FAQ

Ak sa akvakultúra vykonáva udržateľným spôsobom, môže pomôcť vyriešiť niektoré z najnaliehavejších problémov, ktorým dnes čelíme.

— Akvakultúra dodáva rastúcej svetovej populácii výživné a rozmanité potraviny.

— Akvakultúra znižuje potrebu loviť viac voľne žijúcich rýb s cieľom uspokojiť rastúci dopyt po rybách, a tým prispieva k zachovaniu populácií rýb.

— Môže poskytovať čerstvé a miestne potraviny. Dodávanie potravín bližšie k spotrebiteľovi umožňuje znížiť emisie uhlíka v doprave.

— Akvakultúra môže produkovať potraviny a krmivá s menším vplyvom na klímu a životné prostredie ako iné typy chovu (napr. chov hovädzieho dobytka na mlieko alebo mäso). Konzumáciou väčšieho množstva potravín z akvakultúry môžeme znížiť aj tlak poľnohospodárstva na pôdu.

— Akvakultúrne činnosti môžu byť zdrojom príjmov a rozvoja odľahlých pobrežných a vidieckych komunít, ak je k dispozícii málo alternatív. Určité typy akvakultúry prispievajú k zachovaniu ekosystémov a biodiverzity (napr. chov mäkkýšov, extenzívna akvakultúra v rybníkoch a mokradiach a chov rias a iných bezstavovcov). Tieto služby zahŕňajú čistenie vody pred nadmernými živinami a organickou hmotou alebo ochranu a obnovu ekosystémov a biodiverzity.

— Pred uvedením akvakultúrnych fariem do prevádzky musia budúci výrobcovia v oblasti akvakultúry získať povolenie od príslušných vnútroštátnych orgánov (niekedy môžu byť za povolenia zodpovedné regionálne orgány). Orgány v rámci svojho posúdenia skontrolujú, či je navrhované miesto vhodné, a dôkladne overia potenciálny vplyv farmy na životné prostredie.

— Výrobcovia v oblasti akvakultúry potrebujú pred použitím morskej vody alebo sladkej vody na farme oprávnenie. Keď sa vracajú do životného prostredia, stav vodného útvaru sa nesmie zhoršiť.

— Okrem toho zariadenia pre akvakultúru musia byť registrované alebo schválené sanitárnymi orgánmi, ktoré sa zaoberajú zdravím zvierat, a farmár aj tieto orgány majú povinnosť vykonávať dohľad nad možnými chorobami.

— Po získaní všetkých autorít musia výrobcovia v oblasti akvakultúry splniť niekoľko podmienok, aby sa zabezpečilo, že akvakultúrne činnosti rešpektujú životné prostredie, zdravie ľudí a zvierat a dobré životné podmienky zvierat.

— Schválené poľnohospodárske podniky musia naďalej monitorovať ich vplyv na životné prostredie.

— Na ochranu životného prostredia môžu výrobcovia používať len povolené krmivá, čistiace prostriedky a lieky.

— Pokiaľ ide o zdravie zvierat, poľnohospodári sú takisto povinní viesť niekoľko záznamov vrátane záznamov o tom, koľko zvierat vstupuje na farmu a opúšťa ju a koľko uhynie. Musia zaznamenávať aj opatrenia, ktoré prijmú na prevenciu a riadenie akéhokoľvek rizika výskytu choroby. Akvakultúrni chovatelia musia v záujme ochrany zdravia spotrebiteľov dodržiavať prísne pravidlá týkajúce sa hygieny potravín a zdravia zvierat. Smú používať iba povolené a kontrolované krmivá.

— Používanie veterinárnych liekov si vyžaduje predpis veterinárneho lekára a povolené sú len povolené veterinárne lieky, pričom sa dodržiavajú predpísané ochranné lehoty a limity rezíduí. Chovatelia musia zaznamenávať všetky veterinárne lieky, ktoré používajú, a uchovávať kópiu predpisov.

— Okrem toho musia poľnohospodári zabezpečiť humánne zaobchádzanie s hospodárskymi zvieratami počas celého ich produkčného cyklu a počas zabíjania a prepravy.

Aby bolo možné zistiť, či sa v určitej oblasti môže realizovať projekt akvakultúry, musí sa vykonať štúdia životaschopnosti oblasti (napr. dostupnosť kvalitnej vody, nezasahovanie do iného využitia, podmienky zriadenia akvakultúrnych lokalít v oblasti) a možných druhov, ktoré sa majú chovať. Existuje mnoho možných lokalít pre akvakultúru (napr. na pevnine, v pobrežných vodách, na mori, v ústí riek, v rybníkoch, vedľa riek). Na získanie licencie má každá lokalita odlišné podmienky a štúdie, ktoré sa majú vykonať, sú odlišné. Príslušné orgány niekedy identifikujú predtým skúmané oblasti, v ktorých je možná a priorizácia akvakultúrnej činnosti, čo zrýchľuje získavanie povolení pre farmu v danej oblasti.

Hoci teoreticky by sa všetky druhy rýb mohli využívať na akvakultúrny chov, len niekoľko z nich (približne 10) je v súčasnosti dôležitou súčasťou akvakultúrnej produkcie EÚ. Chovajú sa najmä tie druhy, ktorých biológia je dobre známa a ktorých rozmnožovanie v zajatí je možné. Zároveň musí existovať dopyt na trhu po týchto druhoch a trhová cena, ktorá umožní, aby bola výroba zisková.

There are very diverse production methods for EU aquaculture species, some of the main ones are the following (STECF Aquaculture economic data table, 2023):

- Enclosures, pens, recirculation systems and tanks for salmon;

- Tanks and raceways, recirculation systems and ponds for trout;

- Pens, tanks, ponds, recirculation systems for sea bass and sea bream;

- Rafts, polyculture, logline for mussels;

- Ponds, tanks, raceways, gages, polyculture for carp;

- On-bottom, longline, rafts and polyculture for oyster;

- Ponds, raceways, tanks for crustaceans;

- On bottom, tanks and raceways, pens, recirculation systems, polyculture, rafts, longline, tanks for seaweed;

- Open or closed-system bioreactors for microalgae.

In addition, during the early growth stages, most fish species and seaweeds need to be in a hatchery and a nursery. Seeds of molluscs are produced in hatcheries or collected from the wild.

Like any economic activity, aquaculture has an impact on the environment. This depends on the quality of management of the activity, the suitability of the location and the production system. When properly managed, aquaculture can also be a method of protein production with a lower carbon and environmental footprint than other types of farming. Furthermore, certain forms of aquaculture (e.g. mollusc farming, aquaculture in ponds and wetlands, and the farming of algae and other invertebrates), when appropriately managed, can offer many ecosystem services. These services include the absorption of excess nutrients and organic matter from the environment or the conservation and restoration of ecosystems and biodiversity.

EU environmental legislation and implementing national legislation have set the regulatory framework for EU aquaculture that ensures the mitigation of the impact that aquaculture activities may have on the environment (be it in terms of carbon footprint, effluents, waste or other impacts on marine and freshwater ecosystems), and that aquaculture activities do not significantly harm ecosystems or biodiversity.

The environmental performance of the EU aquaculture sector can nevertheless be further improved by: (i) ensuring that environmental legislation is fully applied and its objectives are met; (ii) further mitigating the impact of aquaculture; and (iii) promoting aquaculture with lower environmental impact and aquaculture that provides ecosystem services.

The ‘Strategic guidelines for a more sustainable and competitive EU aquaculture for the period 2021 to 2030’ aim to improve the environmental performance of the aquaculture sector by further limiting the impact of aquaculture, as well as promoting the types of aquaculture that are most beneficial for the environment and the climate such as low trophic aquaculture and organic aquaculture.

Aquaculture requires good water quality to ensure optimal health and welfare of aquatic animals and the profitability of an aquatic farm. Therefore, the fight against water pollution by EU Member States, in line with the “zero pollution” ambition defined in the European Green Deal, is of particular importance to aquaculture.

Aquaculture producers need authorisation before using seawater or fresh water for the farm. When they return it to the environment, the status of the water body must not deteriorate. Discharges from EU aquaculture facilities must meet the rigorous EU water quality standards as well as stringent national, regional, and local regulations.

Certain forms of aquaculture such as mollusc farming and the farming of algae and other invertebrates, when appropriately managed, can improve the water quality due to the absorption of excess nutrients and organic matter from the environment.

Recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) are land-based aquaculture facilities – either open air or indoors – that minimise water consumption by filtering, adjusting, and reusing the water.

Compared to traditional pond or open water aquaculture, the water recirculation process in RAS makes it possible to control the culture conditions and collect waste. In addition, land-based aquaculture avoids escapees and limits external transmission of diseases and parasites. RAS gives promise of more sustainable food production with lower consumption of fresh water, and shorter transport distances, as fish can be grown closer to the markets. By controlling the culture conditions, aquaculture production in a RAS facility can be established almost anywhere, regardless of local conditions. By moving the production on land, it can also mitigate the scarcity of available space and competition for access to sea areas.

On the other hand, a RAS facility tends to be energy intensive and expensive. Investment costs are high, and the recirculation technology consumes vast amounts of energy and requires to be controlled and managed by a skilled workforce. Furthermore, the technology remains to prove its viability on large-scale production, especially concerning saline water environments.

Feed for farmed fish must incorporate important levels (35-50%) of highly digestible proteins and high energy through high quality fats, to maintain their activity and growth. The raw materials available for the manufacturing of such aquafeed come from three main origins:

(i) Vegetable by-products from wheat, soya, and maize.

(ii) Fish meal and oil from fish and marine crustaceans although their share in feed is decreasing.

(iii) In some cases, also by-products from the terrestrial animal production sector, which are highly nutritious.

Nowadays, sustainable feeding systems are being promoted, limiting the dependence on fishmeal and fish oil from wild stocks for food production, for example, encouraging the use of alternative protein ingredients, such as algae or insects, or waste from other industries. This is also reflected in the Strategic guidelines for a more sustainable and competitive EU aquaculture for the period 2021 to 2030.

According to Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32018R0848), organic production is an overall system of farm management and food production that combines best environmental and climate action practices, a high level of biodiversity, the preservation of natural resources and the application of high animal welfare standards and high production standards in line with the demand of a growing number of consumers for products produced using natural substances and processes. This Regulation together with certain relevant secondary acts, provides for detailed production rules for organic aquaculture which include environmental requirements, respect of a period for conversion into organic production, nutrition, animal welfare, health care and husbandry requirements with detailed maximum stocking densities for species and strict limitations on use of external input, among others on veterinarian treatments.

To be able to use the organic EU logo and to mention "organic" on the labels of their products, the organic operators must be certified by a control body approved by the competent authorities who will attest that their activity is carried out in compliance with the EU organic regulation.

More information on the EU organic certification system and its enforcement is available on the following Commission’s webpage:

Organic farming (https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/farming/organic-farming_en). In addition a FAQ document on provisions concerning organic productions, including a chapter on organic aquaculture, is available here: https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2022-09/organic-rules-faq….