January 22, 2011

1 min read

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The Fish Farm Revolution [Slide Show]

Fish farming could be a sustainable source of food in future

By Mark Fischetti

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Fish raised in offshore cages and coastal pens could become a more sustainable source of protein for humans than wild fish or beef. Global demand for protein is rising steadily, yet fisheries are maxed out and beef production uses large amounts of land, fertilizer and freshwater. For fish farms to be more sustainable, they must work to limit excrement and lower the amount of wild fish needed as feed for captive fish. Kona Blue Water Farms in Hawaii is raising kampachi, and Huon Aquaculture Group in Australia is raising salmon.

Slide Show: The Fish Farm Revolution

Mark Fischetti was a senior editor at Scientific American for nearly 20 years and covered sustainability issues, including climate, environment, energy, and more. He assigned and edited feature articles and news by journalists and scientists and also wrote in those formats. He was founding managing editor of two spin-off magazines: Scientific American Mind and Scientific American Earth 3.0. His 2001 article “Drowning New Orleans” predicted the widespread disaster that a storm like Hurricane Katrina would impose on the city. Fischetti has written as a freelancer for the New York Times, Sports Illustrated, Smithsonian and many other outlets. He co-authored the book Weaving the Web with Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, which tells the real story of how the Web was created. He also co-authored The New Killer Diseases with microbiologist Elinor Levy. Fischetti has a physics degree and has twice served as Attaway Fellow in Civic Culture at Centenary College of Louisiana, which awarded him an honorary doctorate. In 2021 he received the American Geophysical Union’s Robert C. Cowen Award for Sustained Achievement in Science Journalism. He has appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press, CNN, the History Channel, NPR News and many radio stations.

More by Mark Fischetti

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