The increase in global aquaculture and the associated protists: opportunities and threats

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO; 2020), the contribution of aquaculture to the global production of finfish, crustaceans, molluscs and other aquatic animals had increased up to 46%, representing 114.5 million tonnes worth $263.6 billion, by 2018 compared with 26% in 2000, and is predicted to double by 2050. Besides aquatic animals, 97% of all aquatic algae come from seaweed farms and microalgal production is rapidly increasing. Among crustaceans, marine shrimps dominate the production and make them an important income source for developing countries in Asia and Latin America. In Europe, fish and molluscs dominate the industry. Atlantic salmon is the most important fish species with the largest proportion of export revenue, grown mainly in Norway and the UK. In the UK, aquaculture production was 197,000 tonnes worth $1.3 billion.