Aquaculture
The value of aquaculture products grew from $45 million in 1974 to about $866 million (393,400 tonnes) in 2003.
Aquaculture, in the United States, includes the farming of hatchery fish and shellfish which are grown to market size in ponds, tanks, cages, or raceways and released into the wild. Aquaculture is also used to support commercial and recreational marine fisheries by enhancing or rebuilding wild stock populations. It also includes the cultivation of ornamental fish for the aquarium trade, as well as plant species used in various pharmaceutical, nutritional, and biotechnology products.
According to the FAO, in 2004 the United States ranked 10th in total aquaculture production, behind China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Japan, Chile, and Norway. The United States imports aquaculture products from these and other countries, and operates an annual seafood trade deficit of over $9 billion.
Shellfish (oysters, clams, mussels), account for two-thirds of marine aquaculture production, followed by salmon (25 percent) and shrimp (10 percent). Production occurs mainly on land, in ponds, and in coastal waters under state jurisdiction. As a result of recent advances in offshore aquaculture technology, commercial finfish and shellfish operations have been established in more exposed, open ocean locations in state waters in New Hampshire, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.
Total U.S. aquaculture production, including aquatic plants, is about $1 billion annually, compared to the total world production of about $70 billion. Only about 20 percent of U.S. aquaculture production is from marine species. NOAA estimates that the annual U.S. domestic aquaculture production of all species could increase from about 0.5 million tons to 1.5 million tons by 2025.
Read more about this topic: Fishing Industry In The United States