Get together
This is the month for conferences, not just in the world of politics, but in our world, too. As Janet Brown points out (page 18) there are two shellfish meetings and the European Aquaculture Society’s annual get together in Rotterdam competing for attention. All have packed agendas and top speakers, covering everything from the latest research, to the environment to - there’s no escaping - politics, and we will be reporting on all three gatherings in our November issue.
This month we bring you news of two relatively new industries. Aquaponics has been developing on a small-scale basis for some years - in Australia, for example - but has yet to reach its full commercial potential. We talk to some of the innovators trying to broaden its appeal.
An even younger field is insects for feed, which is starting to attract not just attention but investment too. Exciting ventures with black soldier flies are taking place on several continents and we catch up with the biggest of these, in South Africa. In Scotland, scientists are also involved in exploring this alternative source of fish feed protein and Stirling’s David Little explains how the research is progressing.
Our industry pioneer is John Russell, a Marine Harvest veteran who now runs the only salmon farm in the Irish Sea. You can read about his journey from 16-year-old farm assistant to globe-trotting businessman on page 20.
We are approaching the end of our first year as a monthly title and would be very interested to hear what you think of the magazine. If you have an opinion please get in touch.