Enhancing fish performance in aquaculture

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations defines aquaculture as farming of aquatic organisms including fish, mollusks, crustaceans, and aquatic plants where farming implies some form of intervention in the rearing process and individual or corporate ownership of the stock being cultivated (FAO, 1988). In a recent report, the Food and Agriculture Organization emphasized the importance of enhancing aquaculture production to meet the daunting challenge of feeding a global population expected to reach 9.6 billion people by 2050 (FAO, 2014). At present, increases in fish production globally outpace population growth, largely due to important advances in aquaculture production. As a result, aquaculture now produces more than half of the fish consumed by humans and is projected to increase to 62% by 2030 to meet increasing demand (FAO, 2014). Although various types of technologies have been examined to improve fish growth and performance, productivity largely depends on interactions among genotype, nutrition, and environment. Significant advances in fish genetics, nutrition and feeding, culture systems, and management have cumulatively enhanced fish performance and increased overall global productivity. Technological advancements in these areas that enhance fish performance in aquaculture are discussed in this review.