ORGANICS & AQUACULTURE

Dr Sean Handley,
NIWA Nelson

Introduction

The organics movement in New Zealand and overseas is starting to incorporate the marine environment which supports the fastest developing industry in the world. The sea is coming under increasing pressures from the development of aquaculture following the decline of wild fisheries. Further, with the decline of agriculture production worldwide and the threat of sea-level rise from global warming, farming the sea is becoming the popular option for feeding our burgeoning human population (Pedini 1999).

World aquaculture production has more than doubled since 1984, and reached a record 20,900,000 metric tons (mt) of fish and shellfish in 1995 (Goldberg & Triplett 1997). In New Zealand we have over 1,000 marine farms which earned $200M in export returns to NZ in 1998, over half of which came from Greenshell™ mussels (Grange pers. comm).

Consumer driven backlash creates potential

Recently, environmental organisations overseas have begun black-listing some wild and cultured fish and shellfish products which are deemed environmentally unfriendly or unsustainable (Fig 1. Doubilet 1998, Fig 2. 1999 Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation). With the global demand for organic food in the wake of the GMO bubble squeeze, the demand for environmentally friendly wild-caught and cultured species is increasing. I see an opportunity here in NZ that could help our companies ensure they can continue to sell their products, and ensure the sustainable use of the environment by encouraging organic certification for aquaculture products. The incentives industries would have to achieve such standards would be any added value or demand such a standard would command for their products on the open market.

Figure 1. What's a Fish Lover to Eat? The Aubudon guide to seafood (Doubilet 1998)

Figure 2. "Seafood watch" a guide for consumers with some entries relevant to NZ.

1999 Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation.

Oyster farms- a NZ example

If we consider oyster farms here in NZ as an example, production is carried out with the complete lack of any added chemicals or pesticides, with perhaps the exception of the tanalised posts used to construct the racks. My own expertise has been to study ways of avoiding some of the parasites and pests that afflict oyster farms. These pests can wipe out whole stocks if the farms are poorly managed. Direct control with chemicals is unthinkable for most farmers whose production levels and profits dictate that they cannot afford interventionist approaches to parasites and pests. They must either be avoided through proper culture techniques or tolerated at low levels. For example mudworm commensals infest the shells of the oysters inducing the formation of unsightly blisters which affect their retail value. And flatworm predators can also eat adult and baby oysters. Both of these pests can be avoided by optimising culture methods and understanding the biology of the pests of concern. Many oyster farmers consider their oysters to be canaries of the sea, and are constantly lobbying regional bodies to clean up their act to maintain water quality.

The ecology of aquaculture

To me there are many parallels between organic approaches to agriculture and what can be achieved in marine systems. At present many of the farmed species in the sea appear similar to the monocultures we see in modern agriculture. Ecologically, oysters or mussels are the grazers, feeding on the plants (phytoplankton) and miroorganisms floating around in the ocean. Some studies suggest that just like terrestrial systems, the presence of grazers can increase nutrient cycling, and in the sea grazers like oysters and mussels may be essential for proper community function (Smaal 1999, Dame et al. 1997). Increasing the grazer levels in some estuaries may also help mitigate the effects of land based eutrofication from modern agriculture. I hope that in the future there will be a move towards "polyculture" systems which culture more than one species to increase the cycling of essential nutrients, eg. farming seaweed, shellfish and sponges all on the same site- much like companion planting on land. The diversification into polyculture not only makes ecological sense (Jones & Iwoma 1991, Troell et al 1999), it should also help increase financial returns to the growers.

Organic aquaculture in NZ

Many would think, that if we grow food such as oysters or mussels without the use of chemicals, it must be organic by default? In the past anecdotal accounts from NZ salmon and oyster farmers who approached standards organisations were told they might be ineligible for certification, as they cannot ensure what their cultured animals are eating. So there are perceived problems with certification within the aquaculture industry. These include threats from contaminants entering waterways from conventional chemical driven agriculture as well as recreational boaties, and domestic and industrial pollution- "yes, marine farmers have to deal with the likes of spray drift too!". However, today I know of Biogrow members who are oyster farmers and growers of salmon and freshwater crayfish, so the demand for organic products is reaching aquaculturists.

In support of organic aquaculture production, NZ has in place some of the most stringent export testing regimes allowing us to sell shellfish and fish products to some of the most challenging overseas markets (eg. US and Japan) without the need for depuration. Depuration is the placing of shellfish into clean water to decontaminate themselves, a process essential for the sale of shellfish in many other countries. To maintain our presence in these overseas markets NZ has one of the most rigorous biotoxin monitoring programs operating in the world to detect toxic algal blooms. Aquaculturists together with Regional Health Boards also help fund sanitation testing of growing waters to detect unwanted bacterial and viral pollutants. In Nelson and Marlborough there are sophisticated models in place to govern the harvesting criteria for shellfish based on NIWA’s telemetered rain gauges and salinity meters. All these measures ensure that production is not affected by contaminants. Currently companies which are concerned about stocking levels and who would like to predict long term stocking densities are also funding their own sustainability monitoring programs. These go as far as regular phytoplankton cell counts and measuring nutrient levels in their areas. The NZ Mussel Industry Council has also produced its own Environmental Code of Practice- the first marine farmers to do so in the world.

We should be assuring that our aquaculture industries are ecologically sustainable and ensure they remain competitive overseas. What better way to achieve this than to encourage organic certification. If we don’t, aquaculture runs the risk of going down the same roads as modern agriculture. Already, aquaculture production overseas poses health and environmental threats from the inappropriate use of antibiotics, genetic manipulation (polyploids to increase condition; Nell 1994, monosex, hybrids, and GMO’s; Soogaloos 1999) and the introduction of noxious species (Duggan 1979) to name a few.

Organic aquaculture overseas

In the US a report by Goldberg & Triplett (1997) titled "Murky Waters: Environmental Effects of Aquaculture in the United States" documented the adverse impacts some types of aquaculture are having on the environment. A strong recommendation that came out of that report which I think has merit for NZ was "to develop organic or "eco-certification" programs that empower consumers to chose aquaculture products grown in an environmentally friendly sound manner and that give aquaculturists incentives to produce products which can bring higher prices". A search of the Internet revealed a number of initiatives towards this goal are already well underway around the world;

• Three years ago a group of consultants from Germany and the Netherlands developed a pilot salmon farm in the Irish Clare Irish Sea Farm based on NATURLAND organic standards (NATURLAND 2000, Agro-Eco Consultancy 1999). They are now working on systems for producing organic shrimps in Ecuador.
• The USDA has been drafting organic aquaculture standards as part of their National Organics Program proposed rule (NPO) for a first wave of applicants from environmentally sound industries (Kapuscinski & Brister 1999).
• And a very recent development of a London based charity has launched the worlds first sustainable seafood products under the "Marine Stewardship Council" standards (MSC)- an initiative with links to the Dutch organic certifier "Skal" and the World Wide Fund for Nature WWF in the Netherlands (MSC 2000, Agro-Eco Consultancy 1999).

Interestingly, one of the first seafoods to be launched under the MSC standards was the Western Australian Rock Lobster Fishery (MSC 2000), and the mussel and cockle fisheries in the Waddensea are under the MSC pre-certification process at present (Agro-Eco Consultancy 1999).

Conclusions

All of these initiatives are very encouraging. I think there needs to be more pro-active promotion of organic certification for aquaculture in NZ. But this raises a number of questions;

• Can we afford to let market forces drive the adoption of standards along the lines of the Marine Stewardship Council? Some NZ industries may say they are already green enough.
• Should we adopt the MSC approach to sustainable use of the marine environment, which appears to be designed for fisheries, or should NZ promote organic certification?
• Who will take on the task of promoting organic certification in aquaculture in NZ?
• Who is going to fund these initiatives- private organisations, or a government body?

References

Agro-Eco Consultancy. 1999. MSC pre-certification of mussel and cockle fisheries - the Netherlands. "http://antenna.nl/agroeco/welkom.htm"

Dame, R. F., Koepfler,E.,Gregory,L., Prins,T., Allen,D., Bushek,D., Corbett,C., Edwards,D., Kjerfve,B., Lewitus,A., and Schubauer-Berigan,J. 1997. Oyster reefs as structural and functional components of tidal creeks: an ongoing ecosystem experiment. Journal of Shellfish Research 16(1): 260.

Doubilet, D. 1998. The National Audubon Society's Living Oceans Program- What's a Fish Lover to Eat? The Aubudon guide to seafood. "http://magazine.audubon.org/seafood/guide/"

Duggan, C. B. (1979). Man's role in the spreading of oyster pests and diseases, Conference proceedings: The introduction of exotic species, advantages and problems. Ireland pp. 51-56.

Goldberg, R. and Triplett, T. 1997 Murky Waters: Environmental Effects of Aquaculture in the United States. "http://www.edf.org/pubs/Reports/Aquaculture/"

Jones, T. O. and G. K. Iwama 1991. Polyculture of the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas (Thunberg), with chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha. Aquaculture. 92: 313-322.

Kapuscinski, A.R. and Brister, D.J. 1999. Comments and recommendations on national organic standards board, organic aquaculture standards second draft (Oct.20,1998) & thrird draft (May 18 1999): authorized methods and materials for the production of organic finfish and shellfish. "http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/Attachment%2010.pdf"

MSC 2000. The Marine Stewardship Council Certification Programme. "http://www.msc.org/index3.htm"

Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation. 1999. "Seafood watch" a guide for consumers. "http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/efc_oc/dngr_food_watch.asp"

NATURLAND. 2000. A NATURLAND initiative in Ecuador, organic shrimp production. "http://www.wecoconsult.de/MainFrame/Aktuelles/naturland_uk.htm"

Pedini, M. 1999. Can aquaculuture bridge the gap between the demand for food fish and the supply from capture fisheries? Plenary session, World Aquaculture ’99 Conference, 26 April- 2 May 199 Sydney, Australia

Smaal, A.C. 1999. Bivalve carrying capacity of a changing estuary. World Aquaculture ’99 Conference, 26 April- 2 May 199 Sydney, Australia.

Soogaloos, P. 1999. Challenges and opportunities for aquaculture research and development in the next century. Plenary session, World Aquaculture ’99 Conference, 26 April- 2 May 199 Sydney, Australia.

Troell, M., Kautsky,N. Folke,C. 1999. Applicability of integrated coastal aquaculture systems. Ocean & Coastal Management 42: 63-69.

s.handley@niwa.cri.nz