ABSTRACT
Greater use of aquatic genetic resources (AqGR) and the application of genetic technologies offer many opportunities for aquaculture. These include increased production, control of reproduction, improved marketability, more accurate and effective traceability in the supply chain, better disease and parasite resistance, more efficient utilization of resources and better identification and characterization of aquatic genetic resources. These opportunities exist in both developed and developing countries. It has been stated that if all the farmed aquatic species were in a traditional selective breeding programme, the additional need for seafood in 2050 could be met with very little extra land, water, feed or other inputs. This chapter briefly defines aquatic genetic resources, examines the current state of these resources in aquaculture production, describes how genetic resources help meet farmer and consumer needs, lists some of the more popular genetic technologies, highlights the aquatic animal diversity in rice fields and concludes with a summary of the opportunities and challenges regarding the use of aquatic genetic resources in aquaculture. Although the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defines ‘agricultural biodiversity’ to include marine capture fisheries, this chapter will focus on aquaculture in freshwater.
