Algae, Aquaculture, Medicine Biological Resources Algae, Aquaculture, Medicine

Algae Seaweeds and algae make up 10% of the Japanese diet Much of this is red algae nori. Nori is the most-consumed alga in the world and is often served with sushi Algin – a commercial product (250 million annually) – which comes from the mucus in kelp and other marine algae, has a complex molecular structure useful in food processing and other applications. Salad dressing Ice cream Clarify beer and wine Paint and abrasives

Farming the Sea Today, about 25% to 30% of the world’s seafood comes from aquaculture Annual aquaculture revenues in the US exceed $150 billion, primarily from oysters and salmon Farming the sea not without problems Some species live on fish meals (10% rule?) Rapid spread of disease Drugs pass into environment Concentrated waste in the form of nitrates leading to plankton booms Introduced species?

Fish Farms

New Medicines from the Ocean About half the drugs available to modern medicine comes from nature Bioprospecting?

Biological Resources: Fish 4% of what people eat 18% of the protein we eat 1 billion people rely on fish as their main food source 15 million jobs (direct) 200 million jobs (indirect) 155 per 100,000 die each year in the US

The state of the world’s fisheries: A bleak picture Maximum sustainable yield The problems with overfishing World’s fisheries can’t sustain thepresent catch levels By refining technology and methods, the fishing fleets are taking ever larger proportions of declining stocks

The Economics if Commercial Fishing Compared to the industries involved with other marine resources, the worldwide fishing industry is unique in that, according to economic estimates, the worldwide fish catch sells for less than it costs. Global governments subsidize. Grants Low or no-interest loans Free or low cost fuel Tax incentives Price controls Fishing fleets spend $124 billion to catch $70 billion in fish That’s about $1.77 spent for every dollar earned Tax payers cover the overhead so that the fishing industry makes a profit

You can make a difference Write to local, state, and US governments Eat less fish Use you votes wisely Educate others

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