scholarly journals Biofloc Systems for Sustainable Production of Economically Important Aquatic Species: A Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7255
Author(s):  
Muziri Mugwanya ◽  
Mahmoud A. O. Dawood ◽  
Fahad Kimera ◽  
Hani Sewilam

The increasing global population has led to an increase in food demand; consequently, aquaculture is one of the food production sectors that has offered opportunities to alleviate hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. However, the development of a sustainable aquaculture industry has been hindered by the limited availability of natural resources as well as its negative impact on the surrounding environment. Hence, there is an urgent need to search for better aquacultural production systems that, despite their high productivity and profitability, utilize fewer resources such as water, energy, land, and capital in conjunction with a negligible impact on the environment. Biofloc technology (BFT) is one of the most exciting and promising sustainable aquaculture systems; it takes into account the intensive culture of aquatic species, zero water exchange, and improved water quality as a result of beneficial microbial biomass activity, which, at the same time, can be utilized as a nutritious aquaculture feed, thus lowering the costs of production. Furthermore, BFT permits the installation of integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) systems in which the wastes of one organism are utilized as feed by another organism, without a detrimental effect on co-cultured species. This review, therefore, highlights the basics of BFT, factors associated with BFT for the successful production of aquatic species, the significance of this food production system for the sustainable production of economically important aquatic species, its economic aspects, drawbacks, limitations, and recommended management aspects for sustainable aquaculture.

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 2716 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aysu Göçer ◽  
Stanley Fawcett ◽  
Okan Tuna

To be viable long-term, sustainability programs must be profitable. Unfortunately, current sustainability practices increase risk, increasing costs and threatening revenues. Higher costs and lower revenues negatively impact profitability and, thus, the viability of sustainability. To understand how sustainability-induced risks affect food production systems, sustainability-induced risks in food production systems are identified and classified. It is also explored how sustainability risks interact, making it especially costly and difficult to eradicate them. An inductive, interview-based method was employed, which relies on 41 semi-structured interviews, with managers at 32 companies. The study documents the interaction between sustainability and risk in five risk categories—behavioral, opportunism, organizational routines, safety and traceability routines and systems design. The negative impact of intensive interactions among these risk categories threatens food production systems’ sustainability initiatives. Behavioral risks are particularly pervasive and harmful as they either induce or exacerbate other risk clusters. Elaborating the interaction between sustainability and risk, as well as documenting risk types and interactions, provides a more holistic view of sustainability implementation. This nuanced view will lead to a more accurate and insightful costing of sustainability programs. Lamentably, the most pervasive risk category—i.e., behavioral risks—are often overlooked in the supply chain management literature. However, this research shows a clear need to delve more deeply into the behavioral dimension to improve risk management and to increase the viability of sustainability. This study identifies and categorizes sustainability-induced risk factors in food production systems, and shows how they interrelate, providing the foundation for better planning and execution of viable sustainability programs.


2019 ◽  
Vol 103 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Roberts

Since its early rudimentary forms, phosphate fertilizer has developed in step with our understanding of successful food production systems. Recognized as essential to life, the responsible use P in agriculture remains key to food security.


2020 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 15765-15770
Author(s):  
Tim Aschenbruck ◽  
Willem Esterhuizen ◽  
Murali Padmanabha ◽  
Stefan Streif

Author(s):  
Kgomotso Lebelo ◽  
Ntsoaki Malebo ◽  
Mokgaotsa Jonas Mochane ◽  
Muthoni Masinde

Historically, chemicals exceeding maximum allowable exposure levels have been disastrous to underdeveloped countries. The global food industry is primarily affected by toxic chemical substances because of natural and anthropogenic factors. Food safety is therefore threatened due to contamination by chemicals throughout the various stages of food production. Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in the form of pesticides and other chemical substances such as Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) have a widely documented negative impact due to their long-lasting effect on the environment. This present review focuses on the chemical contamination pathways along the various stages of food production until the food reaches the consumer. The contamination of food can stem from various sources such as the agricultural sector and pollution from industrialized regions through the air, water, and soil. Therefore, it is imperative to control the application of chemicals during food packaging, the application of pesticides, and antibiotics in the food industry to prevent undesired residues on foodstuffs. Ultimately, the protection of consumers from food-related chemical toxicity depends on stringent efforts from regulatory authorities both in developed and underdeveloped nations.


2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. S23-S37 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.F. Nisbet ◽  
J. Brown ◽  
B.J. Howard ◽  
N.A. Beresford ◽  
H. Ollagnon ◽  
...  

foresight ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 1 (5) ◽  
pp. 399-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Pinstrup‐Andersen ◽  
Marc J. Cohen

Although global food production has consistently kept pace with population growth, the gap between food production and demand in certain parts of the world is likely to remain. More than 800 million people in developing countries lack access to a minimally adequate diet. Continued productivity gains are essential on the supply side, because global population will increase by 73 million people a year over the next two decades. In this article we assess the current global food situation, look at the prospects through to the year 2020, and outline the policies needed to achieve food security for all. Emphasis is on the role that agricultural biotechnology might play in reaching this goal.


2021 ◽  
pp. 003072702110049
Author(s):  
Mashudu Tshikovhi ◽  
Roscoe Bertrum van Wyk

This study examines the impact of increasing climate variability on food production in South Africa, focusing on maize and wheat yields. A two-way fixed effects panel regression model was used to assess the climate variability impacts, analysing secondary data for the period 2000 to 2019 for nine provinces in South Africa. The study found that increasing climate variability has a negative impact on maize and wheat production in South Africa. Specifically, the results indicated a negative correlation between mean annual temperature with both maize and wheat yields. A decrease in precipitation affected maize yields negatively, while the impact on wheat yields was positive, although insignificant. This analysis, therefore, depicted that crop yields generally increase with more annual precipitation and decrease with higher temperatures. The study recommends that funding initiatives to educate farmers on increasing climate variability and its effects on farming activities in South Africa should be prioritised.


2022 ◽  
pp. 172-185
Author(s):  
Sarina Pradhan Thapa ◽  
Sushil Koirala ◽  
Anil Kumar Anal

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Chalmer

Global food security is dependent on ecologically viable production systems, but current agricultural practices are often at odds with environmental sustainability. Resolving this disparity is a huge task, but there is much that can be learned from traditional food production systems that persisted for thousands of years. Ecoagriculture for a Sustainable Food Future describes the ecological history of food production systems in Australia, showing how Aboriginal food systems collapsed when European farming methods were imposed on bushlands. The industrialised agricultural systems that are now prevalent across the world require constant input of finite resources, and continue to cause destructive environmental change. This book explores the damage that has arisen from farming systems unsuited to their environment, and presents compelling evidence that producing food is an ecological process that needs to be rethought in order to ensure resilient food production into the future. Cultural sensitivity Readers are warned that there may be words, descriptions and terms used in this book that are culturally sensitive, and which might not normally be used in certain public or community contexts. While this information may not reflect current understanding, it is provided by the author in a historical context.


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