TARS 2017: Looking at growth potential in Asia

August 25 2017

Bali, Indonesia, was the meeting point for Asia's key players in the finfish aquaculture sector, who gathered to attend the 7th edition of The Aquaculture Roundtable Series (TARS), one of the most recognized events in the aquaculture industry in Asia.

More than 200 aquaculture stakeholders participated in TARS during 16 and 17 of August 2017. The delegates had two days with a comprehensive agenda looking at the growth potential of the industry in Asia and the development of strategic approaches towards market driven production.

As in previous years, the event was sponsored by BioMar, continuing the support to initiatives that can direct aquaculture into a responsible and sustainable industry.

The format of the event included plenary sessions with presentations by experts from the industry, dialogue with finfish farmers, and breakout Roundtable Sessions aimed at problem solving, sharing of experiences, and identifying strategies. This year's group topics for the Breakout Sessions were marketing, image & sustainability, production efficiency & industrialisation, and performance & functional feeds.

Niels Alsted, Business Relations and Technical Director Asia, BioMar Group, delivered a presentation on the challenges in finfish farming in China.

Niels Alsted explained: "Farming in China is still based on many small family units in rural conditions. New technologies are only very recently introduced and are implemented in relatively few places. As a consequence of the impressive growth in almost all sectors also outside aquaculture, the Chinese demand for water and space is huge. This development requires the use of new technologies in farming like recirculation, water treatment and efficient feed."

"Consumers demand safe and sustainable produced fish, in China as in other regions of the world. This requires new types of feeds where performance is more important than feed price per kg and where limiting the discharge of nutrients is included in the formulation. Complying with these legitimate consumer concerns also will require a more enforced regulation around food safety, the environmental footprint and a more transparent chain from raw material all the way to consumers", concluded Niels Alsted.

Niels Alsted, Business Relations and Technical Director Asia, BioMar Group, delivered a presentation on the challenges in finfish farming in China.