a priority - into sound polices to urgently accomplish enhanced food safety with accompanying biosecurity and food security. All this can be achieved without impacting our environment or compromising biodiversity for future generations. Finally, it is a little known fact that nearly 20 years ago Tilapia went into space with Senator John Glenn on the Space Shuttle and the Tilapia eggs on board hatched into tiny fry whilst still in space. The Aquaculture in Micro gravitational orbit (AMIGO) project was born and after the Space Shuttle’s return to earth AMIGO was studied to record any effects on the fish. So Tilapia was studied all that time ago to see if it represented an appropriate use for aquaculture in space programmes to keep our treasured astronauts well fed in extended space flights and Tilapia is recommended as an ideal food source for astronauts. All this emphasises the critical need for a greater uptake of technology in the aquaculture sector so that it can provide safe, nutritious and environmentally superior food for us all. Currently Mr Spencer leads the Global Biotechnology Transfer Foundation (GBTF), which is dedicated to promoting the potential for biotechnology to support sustainable, longterm, socio-economic development. He is also Chairman of Trustees for Aquaculture without Frontiers UK.
Turkish fish will grow in America
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ılıç Deniz started their first production in the aquafarm that they bought in Dominican Republic. Transferred from Turkey to Dominican Republic, fish juveniles will join North and South American dishes when they grow up. Not only Turkey’s, but also world’s biggest bream and bass producer, Kılıç Deniz bought an aquafarm in Dominican Republic and started growing breams and basses. Being grown in the facilities since July, fish juveniles will be sold in North and South America in 2018. Stating that they also invested in Dominican Republic after their salmon facilities in Albania and fish-feed raw material production in Mauritania and underlining that they are making researches on some African countries such as Somali, Kılıç Deniz Products Deputy President of Board İhsan Bozan
explained, “We and some other Turkish companies already export Mediterranean fish to US market. In order to sell more to American market, we chose Dominican Republic that provides transportation advantages and is suitable for growing Mediterranean fish. We would like to carry our knowledge and experience in aquaculture there and reproduce local species as well.” Pointing out that they made their first fish export to Italy, Kılıç Deniz Products Deputy President of Board İhsan Bozan underlined that they exported to 37 countries by July. Bozan resumed as follows, “We export Turkish fish all around the world, notably to Europe and Russia. Currently we grow a total amount of 60,000 tonnes of bream, bass, drum and salmon and export 70 percent of our production.”
10 | January 2018 - International Aquafeed