Sustainable Aquatic Research, cilt.2, sa.3, ss.221-267, 2023 (Hakemli Dergi)
Since its inception ~6000 years ago, aquaculture has evolved to enable its survival and growth to become a major contributor of protein of high nutritional value for human consumption, thereby improving food security and reducing poverty. Best practices have been established and updated to reflect developments as they occurred. Currently, best practices reflect all aspects of production from site selection and especially location in terms of proximity to other farms, construction and maintenance of the facilities, management practices, stock selection and acquisition, nutrition, biosecurity, disease control, and processing. Concerns about aquaculture continue to be addressed, and include the effects of pollution, such as from uneaten food and feces on the aquatic environment, and the needs of other users of waterways, such as for recreation/tourism. Best practices have been formalized into accredited standards, such as ISO 9000, and form the basis of Certification by the Global Seafood Alliance. With the intensification of aquaculture, the provision of total food requirements became necessary for the farmed stock. This has led to the development of feeds capable of providing all the nutritional needs of the farmed species. Concerns about the sustainability of some feed components, such as protein from trash fish, are ongoing. Disease management has progressed from a curative approach (= therapy) with chemicals/antibiotics to prophylaxis with vaccines, probiotics and plant products. Best practices encompass the most up to date technology, including engineering, life sciences and nanotechnology. For the future, aquaculture is likely to remain at the forefront of ingenuity with the goal of increasing its contribution to human nutrition.