Scientists from the University of Aberdeen have been awarded £2.2million by the European Commission for two research projects, which will ultimately benefit the local Scottish fishing industry and Scottish fish farming industry.
Professor Dominic Houlihan, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering and an expert in fish feeding behaviour and fish nutrition, is involved in both projects, the first of which will look at the possibility of turning carnivorous fish that are cultured, such as salmon and cod, into herbivores. Current fish farming methods rely on fish being fed artificial diets of fishmeal made from fish caught through the world’s fishing activities. However, the supply of fishmeal is becoming increasingly precarious, as the demand for fishmeal increases and stocks of wild fish decline.
The research will involve collaboration between Scotland, France, Spain and Italy. Professor Houlihan said: “The number of fish we can get from the sea is limited, but everyone agrees that we should have more fish farming as a way of producing more food for the world’s populations.
“The obvious answer, therefore, is to use not fishmeal, but other sources to feed the fish that are cultured. Our project will investigate the possibilities of using cereals, or other products, to feed fish such as trout or sea bass. This in turn will lead to the possibility of using corns as feeds for new species that may be cultured, such as cod.”
The second project will also be carried out by a consortium of countries (Scotland, Ireland, Finland, Portugal and Greece) and will be led by Professor Houlihan. Also part of the co-ordinating team are Professor Ioannis Theodossiou (Economics) and Dr Graeme Pierce (Zoology), and the University team will be working with scientists from the Fisheries Research Marine Laboratory in Aberdeen.
The primary objective will be to look at the employment brought about by aquaculture in the West Coast of Scotland and other European countries, and how aquaculture affects the environment and interacts with local fisheries.
Professor Houlihan said: “There has been a lot of concern about fish farming and the effects it has on local fishing in terms of pollution and the spread of fish diseases, and on its impact on tourism. On the other hand, aquaculture does create new employment opportunities in the local area. This project focuses on the effects of aquaculture on local economies and employment, fishery performance and coastal biodiversity.”
Other research staff working on the two projects are Dr Eleanor Mente and Dr Sam Martin of the Department of Zoology, and Heather Dickey, of the Department of Economics.
University Press Office on telephone +44 (0)1224-273778 or email a.ramsay@admin.abdn.ac.uk.