Report of the Working Group on Marine Fish Culture (WGMAFC)

The Working Group of Marine Fish Culture should have met in March 2003 in Vigo, Spain to address the terms of reference (TORs) approved by the Council in 2002:

a) Compile and report on the existing regulations of individual ICES Member Countries and the EU with regard to ingredients in fish feeds;

b) Review and report on the use of ICES standard reference diets and emulsions in research programmes and recommend any modifications to existing formulations and procedures;

c) Review genetic considerations in selective breeding and identify genetic applications and rearing technologies suited for selective breeding of marine fish;

d) Compile information on the current state of the art of microdiets as a replacement for live food for larval fish with the intention to produce a review article in a peer-reviewed publication in 2–3 years;

e) Prepare a proposal to recommend microdiets for comparative testing and particular protocols to use during the testing;

f) Review and report on the use of live feed organisms other than rotifers and Artemia (alternative live feeds) that are used or considered for use in the culture of marine fish larvae;

g) Prepare a summary of the instances where aquaculture is being used to produce fish for restocking or enhancement of wild populations in ICES Member Countries;

h) Prepare a list of technological advances that would be necessary for land-based aquaculture, especially recirculation systems, to greatly expand in the next 10–15 years, on the basis of that list, and develop a set of tasks for WGMAFC;

i) Prepare a report on the status of research and technology of single-sex fish production and its application to the cultivation of marine fish, based on input from experts in the field;

j) Compile a report on the existing methods to ensure that measures can be taken to protect broodstock and larval animals from exposure to microbial pathogens;

k) Prepare a report on existing knowledge of the effects of water quality (e.g., ozone and resulting compounds, ammonia, microbiology, and probiotics) on intensive land-based marine fish culture.