Jacquet, J., J. Sebo, and M. Elder. (2017). Seafood in the Future: Bivalves are Better. Solutions 8(1): 27-32. https://thesolutionsjournal.com/article/seafood-future-bivalves-better/

Perspectives

Seafood in the Future: Bivalves Are Better by Jennifer Jacquet, Jeff Sebo, and Max Elder

Photo by Jason Wishnow. Prepared by Chef Or’el Anbar (Left to right): Kumamoto oysters, East Coast oyster (Riptide), Belon oyster, cockles, Topneck clam, East Coast oyster (Plymouth Rock), and PEI mussels.

he first animals we domesticated that need us to catch additional fish In 1974, farmed aquatic life only Tfor food were sheep, around 9000 to feed them, which is putting addi- accounted for seven percent of the years ago, followed soon after by goats, tional pressure on wild ecosystems. officially reported quantity of aquatic cows, and pigs, and then, as recent as We are also completely ignoring animals eaten each year. The remainder 2000 years ago, chickens. As human welfare concerns. was caught in the wild. However, today, population expanded rapidly, these If done correctly, aquaculture farmed aquatic animals represent animals became part of a highly indus- could provide sustenance for our roughly half of what we eat each year. trialized food system that destroys growing planet as well as reduce That’s over 60 million tons, excluding habitat, pollutes, and is unsustainable. overfishing. But if we want to avoid aquatic plants such as seaweed. Now, humans are making similar repeating the same mistakes, we While 253 aquatic animal species mistakes in water that we made on need to make changes now, includ- were farmed in 1986, by 2014 that land. ing changing our diets generally number had more than doubled to We are currently witnessing the to include more plants and fewer 543 aquatic animal species, almost fastest and most poorly thought out animals, and eating more bivalves— two-thirds of which are fish, that is, expansion of domesticated animals oysters, mussels, and clams—instead vertebrates (Table 1).1 ever to occur—the expanding domes- of fish, shrimps, and octopus. Nearly 90 percent of aquaculture tication of aquatic animals. Nearly 190 We argue here for an expanded occurs in Asia (with China reporting different countries now raise around evaluation of aquaculture that would over half of global production). A little 550 different aquatic animal species consider the industry’s broad range of more than two-thirds of aquaculture for human consumption. ecological, social, and animal welfare occurs in freshwater, while the Aquaculture—the farming of impacts. If these issues were taken into remainder is farmed at sea (Table 1). aquatic animals and plants for consideration, we would make differ- The rates of domestication are occur- food—is the fastest growing food ent decisions about whether or not we ring most rapidly for marine species. production system in the world. But should domesticate and farm aquatic For some species in some mar- it is growing in the wrong way. We animals at all and, if we do, which spe- kets, farming, rather than fishing, are farming carnivores, like salmon, cies we should prioritize. now provides the vast majority of

www.thesolutionsjournal.org | January-February 2017 | Solutions | 27 Perspectives

Number of Mariculture Freshwater Total Species Group species (million tons) (million tons) (million tons)

Finfishes 362 6.30 43.56 49.86

Mollusks (including 104 15.84 0.28 16.11 bivalves)

Crustaceans 62 4.17 2.74 6.92

Other invertebrates 9 0.37 0.52 0.89

Amphibians and 6 reptiles

Total 543 26.68 47.10 73.78

Source: The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2016 (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 2016). Table 1. Number and tonnage of aquatic animal species under cultivation by species group (2014) animals. Farmed Atlantic salmon, The aquaculture industry has tried to widespread scientific agreement for instance, represents more than to reduce the amount of wild fish and and recommendations, the percent- 99 percent of Atlantic salmon on oils in feed, but the problem is far age of fed farmed aquatic species has the market (and two-thirds of all from solved.4 While about one-third of actually increased since the 1980s,12 salmon), while farmed marine global fishmeal production in 2012 was in part due to perverse market incen- shrimps contribute to 55 percent of obtained from the trimmings and other tives, such as cheap feed. Aquaculture the total world market. residues from seafood processing,5 in the Mediterranean, for instance, Domestication is “a long and end- the remainder has come from capture has shifted toward higher trophic less process that is in its infancy for fisheries. An estimated 27 percent level species that require more, not most farmed fish species.”2 Society of the global marine fish catch each less, fish feed.13 The trend is similar needs to take advantage of this infancy year goes to feeding farmed aquatic globally, with fed species accounting by seriously considering a wider range species.6 The ‘forage’ species (e.g., for an even greater percentage of of criteria for aquaculture. sardines, anchovies, and krill) that are production.5 caught for feed are not the only group The issue of the dependence of Ecology affected—species that depend on these farmed aquatic species on wild aquatic The ecological concerns associated forage fish in the wild, such as seabirds, food is just one of many ecological with intensified aquaculture have marine mammals, and larger finfish, concerns. The Global Aquaculture received the greatest amount of are now competing with aquaculture Performance Index (GAPI) assesses fin- research and scrutiny. for their food supply.7,8 fish aquaculture across ten ecological Aquaculture as it currently exists Scientists have been calling for criteria.14 In addition to the reliance adds to the exploitation of wild fish, as aquaculture to focus on species on captured fish, other criteria include additional fish must be caught to feed lower on the food web that require the sustainability of the feed, amount many of the farmed animals.3 little to no feed (e.g., freshwater of energy farmed fish divert from Farming carnivorous fish (e.g., carps, bivalves, and aquatic plants) marine ecosystems, antibiotics use, the salmon, seabream, and tuna), omnivo- for more than 35 years, and there is use of chemicals, waste contamination rous fish (e.g., tilapia and catfish), widespread scientific agreement that (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorous; the pollu- and certain crustaceans (e.g., shrimp) aquaculture, among other things, tion from finfish aquaculture in China requires catching more fish to use for must reduce its reliance on capture has contributed to the poor state of feed and oils. fisheries for feed.4,9-11 In stark contrast coral reefs),15 farm escapees (which can

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Photo by Jason Wishnow. Prepared by Chef Or’el Anbar (Left to right): East Coast oyster (North Haven) with grape, Manzanilla sherry, and Fresno foam; East Coast oyster (Riptide) with stone ground mustard cocktail sauce; and Belon oyster with cucumber salad and celery chili mignonette. interbreed, outcompete, or transfer (especially common in shrimp cultiva- While aquaculture undoubtedly parasites to native fish species),16 tion) to human rights issues such as plays a role in food security in certain industrial energy demands, and an forced labor (also common in shrimp areas of the world, in some cases its estimate of the pathogen rate on farms. farming), particularly in developing food security benefits are greatly exag- The GAPI index is only for finfish, countries.18 Some of these issues are gerated. For example, the International but there are also ecological concerns dictated less by the species being Salmon Farmers Association released related to invertebrate farming, such farmed (although admittedly some a 2015 report titled, “Salmon Farming: as saltwater intrusion, sedimentation, species are more suitable for certain Sustaining Communities and Feeding pollution, disease outbreaks, and habi- regions of the world) than by policy the World.” In reality, most salmon tat loss. A recent study, for instance, and governance. One social concern farmed in Scotland stays in UK mar- compared satellite imagery from the that has a strong relationship with kets.20 Similarly, the British Columbia mid-1970s to images from the present the species under cultivation is food Salmon Farmers claim on their to estimate that commercial shrimp security. website that, “B.C. farm-raised salmon farming has led to a 28 percent decline Aquaculture is often touted as a is the right choice for sustainability, in mangrove cover in Indonesia, Brazil, solution to food insecurity, which is food security, and our oceans.” But India, Bangladesh, China, Thailand, used as justification for continued salmon farmed in British Columbia is Vietnam, and Ecuador.17 growth and intensification in the a luxury food destined mainly for the This is by no means intended as a sector. However, aquaculture’s net food-secure markets of the EU, Japan, comprehensive list of the ecological effect on food security is unclear. The and North America.21 impacts with aquaculture but does United Nations Food and Agriculture Not only is farmed salmon sold to demonstrate the growing body of Organization (FAO), the international a food-secure market, but, due to its research and concern. organization mandated to collect reliance on fish feed, farming salmon is global statistics on food production, also potentially exacerbating food inse- Food Security states that “at present little or no hard curity by relying heavily on captured In addition to the ecological impacts, statistical information exists concern- fish, which are often caught in develop- aquaculture also raises social con- ing the scale and extent of rural or ing countries (the largest fishery in the cerns, ranging from public health small-scale aquaculture development world is the Peruvian anchovy fishery, issues such as antimicrobial resistance within most developing countries.”19 and most of the anchovies there are

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Photo by Jason Wishnow. Prepared by Chef Or’el Anbar (Clockwise from toast): Topneck clam shell; Kumamoto oyster with preserved lemon and shallot mignonette; Kumamoto oyster shell; East Coast oyster (North Haven) with stone ground mustard cocktail sauce; East Coast oyster (Riptide) with grape, Manzanilla sherry, and Fresno foam; Belon oyster with cucumber salad and celery chili mignonette; East Coast oyster (Plymouth Rock) shell; Topneck clam with white asparagus in yuzu kosho beurre fondu; East Coast oyster (Riptide) top shell; Cockles with white wine, tomatillo, and pearl tomato; East coast oyster (North Haven) shell; and PEI mussels with Gochujang Korean chili sauce and burnt Meyer lemon.

30 | Solutions | January-February 2017 | www.thesolutionsjournal.org Perspectives turned into fishmeal) and could instead thinner for cartilaginous fish). Fish are likely to experience pain and suffering be eaten by humans directly. The UN not the only vertebrate species under in general, another issue is whether FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible cultivation—soft-shell turtle farming, and to what degree these species are Fisheries (Article II) advises that for instance, is also on the rise.12 Still, likely to experience pain and suffering capture fisheries “promote the con- at this point, we can be confident that under cultivation in particular. As tribution of fisheries to food security most if not all of the farmed vertebrate with terrestrial animal agriculture, we and food quality, giving priority to the aquatic species do experience pain and should raise animal welfare concerns nutritional needs of local communi- suffering as a general matter. at every step of the process, including ties.”22 Under these FAO standards, the There is less certainty about but not limited to breeding, growth, practice of feeding forage fish to farmed invertebrate aquatic species since rearing (especially related to spe- animals is clearly irresponsible. they are behaviorally, physiologically, cies density and mobility), capture, Aquaculture production that and evolutionarily distinct from handling, transport, and slaughter. truly considers food security would vertebrates. Many aquatic animals, The current scientific understanding be concerned not only with the end vertebrates and invertebrates alike, is that the welfare concerns raised by use of the animals but also with the react to helpful and harmful stimuli, these activities are likely to be much compromises to food security that exhibit withdrawal behavior, and sus- more acute for vertebrates and inver- occur when raising these species. As pension of normal behavior in favor of tebrates such as cephalopods than for with environmental concerns, the behavior that enhances protection and invertebrates such as bivalves, given conclusion is that we should not be healing.23 However, scientists have not that vertebrates and cephalopods have farming species that rely on captured yet identified pain receptors in groups much more need for space and enrich- fish for feed. such as crustaceans (e.g., shrimps) or ment than bivalves do.26 In addition, even researched this question much at welfare concerns will be greater for Animal Welfare all in groups such as echinoderms (the motile, migratory animals like salmon Finally, aquaculture raises animal wel- farming of sea cucumbers, which are than for sessile animals like mussels. fare concerns, which are commonly echinoderms, is also on the rise).12 This is not to say that no welfare discussed in the case of terrestrial Meanwhile, mollusks (a large concerns exist for bivalves or sessile animal farming but almost never phylum of invertebrates that includes animals. But it is to say that there are discussed in the case of aquaculture. cephalopods and bivalves) are a highly fewer welfare concerns about these One important area of research diverse group, members of which species groups than about others, espe- is whether and to what degree fish likely have highly diverse experi- cially in conditions of captivity. and aquatic invertebrates experience ences. On one end of this spectrum, Any complete examination of pain and suffering. Over the past 15 cephalopods (e.g., octopuses) perform aquaculture practices must take these years, scientific evidence has revealed exceptional behaviors and possess considerations into account. Yet, the that vertebrate species including fish highly developed brains and nervous FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible do experience pain and suffering.23 systems, to the extent that some Fisheries,22 which has a large section (Examining why so many people have people even refer to them as “honorary on aquaculture including a long list of assumed otherwise would require vertebrates.” In a review paper on pain ecological considerations, makes no a much longer essay.) For example, in mollusks, for example, Crook and mention of animal welfare. FAO does many fish (e.g., trout, cod, carp, gold- Walters state, “one must seriously con- not publish the numbers of individual fish, and salmon) respond to harmful sider the possibility that cephalopods aquatic animals slaughtered annually, stimuli both behaviorally as well as can experience some form of pain.”25 as they do with mammals and birds.5 physiologically, for instance, with On the other end of this spectrum, Similarly, FAO hosts a participatory increased heart rates, increased breath- bivalves (e.g., oysters, mussels, and website dedicated to farmed animal ing rates, suppression of hunger, and a clams) seem to be considerably welfare,27 but aquatic species receive loss of focus on other aims, and there less complex, though they do show only marginal representation. Animal is strong reason to believe that these some behavioral and physiological welfare should become a much bigger findings will generalize.24 Granted, responses to harmful stimuli (e.g., part of the aquaculture discussion, there are expected variations among escape swimming in scallops). and FAO could be one of the many fish species. Evidence for feeling pain In addition to asking whether and organizations to assist in facilitating is most robust for bony fish (and to what degree aquatic animals are this discussion.

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The Solution? Bivalve farming is not free 9. Ackefors, H & Rosén, CG. Farming aquatic animals: Current industrial animal farming from ecological and welfare issues. the emergence of a world-wide industry with practices are designed to maximize Ecological impacts are already profound ecological consequences. AMBIO 8, 132–143 (1979). economic benefits, with significant documented in some places (e.g., some 10. Diana, JS. Aquaculture production and costs for the environment, food secu- bivalve species can become invasive). biodiversity conservation. BioScience 59, 27–38 rity, and animal welfare (among other In terms of welfare, granting bivalves (2009). negative impacts). Industrial aqua- the ability to experience pain errs on 11. Duarte, CM et al. Will the oceans help feed culture poses many of the same risks the side of caution. However, even humanity? Bioscience 59, 967–976 (2009). 12. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture as terrestrial animal agriculture, yet assuming they do experience pain, 2012 (Food and Agriculture Organization of the because this industry is still in its early they are still likely to experience less United Nations, Rome, 2012). http://www.fao.org/ days, humans have an opportunity pain in captivity than other, more docrep/016/i2727e/i2727e00.htm. to chart a different, more responsible active animals. Yet, despite bivalves 13. Stergiou, KI, Tsikiliras, AC & Pauly, D. Farming up course.28 It is imperative that we take being the species group with the the Mediterranean food webs. Conservation Biology advantage of this opportunity by most promise, and the fact that their 23, 230–232 (2009). 14. Volpe, JP et al. Global Aquaculture Performance questioning, right now, whether or not absolute numbers keep increasing, Index (GAPI): The First Global Environmental we should be farming aquatic animal they make up less and less of total Assessment of Marine Fish Farming. Sustainability 5, species at all and, if so, which ones. aquaculture. Bivalves accounted for 3976–3991 (2013). Based on the criteria we discussed almost half of global aquaculture in 15. Hughes, T, Huang, H & Young, MAL. The wicked here—environmental impacts, food the 1980s, but due to the explosion problem of China’s disappearing coral reefs. Conservation Biology 27, 261–269 (2012). security, and animal welfare—what in finfish farming now account for 16. Krkosek, M. Sea lice and salmon in Pacific 5,12 would an ideal species group look like? only around 30 percent. This is Canada: ecology and policy. FREE 8, 201–209 Quite simply: plant species. Assuming, precisely the wrong trend if we want (2010). however, that we insist on farming animal aquaculture to lead to a more 17. Hamilton, S. Assessing the role of commercial aquatic animals, then the answer food secure, sustainable, and humane aquaculture in displacing mangrove forest. Bulletin becomes species that are as plant-like future. of Marine Science 89, 585–601 (2013). 18. Tacon, AG. Climate change, food security and as possible. It should be a species group aquaculture. Advancing the Aquaculture Agenda, that does not require fish feed, does not References 109–119 (2010). 1. Mood, A & Brooke, P. Estimating the number of require conversion of habitat, does not 19. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United farmed fish killed in global aquaculture each year. contribute to pollution, and has very Nations [online]. www.fao.org. Fishcount.org [online] (2012). http://fishcount.org. 20. Salmon Farming: Sustaining Communities and little potential to be invasive. It should uk/published/std/fishcountstudy2.pdf. Feeding the World (International Salmon Farmers consist of animals who are either not 2. Teletchea, F & Fontaine, P. Levels of domestication Association, Boston, 2015). in fish: implications for the sustainable future of likely to experience pain and suffering 21. BC Salmon Farmers Association [online]. www. aquaculture. Fish and Fisheries 15, 181–195 (2014). at all, or not likely to experience signifi- bcsalmonfarmers.ca. 3. Naylor, RL et al. Effect of aquaculture on world fish cant pain and suffering in captivity in 22. Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Food supplies. Nature 405, 1017–1024 (2000). particular—animals whose health and and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 4. Naylor, RL et al. Feeding aquaculture in an era of [online] (1995). org/docrep/005/v9878e/v9878e00. well-being is at least somewhat compat- finite resources. Proceedings of the National Academy HTM. of Sciences 106, 15103–15110 (2009). ible with industrial methods. 23. Sneddon, LU. Pain in aquatic animals. The Journal of 5. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2016. In general, non-fed invertebrates Experimental Biology 218, 967–976 (2015). Food and Agriculture Organization of the United are likely better than fed invertebrates 24. Braithwaite, VA. Do Fish Feel Pain? (Oxford Nations [online] (2016). http://www.fao.org/3/a- or any vertebrates. Of all the aquatic University Press, Oxford, 2010). i5555e.pdf. 25. Crook, RJ & Walters, ET. Nociceptive behavior animal species groups that we eat as 6. Alder, J, Campbell, B, Karpouzi, V, Kaschner, K & and physiology of molluscs: animal welfare food, bivalves appear to be the most Pauly, D. Forage fish: from ecosystems to markets. implications. ILAR J. 52, 185–195 (2011). Annual Review of Environment and Resources 33, promising in terms of minimizing eco- 26. Bergqvist, J & Gunnarsson, S. Finfish aquaculture: 153–166 (2008). logical harm (in some cases they may Animal welfare, the environment, and ethical 7. Cury, PM et al. Global seabird response to forage even be beneficial), minimizing food implications. Journal of Agricultural and fish depletion—one-third for the birds. Science 334, security harm (as highly nutritious Environmental Ethics 26, 75–99 (2013). 1703–1706 (2011). 27. Gateway to Farm Animal Welfare. FAO [online] organisms that do not rely on outside 8. Piroddi, C, Bearzi, G & Christensen, V. Marine open (2016). http://www.fao.org/ag/againfo/themes/ cage aquaculture in the eastern Mediterranean Sea: food sources), and minimizing animal animal-welfare/aw-awhome/en/?no_cache=1. a new trophic resource for bottlenose dolphins. welfare concerns related to captive 28. McWilliams, J. Just Food (Little, Brown and Marine Ecology Progress Series 440, 255–266 (2011). rearing. Company, New York, 2009).

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