Ethical Responsibility in Aquaculture and Fisheries Management - Framing the Issues and Concerns

Introduction: As the demand for seafood is continually being met by the aquaculture industry there is a groundswell of concerns among the diversity of stakeholders with differing perspectives of the industry.  While we continually improve production, yield, and profit margins for the foodfish and product industry, and as we make strides to maximize genetic diversity and viability with stock restoration and enhancement, and as we attempt to minimize our environmental footprint, we have not been proactive addressing in the ethical components of our discipline.  As we improve on the questions of “how we do certain things” we must ask and answer the fundamental question of “should we do certain things.”  This symposium is a concerted effort to proactively frame some of the ethical concerns we should consider as the industry further develops.  These concerns include environmental stewardship of our natural resources, animal welfare, integration of natural and synthetic ingredients into feeds; prophylactic use of antibiotics; movement and modification of germplasm used in creating selected or technologically-manipulated lines of broodstock, and the responsibility of researchers, educators, the government and the industry itself. Through a series of leading experts within their respective disciplines, we will address most of the topics listed above.