The sustainability of aquaculture has been debated intensely since 2000, when a review on the net contribution of aquaculture to world fish supplies was published in Nature. This paper reviews the developments in global aquaculture from 1997 to 2017, incorporating all industry sub-sectors and highlighting the integration of aquaculture in the global food system. Inland aquaculture-especially in Asia-has contributed the most to global production volumes and food security. Major gains have also occurred in aquaculture feed efficiency and fish nutrition, lowering the fish-in-fish-out ratio for all fed species, although the dependence on marine ingredients persists and reliance on terrestrial ingredients has increased. The culture of both molluscs and seaweed is increasingly recognized for its ecosystem services; however, the quantification, valuation, and market development of these services remain rare. The potential for molluscs and seaweed to support global nutritional security is underexploited. Management of pathogens, parasites, and pests remains a sustainability challenge industry-wide, and the effects of climate change on aquaculture remain uncertain and difficult to validate. Pressure on the aquaculture industry to embrace comprehensive sustainability measures during this 20-year period have improved the governance, technology, siting, and management in many cases.

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Aquaculture contributed 43 per cent of aquatic animal food for human consumption in 2007 (e.g. fish, crustaceans and molluscs, but excluding mammals, reptiles and aquatic plants) and is expected to grow further to meet the future demand. It is very diverse and, contrary to many perceptions, dominated by shellfish and herbivorous and omnivorous pond fish either entirely or partly utilizing natural productivity. The rapid growth in the production of carnivorous species such as salmon, shrimp and catfish has been driven by globalizing trade and favourable economics of larger scale intensive farming. Most aquaculture systems rely on low/uncosted environmental goods and services, so a critical issue for the future is whether these are brought into company accounts and the consequent effects this would have on production economics. Failing that, increased competition for natural resources will force governments to allocate strategically or leave the market to determine their use depending on activities that can extract the highest value. Further uncertainties include the impact of climate change, future fisheries supplies (for competition and feed supply), practical limits in terms of scale and in the economics of integration and the development and acceptability of new bio-engineering technologies.In the medium term, increased output is likely to require expansion in new environments, further intensification and efficiency gains for more sustainable and cost-effective production. The trend towards enhanced intensive systems with key monocultures remains strong and, at least for the foreseeable future, will be a significant contributor to future supplies. Dependence on external feeds (including fish), water and energy are key issues. Some new species will enter production and policies that support the reduction of resource footprints and improve integration could lead to new developments as well as reversing decline in some more traditional systems.

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a b s t r a c tAntimicrobials, parasiticides, feed additives and probiotics are used in Asian aquaculture to improve the health status of the cultured organisms and to prevent or treat disease outbreaks. Detailed information on the use of such chemicals in Asian aquaculture is limited, but of crucial importance for the evaluation of their potential human health and environmental risks. This study reports the outcomes of a survey on the use of chemical and biological products in 252 grow-out aquaculture farms and 56 farm supply shops in four countries in Asia. The survey was conducted between 2011 and 2012, and included nine aquaculture farm groups: Penaeid shrimp farms in Bangladesh, China, Thailand and Vietnam; Macrobrachium prawn farms, and farms producing both Penaeid shrimps and Macrobrachium prawns in Bangladesh; tilapia farms in China and Thailand; and Pangasius catfish farms in Vietnam. Results were analysed with regard to the frequencies of use of active ingredients and chemical classes, reported dosages, and calculated applied mass relative to production. A range of farm management and farm characteristics were used as independent variables to explain observed chemical use patterns reported by farmers within each group. Sixty different veterinary medicinal ingredients were recorded (26 antibiotics, 19 disinfectants, and 15 parasiticides). The use of antibiotic treatments was found to be significantly higher in the Vietnamese Pangasius farms. However, total quantities of antibiotics, relative to production, applied by the Pangasius farmers were comparable or even lower than those reported for other animal production commodities. Semi-intensive and intensive shrimp farms in China, Thailand and Vietnam showed a decrease in the use of antibiotic treatments. These farm groups utilised the largest amount of chemicals relative to production, with feed additives and plant extracts, probiotics, and disinfectants, being the most used chemical classes, mainly for disease prevention. The surveyed farmers generally did not exceed recommended dosages of veterinary medicines, and nationally or internationally banned compounds were (with one exception) reported neither by the surveyed farmers, nor by the surveyed chemical sellers. Factors underlying the observed differences in chemical use patterns differed widely amongst farm groups, and geographical location was found to be the only factor influencing chemical ingredient application patterns in the majority of the studied farm groups.