Aquaculture in New Zealand - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Aquaculture started in New Zealand in the late 1960s. It is dominated by mussel

Mussel

The common name mussel is used for members of several families of clams or bivalvia mollusca, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, which are often more or less rounded or oval.The...

s, oyster

Oyster

The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....

s and salmon

Salmon

Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...

. In 2007, aquaculture generated about NZ$

New Zealand dollar

The New Zealand dollar is the currency of New Zealand. It also circulates in the Cook Islands , Niue, Tokelau, and the Pitcairn Islands. It is divided into 100 cents....

360 million in sales on an area of 7,700 hectares. $240 million was earned in exports.

In 2006, the aquaculture industry in New Zealand developed a strategy aimed at achieving a sustainable annual billion NZ dollar business by 2025. In 2007, the government reacted by offering more support to the growing industry.

Overview

Aquaculture

Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the...

is the general term given to the cultivation of any fresh or salt water plant or animal. It takes place in New Zealand in coastal marine areas (mariculture

Mariculture

Mariculture is a specialized branch of aquaculture involving the cultivation of marine organisms for food and other products in the open ocean, an enclosed section of the ocean, or in tanks, ponds or raceways which are filled with seawater. An example of the latter is the farming of marine fish,...

) and in inland tanks or enclosures.

Aquaculture in New Zealand currently (2008) occupies 14,188 ha. Of that area, 7,713 ha is in established growing areas and is owned by the aquaculture industry, 4,010 ha is used to enhance the wild scallop fishery and belongs to the Challenger Scallop Enhancement Company, and 2,465 ha is an exposed site six kilometres offshore from Napier where trials are being undertaken by a private company to test the site’s economic viability.

In 2005 the aquaculture industry provided direct employment for about 2,500 full time equivalents, mostly in the processing sector. A similar amount of indirect employment resulted from flow-on effects. The aquaculture industry is important for some coastal areas around New Zealand where there is limited employment. This applies particularly to some Māori communities with traditional links to coastal settlements.

Marine aquaculture, mariculture

Mariculture

, occurs in the sea, generally in sheltered bays along the coast. In New Zealand, about 70 percent of marine aquaculture occurs in the top of the South Island. In the North Island, the Firth of Thames

Firth of Thames

The Firth of Thames is a large bay located in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. It is the firth of the rivers Waihou and Piako, the former of which was formerly named the Thames River, and the town of Thames lies on its southeastern coast....

is productive.

Cultured species

There are three main species in the New Zealand aquaculture industry: the green-lipped mussel, the Pacific oyster

Pacific oyster

The Pacific oyster, Japanese oyster or Miyagi oyster , is an oyster native to the Pacific coast of Asia. It has become an introduced species in North America, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand.- Etymology :...

and king salmon. In 2006 these three species generated $357 million in sales. Mussel accounted for 63 percent of this value, Pacific oysters 9 percent and king salmon 28 percent.

Value of farmed species in 2006 (NZ$ million)
Species	Domestic	Export	Total
Green lipped mussel	43	181	224
Pacific oyster Pacific oyster The Pacific oyster, Japanese oyster or Miyagi oyster , is an oyster native to the Pacific coast of Asia. It has become an introduced species in North America, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand.- Etymology :...	14	18	32
King salmon	59	42	101
Totals	116	241	357

Locality of farmed species, 2005
Species	Farms (number)	Area (ha)	Production (tonnes)	Locality
Green lipped mussel	550	4500		Particularly the top of the South Island, Pelorus Sound Pelorus Sound Pelorus Sound is the largest of the sounds which make up the Marlborough Sounds at the north of the South Island, New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds is a system of drowned river valleys, which were formed after the last ice age around 10,000 years ago... s, Tasman Tasman Bay Tasman Bay is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along of coastline and is across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.At the bay's... and Golden bays Golden Bay Golden Bay lies at the edge of the junction between the Tasman Sea and Cook Strait. It stretches for 45 kilometres from the long sand spit of Farewell Spit in the north to Separation Point in Abel Tasman National Park at its southern extremity... ; but also the Hauraki Gulf Hauraki Gulf The Hauraki Gulf is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a total area of 4000 km², and lies between the Auckland Region, the Hauraki Plains, the Coromandel Peninsula and Great Barrier Island... and Coromandel Coromandel, New Zealand Coromandel is the name of a town and harbour on the western side of the Coromandel Peninsula, which is on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand... , with a small number around Banks Peninsula Banks Peninsula Banks Peninsula is a peninsula of volcanic origin on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an area of approximately and encompasses two large harbours and many smaller bays and coves... and Stewart Island.
Pacific oyster Pacific oyster The Pacific oyster, Japanese oyster or Miyagi oyster , is an oyster native to the Pacific coast of Asia. It has become an introduced species in North America, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand.- Etymology :...	236	928		North coast of the North Island: Coromandel, Bay of Islands Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located 60 km north-west of Whangarei, it is close to the northern tip of the country.... and the Whangaroa Whangaroa Whangaroa is a locality on the harbour of the same name in Northland, New Zealand.Whangaroa is 8km north-west from Kaeo and 45km north from Okaihau. The harbour is almost landlocked and is popular both as a fishing spot in its own right and as a base for deep-sea fishing.The harbour was the scene... , Mahurangi Mahurangi River The Mahurangi River is a tidal estuary in northern New Zealand that widens into the Mahurangi Harbour before opening into the outer Hauraki Gulf. The Mahurangi Harbour is accessible by all craft and is a sheltered anchorage in all weathers with many small bays and islands... and Kaipara Harbour Kaipara Harbour Kaipara Harbour is a large enclosed harbour estuary complex on the north western side of the North Island of New Zealand. The northern part of the harbour is administered by the Kaipara District and the southern part is administered by the Rodney District... s.
King salmon	29	128	7,400	Mostly Marlborough Sounds and around Stewart Island, but also in channels below hydroelectric dams in the Mackenzie Basin Mackenzie Basin The Mackenzie Basin , is an elliptical intermontane basin, located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand... .

Over two-thirds of New Zealand's aquaculture product comes from mussels and oysters. These shellfish are cultivated in two distinct stages; first spat needs to be collected, then the spat is grown in a grow-out facility.

Spat, also called seed, is the free-swimming larval stage of a shellfish. Spat is cultured in hatcheries
Fish hatchery
A fish hatchery is a "place for artificial breeding, hatching and rearing through the early life stages of animals, finfish and shellfish in particular". Hatcheries produce larval and juvenile fish primarily to support the aquaculture industry where they are transferred to on-growing systems...

, and can be grown in tanks on land. Hatcheries can also be associated with research facilities where spat can be selectively bred to specifications, as broodstock
Broodstock
Broodstock, or broodfish, are a group of mature individuals used in aquaculture for breeding purposes. Broodstock can be a population of animals maintained in captivity as a source of replacement for, or enhancement of, seed and fry numbers. These are generally kept in ponds or tanks in which...

.

A grow-out facility is the place where the spat are raised to market size, usually in enclosures anchored in coastal waters.

Mussels

Until the early 1960s, mussels were harvested by hand

Gathering seafood by hand

Gathering seafood by hand can be as easily as picking shellfish or kelp up off the beach, or doing some digging for clams or crabs, or perhaps diving under the water for abalone or lobsters....

from intertidal rocks. Dredging was then introduced, and within a few years the mussel beds in Tasman Bay

Tasman Bay

Tasman Bay is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along of coastline and is across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.At the bay's...

and the Hauraki Gulf

Hauraki Gulf

The Hauraki Gulf is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a total area of 4000 km², and lies between the Auckland Region, the Hauraki Plains, the Coromandel Peninsula and Great Barrier Island...

were dredged clean. In the late 1960s, following this collapse, the aquaculture of the New Zealand mussel began. The endemic green lipped mussel was used to trial growing mussel spat (young mussels) on ropes suspended from rafts. The Hauraki Gulf and the Marlborough Sounds

Marlborough Sounds

The Marlborough Sounds are an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys created by a combination of land subsidence and rising sea levels at the north of the South Island of New Zealand...

provided sheltered environments, with clean water rich in plankton

Plankton

Plankton are any drifting organisms that inhabit the pelagic zone of oceans, seas, or bodies of fresh water. That is, plankton are defined by their ecological niche rather than phylogenetic or taxonomic classification...

. The cultured mussels were ready for harvest after 12 to 18 months, and first went on sale in 1971.

More growers entered the industry. The labour-intensive raft method was replaced with a modified Japanese longline system. Biodegradable stockings were packed with spat and tied to parallel rows of looped ropes, supported by buoy

Buoy

A buoy is a floating device that can have many different purposes. It can be anchored or allowed to drift. The word, of Old French or Middle Dutch origin, is now most commonly in UK English, although some orthoepists have traditionally prescribed the pronunciation...

s. Young mussels grow through the stockings, anchoring themselves to the ropes with their strong byssal threads (beards). The farms are usually located in sheltered or semi-sheltered areas where there is sufficient depth of water at low tide to keep the longline droppers off the bottom. Recent research has been investigating offshore mussel farming in exposed areas several kilometres from shore, such as farms offshore from Napier

Napier, New Zealand

Napier is a New Zealand city with a seaport, located in Hawke's Bay on the eastern coast of the North Island. The population of Napier is about About 18 kilometres south of Napier is the inland city of Hastings. These two neighboring cities are often called "The Twin Cities" or "The Bay Cities"...

and Opotiki

Opotiki

Opotiki is a town in the eastern Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand. It houses the headquarters of the Opotiki District Council and comes under the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.-Population:* of the town: 4176 - Male 1,989, Female 2,187...

.

Initially the ropes were allowed to reseed naturally, after harvest, from the spat already present in coastal waters. However, this method was unreliable. In 1974 a marine scientist discovered mussel spat encrusted on drift kelp

Kelp

Kelps are large seaweeds belonging to the brown algae in the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera....

on Ninety Mile Beach

Ninety Mile Beach, New Zealand

Ninety Mile Beach is a beach located on the western coast of the far north of the North Island of New Zealand. It stretches from just west of Kaitaia towards Cape Reinga along the Aupouri Peninsula. It begins close to the headland of Reef Point, to the west of Ahipara Bay, sweeping briefly...

. Locals collected the seaweed and air freighted it to mussel farmers. Kaitaia

Kaitaia

Kaitaia is a town in the far north region of New Zealand, at the base of the Aupouri Peninsula which is about 160 km northwest of Whangarei. It is the last major settlement on the main road north to the capes and bays on the peninsula...

spat, as it became known, is now the prime source of seed mussels. There are some experimental hatcheries.

Improved techniques have led to rapid production increases, and bulk handling methods have been introduced to meet growing demand for export to more than 60 countries. By 2006 there were over 900 mussel farms in New Zealand covering about 6500 hectares, and worth about $224 million in annual sales. About $180 million were exports, usually sold as frozen mussels in half shells, patented with the trade name NZ Greenshell Mussels.

Oysters

There are two types of wild oysters in New Zealand, Bluff oyster

Tiostrea chilensis

Tiostrea chilensis, known in Chile as Ostra chilena and in New Zealand as the Bluff oyster, is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Ostreidae.-Distribution:Tiostrea chilensis is endemic to Chile and New Zealand....

s and rock oyster

Rock oyster

Rock oysters are true oysters of the genus Saccostrea. The best known species of rock oyster is the Sydney rock oyster .- Species :* Saccostrea** Saccostrea cuccullata...

s. Both have been commercially harvested since the mid-19th century. Bluff oysters have never been cultivated, but various attempts were made to cultivate the rock oyster.

Rock oysters are found naturally in the intertidal zone in the north of the North Island, and were subject to early cultivation experiments. During the 1960s, commercial farmers grew rock oysters on sticks coated with cement, and laid in racks in the lower intertidal regions of harbours and inlets around the northern North Island.

Then in 1970 another oyster started outgrowing the native rock oyster. This newcomer was the Pacific oyster

Pacific oyster

, which had probably been introduced into New Zealand waters in the 1950s from a Japanese vessel hull or in their ballast water. At first, farmers tried to remove it from their collecting sticks, but year by year Pacific oyster spat increased, out-competing the native rock oyster.

Eventually commercial growers began to cultivate the Pacific oyster, and by the mid-1970s, it had become the main farm-raised oyster. Pacific oysters have well-established international markets, grow three times faster than native rock oysters, reach a larger size, have several spawnings each year and produce more consistent quantities of spat.

In 1977 Pacific oysters appeared in the Marlborough Sounds

Marlborough Sounds

The Marlborough Sounds are an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys created by a combination of land subsidence and rising sea levels at the north of the South Island of New Zealand...

, and farming began there in the 1990s. Instead of using the North Island method of cultivating oysters on racks, Marlborough farmers used hanging longlines, a system developed in Australia.

By 2006 there were over 230 oyster farms in New Zealand using over 900 hectares, and worth about $32 million in annual sales. About $18 million were exports.

Hatchery reared seed is not suitable for the rack systems which are still used by much of the industry. Pacific oysters on these racks are cultured from wild spat, most of which is gathered in the Kaipara Harbour

Kaipara Harbour

Kaipara Harbour is a large enclosed harbour estuary complex on the north western side of the North Island of New Zealand. The northern part of the harbour is administered by the Kaipara District and the southern part is administered by the Rodney District...

. However, other systems are increasingly being used, including hanging longlines and plastic trays. The Cawthron Institute is the main provider of hatchery spat, and can selectively breed spat to specifications.

Salmon

Around 1900, different salmon were introduced as sport fish. Only the king salmon

Chinook salmon

The Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest species in the pacific salmon family. Other commonly used names for the species include King salmon, Quinnat salmon, Spring salmon and Tyee salmon...

(Chinook) adapted to the environment. For decades, the development of salmon and trout aquaculture in New Zealand was opposed by recreational fishers

Recreational fishing

Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing, is fishing for pleasure or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is fishing for profit, or subsistence fishing, which is fishing for survival....

, on the grounds that disease would spread from fish farms into recreational fisheries, and that wild fish would be poached if they could be sold. In 1973 the government compromised by making trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

farms illegal, but salmon farms legal. New Zealand is probably the only country in the world where trout farming is illegal, despite commercial interest from companies already farming salmon.

In 1976, the first salmon farm was established at Pupu Springs, Tasman

Tasman, New Zealand

The Tasman Region is both a region and a district of New Zealand. It borders with the West Coast Region, Marlborough Region and the Nelson Region. It is both a region and a unitary authority, and the District Council sits at Richmond, with Community Boards serving outlying communities in Motueka...

. Salmon were raised in fresh water, growing to 25 centimetres over two years. The venture was originally aimed at ocean ranching, where juvenile salmon would be released into the sea with the expectation that some would return as adults. But few did return, so the Pupu Springs facility was converted to a hatchery

Fish hatchery

A fish hatchery is a "place for artificial breeding, hatching and rearing through the early life stages of animals, finfish and shellfish in particular". Hatcheries produce larval and juvenile fish primarily to support the aquaculture industry where they are transferred to on-growing systems...

, supplying stock to sea farms.

In 1983, the first sea-cage salmon farm

Aquaculture of salmon

Salmon, along with carp, are the two most important fish groups in aquaculture. In 2007, the aquaculture of salmon and salmon trout was worth US$10.7 billion. The most commonly farmed salmon is the Atlantic salmon. Other commonly farmed fish groups include tilapia, catfish, sea bass, bream and...

was established in Big Glory Bay, Stewart Island. It was followed by farms in the Marlborough Sounds and at Akaroa

Akaroa

Akaroa is a village on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand, situated within a harbour of the same name—the name Akaroa is Kāi Tahu Māori for 'Long Harbour'.- Overview :...

, Banks Peninsula

Banks Peninsula

Banks Peninsula is a peninsula of volcanic origin on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an area of approximately and encompasses two large harbours and many smaller bays and coves...

. These areas accounted for over 90 percent of the 8,500 tonnes of salmon produced in 2001.

Today, New Zealand accounts for over half of the world production of king salmon (7,400 tonnes in 2005).

Farming in the sea (mariculture

Mariculture

) for king salmon is sometimes called sea-cage ranching. Sea-cage ranching takes place in large floating net cages, about 25 metres across and 15 metres deep, moored to the sea floor in clean, fast-flowing coastal waters. Smolt

Spawn (biology)

Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...

(young fish) from freshwater hatcheries are transferred to cages containing several thousand salmon, and remain there for the rest of their life. They are fed fishmeal pellets high in protein and oil. Most of this fishmeal is imported from Australia. The salmon are harvested when they are about two years old, weighing 2.5 to 4 kilograms. Sea cages are located in the Marlborough Sounds

Marlborough Sounds

The Marlborough Sounds are an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys created by a combination of land subsidence and rising sea levels at the north of the South Island of New Zealand...

, Akaroa Harbour

Akaroa

and Stewart Island.

Farming in freshwater for king salmon uses net cages placed in rivers, using techniques similar to those used for sea-farmed salmon. Freshwater raceways

Raceway (aquaculture)

A raceway, also known as a flow-through system, is an artificial channel used in aquaculture to culture aquatic organisms. Raceway systems are among the earliest methods used for inland aquaculture. A raceway usually consists of rectangular basins or canals constructed of concrete and equipped with...

are located in several Canterbury

Canterbury, New Zealand

The New Zealand region of Canterbury is mainly composed of the Canterbury Plains and the surrounding mountains. Its main city, Christchurch, hosts the main office of the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury Regional Council - called Environment Canterbury - and the University of Canterbury.-...

rivers such as the Clutha

Clutha River

The Clutha River / Mata-Au is the second longest river in New Zealand flowing south-southeast through Central and South Otago from Lake Wanaka in the Southern Alps to the Pacific Ocean, south west of Dunedin. It is the highest volume river in New Zealand, and the swiftest, with a catchment of ,...

and Waimakariri River

Waimakariri River

The Waimakariri River is the largest of the North Canterbury rivers, in the South Island of New Zealand. It flows for 151 kilometres in a generally southeastward direction from the Southern Alps across the Canterbury Plains to the Pacific Ocean....

s. In the 1990s, a unique form of freshwater salmon farming was developed in hydroelectric canals in the Mackenzie Basin

Mackenzie Basin

The Mackenzie Basin , is an elliptical intermontane basin, located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand...

. Young salmon are enclosed in pens in the Ohau

Lake Ohau

Lake Ohau is a glacial lake in the Mackenzie Basin of New Zealand's South Island. It is fed by the Hopkins and Dobson rivers, which have their headwaters in the Southern Alps, and has its outflow in the Ohau River, which itself feeds into the Waitaki River hydroelectric project.Ohau is the smallest...

and Tekapo

Lake Tekapo

Lake Tekapo is the second-largest of three roughly parallel lakes running north–south along the northern edge of the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island of New Zealand...

canals. The Tekapo site, fed by fast cold waters from the Southern Alps

Southern Alps

The Southern Alps is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the island's western side...

, is the highest salmon farm in the world, 677 metres above sea level.

Before they are killed, cage salmon are anaesthetised with a herbal extract. They are then spiked in the brain

Ike jime

or is a method of paralyzing and bleeding fish to maintain its quality. The technique originated in Japan, but is now in widespread use. It involves the insertion of a spike quickly and directly into the hind brain, thereby causing immediate brain death. A fish brain is usually located slightly...

. The heart beats for a time as the animal is bled from its sliced gills. Relaxing the salmon like this when it is killed produces firm, long-keeping flesh. Lack of disease in wild populations and low stocking densities used in the cages means that New Zealand salmon farmers do not use antibiotics and chemicals that are often needed elsewhere.

The New Zealand industry has grown into the largest producers of farmed king salmon in the world, accounting for about half of world production. The New Zealand King Salmon Company, dominates the production of king salmon in New Zealand. The company has its own selective breeding programmes integrated with quality control and production. Other salmon producers rely on stock from hatcheries where selective breeding is less well developed.

Other species

The culture of ornamental cold water species, such as goldfish, are valued at about $18 million.

A small-scale freshwater prawn farm
Freshwater prawn farm
A freshwater prawn farm is an aquaculture business designed to raise and produce freshwater prawn or shrimp for human consumption. Freshwater prawn farming shares many characteristics with, and many of the same problems as, marine shrimp farming...

was established in 1991 at Wairakei
Wairakei
Wairakei is the name of a power station, small settlement and a geothermal area a few kilometres north of Taupo, in the centre of the North Island of New Zealand, on the Waikato River.- Geothermal field :...

, near Taupo
Taupo
Taupo is a town on the shore of Lake Taupo in the centre of the North Island of New Zealand. It is the seat of the Taupo District Council and lies in the southern Waikato Region....

, producing tropical giant river prawns. Heat from a geothermal source is used to heat water in prawn-rearing ponds (see geothermal energy and aquaculture
Geothermal energy and aquaculture
Some 16 countries use geothermal energy for aquaculture, including China, Israel, and the United States. In California, for example, 15 fish farms produce tilapia, striped bass, and catfish with warm water from underground. This warmer water enables fish to grow through the winter and mature more...

).

Other species which have potential, but are currently small-scale or are still in research or pre-commercial stages, are discussed under Prospects below.

Scallop enhancement

Enhancement is the name given to techniques designed to boost the natural recruitment or survival of young animals or seaweed in the wild. In New Zealand, scallop enhancement has worked well in Tasman Bay

Tasman Bay

and Golden Bay

Golden Bay

Golden Bay lies at the edge of the junction between the Tasman Sea and Cook Strait. It stretches for 45 kilometres from the long sand spit of Farewell Spit in the north to Separation Point in Abel Tasman National Park at its southern extremity...

.

The New Zealand scallop

Pecten novaezealandiae

Pecten novaezealandiae, or the New Zealand scallop, is a bivalve mollusc of the family Pectinidae.-Distribution:Pecten novaezealandiae is endemic to New Zealand. It is found in the North Island, South Island, Stewart Island, and the Chatham Islands.-Habitat:Pecten novaezealandiae is found in sand,...

is a large fan-shaped shellfish, flat on one side and convex on the other. It lives on the bottom of coastal waters, 30 metres or more deep. Scallop spat-collecting bags are suspended during summer in coastal areas with high natural scallop settlement. The scallop larvae settle out of the plankton onto the fine feathery surface of the plastic mesh bags. The larvae are allowed to grow to a suitable size and are then released onto known natural scallop beds at densities of about six per square metre of sea floor. There, they are later harvested on a rotational basis by dredges. This technique has resulted in a marked increase and stabilising of the available annual catch. The Tasman

Tasman Bay

scallop fishery, near collapse in the 1980s, recovered with re-seeding to a level where 747 tonnes were harvested in 2004.

Legislation and administration

Marine farmers usually look for sheltered and unpolluted waters rich in nutrients. Often these areas are also desirable for other purposes. In the late 1990s, demand for coastal aquaculture space upsurged, increasing fivefold. Aquaculture consents developed haphazardly, with regional councils unsure about how marine farms might impact coastal environments. By 2001, some councils were inundated with marine farm applications, and were operating with inadequate guidelines for sustainably managing the coast. As the Ministry for the Environment put it: "Attempts to minimise local or cumulative environmental effects resulted in bottlenecks, delays and high costs in processing applications for new marine farms, local moratoria, submitter fatigue and poor environmental outcomes. Marine farmers, local communities, and the government wanted change."

In 2002, the government stopped issuing consents for more new marine farms while they reformed the legislation. The consents had operated under a system overseen by both the Ministry of Fisheries

Ministry of Fisheries (New Zealand)

The Ministry of Fisheries , also known by its acronym MFish, is a state sector organisation of New Zealand whose role is ensuring the sustainable utilisation of fisheries. This involves conserving, using, enhancing and developing New Zealand's fisheries resources. New Zealand's Minister of...

and the regional councils. The reforms aimed to streamline these applications for both freshwater and marine farms. Industry farmers objected to the moratorium, on the grounds that delaying expansion and diversification could not be in the interest of the industry. Māori groups considered they were especially affected since they were the main applicants for coastal farms.

This took three years, and in early 2005, Parliament passed the Aquaculture Reform Act 2004, which introduced the new legislation. The act amends five existing acts to cope with the new environmental demands, and creates two new acts, the Māori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004 and the Aquaculture Reform (Repeals and Transitional Provisions) Act 2004. The legislation and administration of aquaculture in New Zealand is complex for such a small industry. A more comprehensive overview can be found here.

Aquaculture is administered in New Zealand through labyrinth bureaucracies, with consequent diluted responsibilities. No single ministerial portfolio or government agency is responsible. As an example, in 2007 the government released a strategy on aquaculture. This strategy was endorsed by six government ministers with the following portfolios: fisheries, environment, conservation, local government, Māori affairs, industry and regional development. Further, there were five government departments directly involved in the preparation of the strategy. As another example, the access to marine and freshwater aquaculture sites are under the control of 17 regional local government agencies with yet more oversight by various central government agencies.

Despite many further consultations and incentives, no new aquaculture space was created under the new legislation for another four years. This coincided with a change in government at the end of 2008, which announced that the aquaculture reforms are to be overhauled.

Training and research

In recent years, skill levels in the New Zealand aquaculture industry has considerably improved. This has been largely due to Seafood Industry Training Organization (SITO), an integral part of the seafood industry. SITO have developed tailored aquaculture training programmes based on their prior experience with industry-based training for wild fisheries. They now offer nationally recognised training programmes based on the needs of companies involved in aquaculture.

At the tertiary level, the Auckland University of Technology

Auckland University of Technology

The Auckland University of Technology is a university in New Zealand. It was formed on 1 January 2000 when the Auckland Institute of Technology was granted university status. Its primary campus is on Wellesley Street in Auckland's Central business district...

offers an undergraduate degree in aquaculture. Other tertiary training centres offering aquaculture courses include the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic

Bay of Plenty Polytechnic

According to its Bay of Plenty Polytechnic offers the largest range of New Zealand Qualifications Authority approved programmes in Tauranga and the Western Bay of Plenty....

, the Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology

Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology

Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology is a New Zealand public Tertiary Education Institution. The main campuses are in Nelson and Blenheim, South Island, New Zealand. It has been providing tertiary education in the Nelson-Marlborough region since 1904...

, and the Mahurangi Technical Institute.

Government funding for aquaculture research is about two percent of the annual sales of the industry. These funds are mostly delivered through a competitive bidding process, organised and controlled by the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology.

The principal aquaculture research group is the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research or NIWA , is a Crown Research Institute of New Zealand. Established in 1992, NIWA conducts commercial and non-commercial research across a broad range of disciplines in the environmental sciences...

(NIWA). NIWA is structured as a profit-making private company, though it is owned by the government. It operates three aquaculture research facilities; Bream Bay Aquaculture Park, Mahanga Bay Aquaculture Research Facility and Silverstream Hatchery. The Bream Bay Aquaculture Park includes other private aquaculture companies organised as an industrial-technology park. NIWA produces yellowtail kingfish spat, seed abalone
Abalone
Abalone , from aulón, are small to very large-sized edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Haliotidae and the genus Haliotis...

and salmon smolts, which it sells to on-growers.

The Cawthron Institute is a non-profit organisation which does regional research around Nelson
Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....

. It operates a nearby saltwater research facility called the Cawthron Aquaculture Park.

The tertiary education sector undertakes a small amount of aquaculture research. In 2007 an aquaculture centre was opened at Mahurangi Technical Institute in Warkworth
Warkworth, New Zealand
Warkworth is a town in the upper North Island of New Zealand, within the Rodney District and lying at the far north of the Auckland Region but just south of the Northland Region...

. Scientists at the institute are aiming to breed short-fin eels within two years with a goal of producing commercial quantities of eels in captivity, which would be a world first.

Role of Māori

In pre-European times, the indigenous Māori of New Zealand undertook rudimentary aquaculture activities, such as placing suitable rocks into the intertidal settlement zones of oyster larvae. They were also thought to have transplanted abalone and other shellfish between different areas.

Māori currently have a significant presence in the New Zealand aquaculture industry, and this is likely to increase over time as the requirements to allocate aquaculture space through the Māori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004 are met. However, inappropriate aquaculture locations and unsustainable practices have the potential to compromise values and resources important to coastal whanau

Whanau

Whānau , is a Māori-language word for extended family, now increasingly entering New Zealand English, particularly in official publications.In Māori society, the whānau is also a political unit, below the level of hapū and iwi, and the word itself also has other meanings: as a verb meaning to give...

, hapu

Hapu

A hapū is sometimes described as "the basic political unit within Maori society".A named division of a Māori iwi , membership is determined by genealogical descent; a hapū is made up of a number of whānau groups. Generally hapū range in size from 150-200 although there is no upper limit...

and iwi

Iwi

In New Zealand society, iwi form the largest everyday social units in Māori culture. The word iwi means "'peoples' or 'nations'. In "the work of European writers which treat iwi and hapū as parts of a hierarchical structure", it has been used to mean "tribe" , or confederation of tribes,...

.

In 2008, a settlement of $97 million was made to Māori for Crown obligations for aquaculture space that was approved between 1992 and 2004.

NIWA operates a Māori research and development unit, Te Kūwaha o Taihoro Nukurangi. The unit has a team of Māori scientists who undertake research and provide consultancy services, based particularly around iwi

Iwi

with environmental and commercial issues.

Prospects

In 2006, the New Zealand aquaculture industry published The New Zealand Aquaculture Strategy, setting itself an annual sales target of one billion NZ dollars by 2025. The strategy sets out ten areas of activity needed to achieve this target. The New Zealand Aquaculture Council has introduced a levy on aquaculture producers so this strategy can be implemented.

In 2007, the New Zealand government responded to this industry initiative by releasing an aquaculture development strategy highlighting existing actions and proposing new initiatives. In addition, the government has offered additional funding around five key objectives, with the main focus on improving the implementation of the new 2004 regulations. At the end of 2008 there was a change in government, which announced that the aquaculture reforms will be overhauled, but reaffirmed the government commitment to the industry billion dollar target.

The New Zealand industry currently relies on low-value filter feeding

Filter feeder

Filter feeders are animals that feed by straining suspended matter and food particles from water, typically by passing the water over a specialized filtering structure. Some animals that use this method of feeding are clams, krill, sponges, baleen whales, and many fish and some sharks. Some birds,...

shellfish (mussels and oysters) which are fast growing and relatively easy to culture. There is potential for the industry to diversify into higher value species such as pāua

Paua

Pāua is the Māori name given to three species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae , known in the United States and Australia as abalone, and in the United Kingdom as ormer shells.-Species:There are three species of New Zealand pāua:New...

, kingfish

Yellowtail amberjack

The yellowtail amberjack or great amberjack, Seriola lalandi, is a large fish found in the Pacific and Indian oceans. It can be divided into three sub-species: The California yellowtail, Seriola lalandi dorsalis, the southern yellowtail, or in New Zealand and Australia the yellowtail kingfish or...

and crayfish

Crayfish

Crayfish, crawfish, or crawdads – members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea – are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are related...

. These species need special food supplies and are more expensive to farm, but they command higher prices.

The native blackfoot pāua
Paua
Pāua is the Māori name given to three species of large edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs which belong to the family Haliotidae , known in the United States and Australia as abalone, and in the United Kingdom as ormer shells.-Species:There are three species of New Zealand pāua:New...

, Haliotis iris, is a form of abalone
Abalone
Abalone , from aulón, are small to very large-sized edible sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Haliotidae and the genus Haliotis...

. They are large sea snails which survive strong tidal surges by clinging to rocks using their large muscular foot. Wild pāua has been harvested since 1944, usually by skindivers,. Pāua aquaculture started in 1980, but has been slow moving beyond development. They are difficult to grow, and grow more slowly than salmon, mussels or oysters. Their larva and juveniles need to be grown separately. Most pāua farmers get juveniles from hatcheries, and feed them fresh kelp
Kelp
Kelps are large seaweeds belonging to the brown algae in the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera....

in land-based tanks. In Akaroa Harbour
Akaroa
Akaroa is a village on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand, situated within a harbour of the same name—the name Akaroa is Kāi Tahu Māori for 'Long Harbour'.- Overview :...

, one farmer grows pāua on plastic barrels tethered to buoy
Buoy
A buoy is a floating device that can have many different purposes. It can be anchored or allowed to drift. The word, of Old French or Middle Dutch origin, is now most commonly in UK English, although some orthoepists have traditionally prescribed the pronunciation...

s. In 2002, farmers produced five tonnes of pāua meat, worth $400,000.

Another New Zealand pioneer pāua farmer cultivates blue pearls by placing some grit between the flesh of the pāua and its shell, where it acts as an irritant. The pāua responds by coating the grit with nacre
Nacre
Nacre , also known as mother of pearl, is an organic-inorganic composite material produced by some mollusks as an inner shell layer; it is also what makes up pearls. It is very strong, resilient, and iridescent....

(mother-of-pearl). This develops as a blue pearl.

For some years there has been research on the best ways of growing the red seaweed
Red algae
The red algae are one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae, and also one of the largest, with about 5,000–6,000 species of mostly multicellular, marine algae, including many notable seaweeds...

, Gigartina atropurpurea, in New Zealand. Seaweed spores are grown on three metre strings at NIWA's
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research
The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research or NIWA , is a Crown Research Institute of New Zealand. Established in 1992, NIWA conducts commercial and non-commercial research across a broad range of disciplines in the environmental sciences...

Mahanga Bay aquaculture research facility,and are then transferred to a mussel farm in the Marlborough Sounds. If successful, a new seaweed growing industry could spread to the mussel farms in the Marlborough Sounds.

Bluff oysters
Tiostrea chilensis
Tiostrea chilensis, known in Chile as Ostra chilena and in New Zealand as the Bluff oyster, is a species of marine bivalve mollusc in the family Ostreidae.-Distribution:Tiostrea chilensis is endemic to Chile and New Zealand....

are harvested from the wild in Foveaux Strait
Foveaux Strait
Foveaux Strait separates Stewart Island/Rakiura, New Zealand's third largest island, from the South Island. Three large bays, Te Waewae Bay, Oreti Beach and Toetoes Bay, sweep along the strait's northern coast, which also hosts Bluff township and harbour. Across the strait lie the Solander...

. However, they breed more easily in Northland, and NIWA is examining their aquaculture possibilities.

Shortfin
Short-finned eel
The short-finned eel, Anguilla australis, is one of the 15 species of eel in the family Anguillidae. It is native to the lakes, dams and coastal rivers of south-eastern Australia, New Zealand, and much of the South Pacific, including New Caledonia, Norfolk Island, Lord Howe Island, Tahiti, and...

and longfin eels
New Zealand longfin eel
The New Zealand Longfin eel is one of three freshwater eels found in New Zealand. The other two species of eel are the Shortfin eel which is also found in south-eastern Australia and the recently arrived Australian Longfin eel .The easiest method for identification of the New Zealand Longfin eel...

have been trialled by NIWA. Established worldwide markets in cultured eels are worth over US$1 billion, and a decline in some stocks has opened up opportunities for New Zealand.

The big-bellied seahorse is a native seahorse. Seahorses are valued aquarium fish. They are also used medicinally, particularly in traditional Chinese medicine. Wild seahorses have been over-harvested worldwide, opening markets to their aquaculture.

A New Zealand sea sponge
Sea sponge
Sponges are animals of the phylum Porifera . Their bodies consist of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells. While all animals have unspecialized cells that can transform into specialized cells, sponges are unique in having some specialized cells, but can also have...

, Mycale hentscheli, which grows in Pelorus Sound
Pelorus Sound
Pelorus Sound is the largest of the sounds which make up the Marlborough Sounds at the north of the South Island, New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds is a system of drowned river valleys, which were formed after the last ice age around 10,000 years ago...

, may hold the key to an anti-cancer drug. Scientists are working to see how peloruside, a substance produced by the sponges, might be used as a cancer-fighting drug. Victoria University
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a former constituent college of the University of New Zealand. It is particularly well known for its programmes in law, the humanities, and some scientific disciplines, but offers a broad range of other courses...

and NIWA are working with Marlborough marine farmers to develop a method for growing the sponge on an existing mussel farm.

Other prospects which are being researched or trialled include

European perch
European perch
The European perch, Perca fluviatilis, is a predatory species of perch found in Europe and Asia. In some areas it is known as the redfin perch or English perch, and it is often known simply as perch. The species is a popular quarry for anglers and has been widely introduced beyond its native area,...
grass carp
Grass carp
The grass carp is a herbivorous, freshwater fish species of family Cyprinidae, and the only species of the genus Ctenopharyngodon. It is cultivated in China for food, but was introduced in Europe and the United States for aquatic weed control...
groper
hāpuka, a native wreckfish
Wreckfish
The wreckfish are a family, Polyprionide, of perciform fishes.They are deep-water marine fishes and can be found on the ocean bottom, where they inhabit caves and shipwrecks . Their scientific name is from Greek poly meaning "many" and prion meaning "saw", a references to their prominent spiny fins...
yellowtail kingfish
Yellowtail amberjack
The yellowtail amberjack or great amberjack, Seriola lalandi, is a large fish found in the Pacific and Indian oceans. It can be divided into three sub-species: The California yellowtail, Seriola lalandi dorsalis, the southern yellowtail, or in New Zealand and Australia the yellowtail kingfish or...

, a native kingfish
sea cucumber

kina, a native sea urchin
Sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins are small, spiny, globular animals which, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. They inhabit all oceans. Their shell, or "test", is round and spiny, typically from across. Common colors include black and dull...
rock lobster
Rock lobster
Jasus edwardsii, the southern rock lobster, red rock lobster, or spiny rock lobster, is a species of spiny lobster found throughout coastal waters of southern Australia and New Zealand including the Chatham Islands. This species is commonly called crayfish or crays in New Zealand and in Māori...
koura
Paranephrops
Paranephrops is a genus of freshwater crayfish species endemic to New Zealand. They are known as ' in New Zealand, derived from the Māori language...

, a native freshwater lobster
Lobster
Clawed lobsters comprise a family of large marine crustaceans. Highly prized as seafood, lobsters are economically important, and are often one of the most profitable commodities in coastal areas they populate.Though several groups of crustaceans are known as lobsters, the clawed lobsters are most...
Spongia manipulatus, a native bath sponge
giant kelp

Timeline

Pre-European: The indigenous Māori undertake rudimentary aquaculture activities, such as placing suitable rocks into the intertidal settlement zones of oyster larvae. They are also thought to have transplanted abalone and other shellfish between different areas.

Early 20th century: Salmon species are introduced to New Zealand as sport fish, but only the Chinook, or king salmon adapts to the environment.

1950s: the Pacific oyster
Pacific oyster
The Pacific oyster, Japanese oyster or Miyagi oyster , is an oyster native to the Pacific coast of Asia. It has become an introduced species in North America, Australia, Europe, and New Zealand.- Etymology :...

is introduced, possibly from a Japanese vessel hull or in their ballast water.

Early 1960s: Dredge fisheries start operating in the north of the South Island and around the Hauraki Gulf
Hauraki Gulf
The Hauraki Gulf is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has a total area of 4000 km², and lies between the Auckland Region, the Hauraki Plains, the Coromandel Peninsula and Great Barrier Island...

. Within a few years they dredge these areas bare.

Late 1960s: As a response to the collapse of the dredge fisheries, the aquaculture of New Zealand mussels begins.

1970s: Farming of king salmon begins.

Late 1990s: The aquaculture industry goes through a boom period, and demand for coastal space increases fivefold.

2002: The government, in some disarray, imposes a moratorium on new marine farms while they attempt to develop better legislation aimed at dealing with the environmental demands of aquaculture and streamlining applications for marine and freshwater farms.

2005: Parliament passes the Aquaculture Reform Act 2004, amending five existing acts so they can better cope with the environmental demands of aquaculture, and creating two new acts. However, the reform fails to streamline applications, and no further allocation of aquaculture space occurs over the next four years.

2006: The New Zealand aquaculture industry publishes The New Zealand Aquaculture Strategy, setting itself an annual sales target of one billion NZ dollars by 2025.

2007: The New Zealand government responds to the industry initiative by releasing an aquaculture development strategy highlighting existing actions and proposing new initiatives including funding incentives, mainly aimed at trying to action its reform legislation.

2008: A settlement of $97 million is made to Māori for Crown obligations for aquaculture space that was approved between 1992 and 2004.

2008: The government changes and announces that the aquaculture reforms will be overhauled. It reaffirms the government commitment to the industry billion dollar target.

External links

New Zealand Aquaculture magazine (online)
Aquaculture e-zine

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Overview

Cultured species

Mussels

Oysters

Salmon

Other species

Scallop enhancement

Legislation and administration

Training and research

Role of Māori

Prospects

Timeline

Further reading

External links