OFFSHORE aquaculture is likely to play an important role in meeting the Food and Agriculture Organisation's targets for global seafood production, industry experts told a packed conference yesterday.

Around 300 delegates attended the Open Ocean Aquaculture session of AQUA 2006, held in Florence, Italy. The topic is just one of many up for discussion at the four-day conference and trade show, which is being held by the World Aquaculture Society and European Aquaculture Society this week.

Arne Fredheim of SINEF Fisheries and Aquaculture told delegates that offshore aquaculture has a number of advantages over traditional methods of culture, including benefits to fish welfare, increased productivity and improved product quality. He also said it could allay public concern regarding sustainability and welfare issues. Mr Fredheim added that a number of challenges must be addressed if offshore aquaculture is to be successful, adding that the optimal solution for offshore fish farming is yet to be found.

Dr Richard Langan of the University of New Hampshire outlined its Open Ocean Aquaculture project, which has farmed summer flounder, Atlantic halibut, Atlantic cod and haddock offshore. He said the university's researchers believe halibut and cod are the species most likely to thrive in these conditions. Dr Langan described the main challenges the project has overcome - including transfer issues, the need for innovative technology and the extreme weather conditions. He concluded by saying that open offshore aquaculture will be a technology driven enterprise, adding that the industry may learn from models used by the oil and gas industry.

David Jackson of BIM described the development of offshore aquaculture in Ireland and presented some of the results from an offshore aquaculture survey conducted by BIM in 2006. He said that 30% of Irish aquaculture can be described as coming from offshore sites. Surprisingly, when asked what the main challenge of offshore farming is, the majority of survey respondents cited algal blooms and jellyfish as the number one problem. More predictably, feeding, damage to nets, disease and access came out as the other significant challenges. Mr Jackson said offshore aquaculture will allow the industry to make the most of the sea, half joking that in years to come we could even be farming whales as a source of high quality meat!

AQUA 2006 is being held in the Fortezza Da Basso Convention Centre in Florence, Italy and runs until Saturday.

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