June 09, 2020

Anna Murray 

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recently released the 2020 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture aims to provide objective, reliable and up-to-date information to managers, policymakers, scientists, stakeholders and everyone interested in the fisheries and aquaculture sector.

The report has a particular focus on sustainability and reflects a number of specific considerations. First, 2020 marks the 25th anniversary of the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Second, several Sustainable Development Goal indicators mature in 2020. Third, FAO hosted the International Symposium on Fisheries Sustainability in Rome of Italy on November 18, 2019, and fourth, 2020 sees the finalization of specific FAO guidelines on sustainable aquaculture growth, and on social sustainability along value chains.

According to the FAO publication, covering projections and emerging issues such as new technologies and aquaculture biosecurity, it concluded by outlining steps towards a new vision for capture fisheries.