World Aquaculture September 2018

12 SEP TEMBER 2018 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WA S.ORG T O W A R D T H E P R O F E S S I O N A L I Z A T I O N O F A Q U A C U L T U R E R oy Palmer has been involved in the seafood industry since 1972. He has travelled extensively and is experienced in post-harvest activities with training qualifications and has regular consulting activities. He works for and with many organizations through his consultancy and writes for numerous magazines and has good knowledge of commercial fishing, fisheries and aquaculture and is in regular demand to present at conferences, recently presenting on the Blue Economy at the International Society of Professional Innovation Management (ISPIM) Conference in Melbourne, Australia. Roy is a believer in continuous improvement and collaboration and is always striving for innovative ways to improve our industry. He has taken a lead role in new ventures such as the Association of International Seafood Professionals and he combines that with the lead role with Aquaculture without Frontiers, which is work done by many volunteers who share their skills, knowledge and time to improve conditions for the poor who are struggling with hunger and malnutrition. He also works to help raise the profile and consumption of seafood including involvement with the Global Initiative of Life and Leadership through Seafood (GILLS) and in getting seafood information out to politicians, media and consumers. Roy Palmer has recently worked with the Government of Mexico by assisting them in increasing seafood consumption and is now working for FAO on developing a strategy for seafood consumption in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He believes that aquaculture will become recognized as the most important farming that the world does. Rodrigue Yossa: Why have you chosen to work in the seafood industry? Roy Palmer: When I was about 21 years old, I went out for a dinner with work colleagues and I had smoked trout as the entrée. From this dish, I was infected with Salmonella typhimurium , which kept me in the hospital for one month and out of work for about three months. When I was in the hospital, in the next bed was an Australian man who was telling me stories about his travels all over the world, which urged me to do some traveling. A few months later, I managed to travel to Australia on a two- year work arrangement known as the Ten Pound Scheme. The first job that I got in Australia was in a company importing and exporting seafood. It was funny because a few months earlier, I nearly died from eating fish and there I was selling fish. That is how I started learning about seafood. So, since this first experience, I have gradually gotten involved deeper in the seafood industry and then in the aquaculture industry at local, regional and global levels. Rodrigue Yossa: How would you describe the ideal aquaculture scientist? Roy Palmer: The ideal aquaculture scientist would be someone who is passionate about what he does and who wants to engage with the industry to find new ways to promote productivity, best practices and increased profitability through genetics or nutrition or any other aspects of aquaculture science. The more the scientist will concentrate on what the issues in the aquaculture industry are, the more likely he will receive support from the industry and the more valuable the aquaculture science will become. Aquaculture scientists who are only driven by academia (scientific publications, books, etc.) are very important in society but the best aquaculture scientists should be close to the aquaculture industry and inclined to solve its problems. At the recent ISPIM Conference a workshop discussed how entrepreneurship can become a powerful force in solving world’s challenges and how this was a key for future learning. I believe this is definitely the case with aquaculture – the same old approach will not solve the issues as we move forward. Rodrigue Yossa: How would you describe the ideal aquaculture producer? Roy Palmer: The ideal aquaculture producer is someone who understands that aquaculture is a tough game and it is about the long haul. When you look at the game of soccer, wherever you are in the world, the rules of this game are the same. Soccer is a game - aquaculture is a business; so why do we make it harder A Conversation with Roy Palmer Rodrigue Yossa Roy Palmer The ideal aquaculture scientist would be someone who is passionate about what he does and who wants to engage with the industry to find new ways to promote productivity, best practices and increased profitability through genetics or nutrition or any other aspects of aquaculture science.