Feeding growth
US soybean sector behind successful modernisation programme in China
Much like today, 25 years ago most of the world’s aquaculture took place in China and raised various species of carp in ponds. But Chinese aquaculture has undergone many changes since then.
Most of these improvements are due to work funded by American soybean farmers, says the US Soybean Export Council’s (USSEC), following the launch
Europe, and the Middle East.
farmers aimed to improve feed and farming methods to be more environmentally friendly, sustainable and consumer safe.
A marine aquaculture component was added in the early 2000s for the
also developed an inexpensive, self-submerging and typhoon resistant culture techniques and feeds.
More recently, USSEC has pioneered intensive pond aquaculture (IPA) in the amount of labour required.
by re-using the pond water, which was previously discarded due to waste increasingly compromised and overexploited in China.
Jim Zhang, USSEC’s aquaculture programme manager in China, said: ‘While the advantages of the IPA system are well recognised by producers and has strong support from the government, it has also demonstrated advantages to the US soy industry.
stability for lower feed conversion and less waste removal, which means
To support the expansion of IPA technology in China, USSEC’s aquaculture provinces, is providing more technical support through seminars and on-site
In 2013.
dominant species.
species have been brought into the IPA.
Both small and big farms can do IPA, depending on the size. Usually we call a three-cell IPA one around US$30,000. There is one 52-cell IPA op
USSEC started its aquaculture programme in ducted by USSEC in 1989 were two big workshops on feed based aquaculture in Guangzhou and Hangzhou.
Jesse Chappell and his friends in Alabama for the Thus we decided to bring the technology into China in 2013