The presentation will highlight the current constraints and the potential of aquaculture in the region by discussing some of the untapped technological advances and physical resources that need to be further explored. These resources can be wisely and sustainably used not only to ex pand aquaculture but also to increase its productivity and value. Though m ost of us are aware of the availability of these resources , they are not being exploited due to the actual and perceived challenges including different goals, conflicts, and lack of cross-disciplinary communications among various stakeholders. Whereas some other possibilities we are hesitant to discuss and push them under the carpet due to the lack of knowledge, inconveniences, or in ability to take calculated risks. The failure to adopt a multidisciplinary approach to this highly sustainable industry that has the potential to meet several Sustainable D evelopment Goals of the United Nations can lead to reduced growth of the industry .
T he presentation will cover the possibilities and challenges in expanding aquaculture to non-productive land, improving customers’ perception of the farmed species, improving the nutritional quality of the product, and using various new technologies in a balanced and sustainable manner . Attempts have been made in the past to utilise inland saline soil and associated sub-surface water as an important source to generate rural income and produce sustainable food through aquaculture. Though, an important area to convert infertile agricultural land into marine aquaculture by researching the feasibility of farming various marine species, very few species and in only limited regions have been commercially successful due to the lack of vision and communication between various stakeholders. The research and the use of this resource have been scarce with mixed results. It lacks a consolidation of the global data in the form of a detailed review that may lead to a mathematical model that can predict the feasibility of the candidate species to be farmed under an inland saline water environment. The input from artificial intelligence can be a welcomed input to this.
The presentation will also attempt to discuss how aquaculture has the potential to assist in ‘mitigation strategies’ to tackle climate change due to carbon sequestration and reduction of the methane emissions from the cattle industry. The best feeding and nutritional strategies including fishmeal replacement research will be updated in this presentation. There are several bioremediation products, prebiotics, probiotics, and other di etary immunostimulant supplements available in the market that claim to have positive effects on water quality, nutritional profile, and health of the farmed species. These will be discussed too in the presentation. A pragmatic shift in certain forms of production-based aquaculture to value-based is also an important aspect to be taken into consideration. The cultural background of the consumer also needs to be understood before value addition, diversifying the product line, and marketing strategies are chalked out. Consumer awareness should be incorporated into the marketing of seafood. Ultimately, the gap between researchers and the commercial industry due to several cultural and regional constraints will be discussed. This gap can be bridged by working towards common objectives.