At the end of the Workshop all participants contributed to a SWOT analysis (Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats), Appendix 4. The following conclusions and recommendations flow from the discussions and this analysis.
1. A recent study of the freshwater aquaculture sector in the European Community is available[2], together with a number of reports for the candidate accession countries[3]. However, there is a lack of a comprehensive sector study of European freshwater aquaculture, including impacts from potential competitors. It is recommended that available information be integrated and expanded to produce a comprehensive sector study of the freshwater aquaculture sector as an important component of the rural economy.
2. The freshwater aquaculture industry in Europe is product or producer driven along traditional lines and suffers particularly from a lack of vertical integration, linking producers to consumers through the marketing chain. The producers will remain at a disadvantage unless they develop better links through association or cooperation. The success in the USA of the Catfish Institute is an example of what can be achieved. It is recommended that producers consider forming stronger links through association or cooperation.
3. Some of the constraints to expansion of freshwater aquaculture could be better addressed if there were more information on consumer preferences and demand. It is therefore recommended that support be increased for consumer-oriented economic research directed to market development.
4. While the preparation and implementation of marketing plans is a responsibility of the industry, and must be financed from this source, additional progress and great benefit could be derived from a comprehensive policy framework. Political action is essential to generate coherent development policies. It is recommended that regional bodies, national governments and the European Commission undertake the formulation of comprehensive policies for aquaculture possibly including funding for regional development plans.
5. The aquaculture sector is dominated by small or micro enterprises, which often lack technical information, particularly on the impact of legislative changes driven by food safety or consumer considerations. The provision of a coherent flow of information to small producers, supported by training in all aspects of issues covered by new legislation is recommended.
6. Aquaculture as a food producing system in some cases has been perceived as being in conflict with other parts of the eco-system. This can best be addressed by the development and dissemination of codes of good aquaculture practice to producers, processors and by accurate information to consumers. In this regard it is also essential that inaccurate press reports be challenged immediately by soundly based scientific arguments (the benefit of a strong producer association is obvious here). It is recommended that codes of good aquaculture management, feed production and food processing practices be adapted to the needs of the European sector and actively disseminated to all concerned.
7. While the demand for organically produced aquaculture products is growing, certification is still largely based on the standards of private certification bodies. It is recommended that a minimum set of common standards for organic aquaculture be produced at European level, with the collaboration of all stakeholders.
8. Trout and carp (about 94 percent) dominate European aquaculture, whereas there are other promising candidates for culture that have not been profitably exploited. It is recommended that an investigation of the lack of success with under-utilised species be conducted.
9. Freshwater species suffer from an image of low-value and lack of modernity. Many consumers are also unaware of the positive product attributes of freshwater species. This is exacerbated by lack of marketing aimed at the consumer. It is recommended that producers carry out marketing campaigns on a national and international level to raise awareness among consumers and increase the profile and image of freshwater species. Sufficient public funding to part-finance international generic promotion campaigns should be available, and access to it should be made easy.
10. Small - and large-scale aquaculture operations face different problems. Small-scale producers will probably face growing economic problems. As alternatives they could:
The difficulties of the small-scale sector could be ameliorated by cooperation between producers. This strengthens the recommendation that cooperation be carefully considered by the industry. Large-scale producers are more resilient but need to improve the image of aquaculture products.
