Export-Driven, Extensive Coastal Aquaculture Can Benefit Nutritionally Vulnerable People

Abstract

Export-orientated shrimp and prawn farming in coastal ghers has been associated with negative environmental, social, and nutritional impacts. This study challenges these perceptions based on field observations from four communities in South West Bangladesh. Most households observed (>60%) were either directly involved in seafood farming or engaged elsewhere in the seafood value chain. Our study set out to establish how the type and location of aquaculture impacted on access to and consumption of aquatic animals. Additionally, we assessed the effects of both household socioeconomic status and intra-household food allocation on individual diet and nutritional outcomes. We used a blended approach, including a 24-h consumption recall on two occasions, analysis of the proximate composition of aquatic animals and biomarkers from whole blood from a sample of the target population. The diverse polyculture systems generated broad social benefits, where “export-oriented” production actually supplied more food locally than to global markets. Key findings: (1) worse-off households achieved higher productivity of farmed aquatic animals on smaller landholding than better-off households with larger landholdings; (2) vegetable production on gher dikes was a significant source of nutrition and income in lower saline gradients; (3) more fish was eaten in lower saline gradients although fish consumption was highly variable within and between households; (4) intra-household allocation of specific foods within diets were similar across communities; (5) recommended nutrient intakes of protein and zinc exceeded daily requirements for adolescent females, but energy, calcium, and iron were below recommended intake levels; (6) n-3 LC-PUFA, expressed as percentage of total fatty acids, in whole blood samples of adolescent females declined with ambient salinity level regardless of household socioeconomic status; (7) analysis of aquatic animals consumed found that mangrove species and tilapia harvested from higher saline ghers contained high levels of desirable PUFAs. These findings suggest that export-driven, extensive coastal aquaculture can be nutrition sensitive when co-products are retained for local consumption.

Adolescent girls in aquaculture ecozones at risk of nutrient deficiency in Bangladesh development and validation of an integrated metric

“…The agro-ecological dynamics in coastal-estuarine zones and seasonality are also determining factors for health and wellbeing outcomes [ 10 , 11 ]. In Bangladesh, the aquatic environment ranges from coastal fully saline to inland freshwater zones.…”

“…In addition, the omega-3 index was higher during the wet season compared to the dry season, similarly indicating dietary diversity and access to omega-3 rich fish were higher during the wet season. Therefore, the omega-3 index appeared to be a sensitive biological indicator for variation in the specific food environment in Bangladesh [ 10 , 11 ]. Other nutritional markers such as mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) or body-mass index (BMI), did not correlate with the aquatic food environment [ 10 , 11 ].…”

Factors Influencing Consumption Behaviour towards Aquatic Food among Asian Consumers: A Systematic Scoping Review

“…According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Asian consumers enjoy high consumption levels of aquatic food (24.6 kg/capita/year), and in 2019, Asian consumers consumed over 70% of total global aquatic food [ 33 ]. However, there is vast heterogeneity in aquatic food consumption among countries within the Asian region [ 33 , 34 ], areas within countries (for instance, rural versus urban) [ 35 ], between households, and even at an intra-household level [ 36 ]. This might be due to various reasons including differences in economic development [ 7 ], technological innovation [ 15 ], infrastructure (cold-chain storage) and distribution channels, and availability [ 37 , 38 , 39 ], as well as consumers’ preferences [ 40 , 41 ].…”

Zebrafish and Medaka as model organisms for climate change research: Global literature scientometric analysis

“…Fish are vital sources for human protein and are a basic necessity for a large percentage of the world, especially who lived in the coastal area (Braña et al, 2021;Mamun et al, 2021;Maulu et al, 2021). The future sustainability of aquatic products, such as seafood, is partly related to the human response to climate change.…”