arm-raised fish: a growin 

 of the nation's seafood pr 



By Kathy Hart 



To meet America's growing hunger 

 for seafood last year, the United States 

 imported almost half of the fish and 

 shellfish dished up on dinner plates. 



To be exact, three billion pounds of 

 seafood valued at $4.8 billion arrived 

 in the United States from foreign 

 shores. 



U.S. landings of ocean edibles 

 amounted to 3.4 billion pounds. 



But Americans' appetites have just 

 begun to be whetted. 



Every day, another medical study, 

 magazine article or disease prevention 

 organization extols the virtues and 

 health benefits of fish and shellfish. 



As a result, the public is dining on 

 seafood at an increasing rate— 13.6 

 pounds per person in 1984, 14.5 

 pounds in 1985, 14.7 pounds in 1986. 



Experts estimate that U.S. per 

 capita consumption could approach 

 46 pounds by the year 2000. 



But to increase U.S. consumption 

 by just one pound per person, 

 fishermen must net an additional 700 

 million pounds of fish. 



Seafood is showing up more often on 

 American tables 



The U.S. catch of wild fishery stocks 

 cannot keep pace with the demand. 



Fisheries managers and researchers 

 say many of the most sought-after 

 species— flounder, shrimp, crab— are 

 being fished to the limit. 



Other species are declining due to 

 problems with or reductions in their 

 habitats. 



Economists predict that seafood im- 

 ports will rise, adding to the U.S. 

 foreign trade deficit. 



The only relief in sight is the 

 fledgling industry of aquaculture. 



Yes, it's the farming of catfish in 

 Mississippi, trout in Idaho, mussels in 

 Maine, crawfish in Louisiana and 

 shrimp in Texas that may keep our 

 plates brimming and our bellies full in 

 the future. 



But the concept of aquaculture isn't 

 new. 



The Chinese were raising fish in 

 ponds thousands of years ago. They 

 saw the virtues it offered. 



Aquaculture, if properly practiced, 

 removes much of the guesswork it 

 takes to capture wild fishery stocks. 

 And it lessens the dependency upon 

 unpredictable Mother Nature. 



The fish farmer can control the 

 location, abundance and timing of 

 harvests by managing the life cycle of 

 the fish and shellfish. 



The aquatic creatures are given the 

 best. They're fed, monitored and 

 sheltered from predators. 



Just like farmers who raise com or 

 wheat, aquaculturists want their fishy 

 crop to reach marketable size as soon 

 as possible. 



Worldwide, aquaculture accounts 

 for 12.2 percent of the annual produc- 

 tion of fish and shellfish. By the year 

 2000, it is expected to reach 20 per- 

 cent; by 2010, 25 percent. 



In 1986, Norwegian fish farmers 



