Fish go where there is water…and FAO

On 12 April, Igor Shpakov, Consultant at FAO Moscow Office, took part in the conference titled “Aquaculture as a Successful Business: Applied Issues and Development Prospects” at the AquaPro Expo international exhibition.

The discussion focused on the implementation of the development strategy of the Russian fisheries industry for the period up to 2030, on the integration of the national aquaculture enterprises into the global fisheries management system, as well as on the possibilities of organic production and processing in the fisheries sector with the use of modern technologies and equipment.

Alexander Nevredinov, Head of the Eurasian Aquaculture Alliance, moderated the event and highlighted the importance of commercial aquaculture production in the overall data on the harvest within the Russian fisheries industry, which has reached a record 5.05 million tonnes in 2021.

“We are part of the working group on aquaculture of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) and implement a programme for the development of this industry in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), where recent years have seen a significant increase in farmed fish production: in Kazakhstan it has grown 3.6 times, in Kyrgyzstan – 1.5 times, in Russia – 1.4 times.”

Alexander Nevredinov described the main activities of his organization and provided examples of fisheries development projects in such Russian regions as the Smolensk Region, the Republics of North Ossetia and Karelia, as well as the Krasnoyarsk Territory. “We have elaborated a concept for boosting commercial aquaculture growth rate not only through cage aquaculture development, large-scale application of closed-loop water supply installations, but also we focus on ranching, which is particularly relevant to salmonid fish species in the Far East.”

The Head of the Eurasian Aquaculture Alliance also touched upon the topic of innovative directions of fish farming development. “Within the Centre for Organic Aquaculture and Hydroecology at the Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technology and Management  we conduct research on artificial reproduction of valuable fish species, where we test Russian modified feed to increase its productive potential.”

Mr Nevredinov shared information on a promising integrated cage complex in the Krasnodar Territory, operating on the principle of aquaponics. “Spring water is pumped from underground sources into pools with juveniles, and at the end of the cycle, being saturated with biogenes, it is delivered through underground drip lines to irrigate a cornfield. Thanks to this approach, in 2021, a threefold increase in maize yield was achieved,” noted the expert.

Igor Shpakov outlined FAO’s role in developing and promoting “an extremely high-productive and promising sector of the national economy, namely aquaculture.” He drew attention to the functions and work of the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI), its Sub-Committee on Aquaculture COFI:AQ and Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs). “These bodies not only provide opportunities to share expertise, knowledge, and best practices in the field of fisheries management, but also contribute to the development of legal and regulatory frameworks to ensure the sustainable management of aquatic biological resources and the conservation of biodiversity in both oceans and inland waters,” underlined the FAO consultant.

The FAO expert shared his assessments on the development of the national fisheries sector: “Since 2010, the Russian Federation has more than doubled the volume of aquaculture fish production. Last year it reached the level of 356 000 tonnes with an increase of 8.5 percent compared to 2020. The forecast for 2030 is already more than 500 000 tonnes of commercial aquaculture production, which has all chances to become the best growth dynamics result over the region.”

Igor Shpakov presented the main points of the FAO flagship report “The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA) 2020” and of the joint study by FAO and OECD specialists titled “OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2021-2030”. He stressed, “By 2030, global average fish consumption will reach 22 kg per capita, which will be more than two times higher than in 1960. The importance of aquaculture as a driver of agrifood chains in this growing trend is extremely important and illustrative. Fish farming will continue to grow through the application of new technologies and the expansion of feed components.”

“The current difference in average annual growth of traditional marine capture fisheries of 0.4 percent and fish farming of 2 percent would put the aquaculture industry in the lead with figures amounting to 103 million tonnes or 54 percent of the global fish production estimated at 201 million tonnes by the end of this decade.” 

The FAO representative noted that today we have started to witness how COVID-19 restrictions are being gradually withdrawn. Catering establishments are reopening, revitalizing the demand for fish and seafood favorites in restaurants. At the same time, the population has remained interested in food delivery services and online fish production purchase since the pandemic period. However, factors such as disruptions in supply chains causing supply shortages, rise in energy costs and exchange rate volatility still affect the continuing rise in prices for most fish products.

“In this regard, Russian fish farmers should focus their efforts on improving production quality and profitability, pay attention to ensuring modern environmental safety requirements, and develop the use of advanced refrigerator technologies when transporting products,” the representative of the FAO Moscow Office noted.

Igor Shpakov called on SMEs’ representatives to participate in activities of “The International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture” announced by the UN General Assembly in 2022. “There is a wide margin for joint actions in this area in our country,” he concluded.

Oleg Mironenko, Executive Director of the National Organic Union, spoke about the world trends and development prospects of organic fisheries in Russia. Thus, global production of organic aquaculture reached 350 tonnes in 2021, which has been ensured by the presence in this market of about 1 000 producers, mainly from China and Germany.

“Over the last year, more and more representatives of the national retail have contacted us with the request to form an organic shelf for placing Russian suppliers’ aquaculture products,” Oleg Mironenko informed. Moreover, he stated that at the moment in Russia there are still no certified organic aquaculture producers. “Taking into consideration the natural features of the country and its high export potential in this kind of products, this circumstance causes unconditional concern.”

According to the expert, the current situation is due, on the one hand, to the lack of representatives of recognized international certification bodies and the lack of appropriate qualifications among local industry personnel, on the other.  

“Despite the provisions set by the current State Standard 33980-2016 “Organic production. Production regulations, processing, labelling and implementation” and the Law on Organic Products, which entered into force in the Russian Federation in 2020, the Russian legislation is not yet equivalent to the European legislation, so national certificates are not recognized abroad. Perhaps, we should think about aligning the draft of the updated sector-specific State Standard with the international COROS system created by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). After aligning these standards, export-oriented producers will be able to undergo certification in Russia and supply their products abroad without additional administrative barriers,” Oleg Mironenko summed up.  

Inna Golfand, Partner of Strategy Partners, in her report “Key points of development of the Russian aquaculture sector in the new economic realities” expressed concern about Russian fish farmers’ dependence on supplies of imported raw materials (feed, planting material and equipment), which makes the fish farming industry vulnerable against the background of increased geopolitical tension. “In 2021, Russian fish farmers’ costs for producing feed already accounted up to 65 percent of production cost, although in Europe this figure does not exceed 25 percent,” she noted. 

The representative of Strategy Partners informed that in the face of sanctions’ pressure, the Russian Corporation for the Development of Small and Medium Enterprises, together with the Central Bank of Russia, has developed an anti-crisis package of soft loans and grants to support various sectors of domestic business, including fish farming. “At the moment, we are witnessing unique conditions for creating a national base of Russian aquaculture. We have already learnt how to grow high-quality fish, it is high time to learn how to create components for its large-scale production,” Inna Golfand concluded.

The conference was also attended by Elena Shishanova, Acting Director of VNIIR – branch of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution at the Ernest Federal Research Center for Animal Husbandry; Natalia Jansson, Head of Scandi.net Export Department.

BACKGROUND

The AquaPro Expo international exhibition is an expert industry platform for direct dialogue between producers and suppliers of equipment for fish farming, breeding and processing aquatic biological resources with fishing companies, representatives of the scientific community, as well as aquaculture enterprises and other participants in the fishery complex in Russia and other countries.