Worldwide per capita fish consumption has reached a new record of 20.5 kilograms per year and is poised to increase further in the decade ahead, underscoring its critical role in global food and nutrition security. Sustainable aquaculture development and effective fisheries management are critical to maintain these trends, according to a new report from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Total fish production is set to increase to 204 million tonnes in 2030, up 15 percent from 2018, with aquaculture’s share growing from its current 46 46 percent according to the The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA). That growth is around half the increase recorded in the previous decade, and translates into an Annual per capita fish food consumption is forecast to reach 21.5 kilograms by 2030.
“Fish and fisheries products are recognized not only as some of the healthiest foods on the planet but also as some of the less impactful on the natural environment,” says FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, emphasizing that they must play a more central role in food security and nutrition strategies at all levels. Some 34.2 percent of fish stocks are now fished at biologically unsustainable levels, according to SOFIA’s benchmark analysis. That overall measure is too high, and is not globally improving, although it’s welcome to know that 78.7 percent of all fish landed come from biologically sustainable stocks. “The improvement, the fruit of contributions from many stakeholders, attest to the importance of active management to reach and maintain biological sustainability, and serves to underscore how urgently we must replicate such approaches in fisheries and regions where management systems are in poor shape,” said Manuel Barange, Director of the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department.
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