Five Nature Papers: The Blue Food Revolution

An unprecedented review of the aquatic food sector reveals how fisheries and aquaculture can play a greater role in providing healthy diets and more sustainable, fairer and more resilient food systems globally

Five peer-reviewed papers published in the journal Nature point to the use of the huge diversity of aquatic or “blue” foods in the coming decades to address malnutrition, reduce the environmental footprint of the food system, and provide livelihoods Opportunity

"People are trying to make more informed choices about the food they eat, especially the environmental impact of their food," Ben Halpern said

"For the first time, we have collected hundreds of research data on various seafood, hoping to help answer this question

The study predicts that by 2050, the global demand for blue food will approximately double, which will mainly be met by increasing aquaculture production rather than capture fisheries

Investing in innovation and improved fisheries management can further increase consumption and have a profound impact on malnutrition

"Small-scale fisheries are part of a huge global seafood system.

In terms of nutritional benefits and sustainable development potential, blue food ranks higher than terrestrial animal-derived foods

Many blue food varieties are rich in important nutrients

"This is the first time we have seen what more aquatic food production means to global human health," said Christopher Free, a marine ecologist and assistant researcher at Buren College.

The nutritional value of blue food is especially important for women

On average, the main species of aquaculture, such as tilapia, salmon, catfish and carp, have an environmental impact comparable to chicken (the least impacted terrestrial meat)

Further investment in improving the efficiency of the industry and reducing its environmental footprint may benefit the industry as a whole, including less common farmed species such as European sea bass, weak fish, flounder, sea bream and milkfish

The study found that the blue food systems facing the highest risk of climate change are usually located in the areas where people depend most on them, and people are the weakest equipped to respond to and adapt to climate disasters

Halpern said: "Climate change is bringing various risks to humans, including our food

These five papers are the first in a series of papers published by the Blue Food Evaluation Organization (BFA)

"Blue food is much more diverse than generally thought, and so are many small-scale fishermen's communities.
Although they provide most of the blue food people eat, they are often overlooked," BFA Co-Chair, Stockholm Said Beatrice Crona, deputy director of science at the Recovery Center
.

"Almost no country (if any) is developing its blue food sector to fully realize its ecological, economic and health benefits
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This assessment aims to provide a scientific basis for decision makers to evaluate trade-offs and implement solutions to make Blue Food has become an important part of improving the food system from the local to the global scale
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"

"The British Food Authority's assessment emphasizes the great diversity of blue foods, all of which have important nutritional, cultural, economic and environmental values
.
" "To realize its potential, policymakers should implement better governance, including The participation of small producers, women and other marginalized groups to better manage the natural resources on which blue food depends; and to invest in building capacity to address climate change
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"There are nine fishing seasons before the deadline for achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, so the urgency is high," said Jim Leape, co-director of the Stanford Ocean Solutions Center
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"This research can help policymakers, companies, financiers, fishermen and consumers take advantage of the huge potential of blue food to help achieve these goals
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Globally, more than 2,500 or more kinds of fish, shellfish, aquatic plants and algae have been caught or farmed, providing livelihoods and income for more than 100 million people, and food for 1 billion people
.