The Global Aquaculture Alliance’s (GAA) Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) third-party certification program had a fruitful 2013, experiencing growth in terms of the number of BAP-certified facilities and the volume of product from BAP-certified facilities available in the marketplace.
Last year, the BAP program experienced a 31 percent increase in the number of facilities certified, a 29 percent increase in the volume of product originating from BAP-certified processing plants and a 57 percent increase in the volume of product originating from BAP-certified farms.
The annual output from BAP-certified processing plants totaled 1.392 million metric tons (MT) as of 31 December 2013, up from 1.076 MT at the end of 2012 — a 29.4 percent increase. The number of BAP-certified plants jumped from 210 at the end of 2012 to 248 at the end of 2013.
Meanwhile, the annual output from BAP-certified farms totaled 751,000 MT as of 31 December 2013, up from 478,000 MT at the end of 2012 — a 57.1 percent increase.
The number of BAP-certified farms jumped from 248 at the end of 2012 to 352 at the end of 2013. Additionally, the number of BAP-certified hatcheries and feed mills totaled 28 and 21, respectively.
Much of the growth within the BAP program in 2013 came from salmon. Last year, the output from BAP-certified salmon farms more than doubled, to more than 439,000 MT, while the output from BAP-certified salmon processing plants more than tripled in 2013, to more than 453,000 MT.
Progress also came in standards development in 2013. In April, new BAP finfish and crustacean farm standards were completed, opening up the BAP program to a number of species not previously covered, including sea bass, sea bream, cobia, trout and barramundi.
In August, new BAP mussel farm standards were finalized and will be used as a template to develop broader mollusk farm standards for clams, oysters, scallops, abalone and other species. The hatchery and nursery standards for finfish, crustaceans and mollusks are also expected to be completed this year.
The BAP program also welcomed a number of firsts in 2013, including the first BAP-certified mussel processing plant (Canada’s Norlantic Processors Ltd.), the first BAP-certified mussel farm (Canada’s Atlantic Aqua Farms), Australia’s first BAP-certified processing plant (Tassal Group Ltd.), the first company to offer one-star pompano (China’s Guangdong Gourmet Aquatic Products Co.), the United States’ first BAP-certified steelhead trout or salmon farm (Pacific Seafood Group) and Europe’s first BAP-certified salmon-processing plant (Norway’s Vikenco AS).
BAP hatchery finfish standards draft released
A draft of the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) hatchery and nursery standards for finfish, crustaceans and mollusks is now available for public comment for 60 days.
The BAP hatchery standards for finfish, crustaceans and mollusks apply to all species for which BAP farm standards exist, including shrimp, salmon, tilapia, catfish, pangasius and mussels.
They apply to all aquaculture facilities that produce eggs and/or juvenile aquatic animals for live transfer to other aquaculture facilities. Production facilities include ponds or tanks on land with directed inflows and outflows of water, trays located intertidally on the foreshore, or rafts or cages (net pens) floating in a body of water. They do not apply to facilities that produce only aquatic animals for harvest and slaughter for human consumption.
Currently, BAP hatchery standards exist for only shrimp. Once finalized, the new BAP hatchery standards for finfish, crustaceans and mollusks will replace the existing BAP shrimp hatchery standards. Also, the new BAP hatchery standards would allow companies to pursue four-star designation for species such as salmon, tilapia, catfish and pangasius.
“The release of this draft standard is an important advancement for the BAP program as it provides a consistent, global basis for certifying hatchery and nursery facilities,” said Lee. “This draft has required substantial input from a specialist technical committee and it can be applied to virtually all species. In common with all BAP standards, it is comprehensive and rests on the BAP pillars of community, environment, animal welfare, food safety and traceability.”
The technical content of the hatchery standards was developed by a technical committee led by John Forster of Forster Consulting Inc. in Port Angeles, Washington. The BAP Standards Oversight Committee — whose members represent a balance of stakeholders from industry, NGOs and academia — recommended refinements to the draft of the BAP hatchery standards before approving them for release.
Comments can be submitted via electronic form at www.gaalliance.org/bap/comments.php, email BAP Standards Coordinator Daniel Lee at dangaelle@aol.com or fax to +44-1248-716729. The deadline to submit comments is 31 March.