The first webinar in the AquaVitae series Low Trophic Life, “Seaweeds as key components in pond IMTA systems” took place on 26 November from 14:00-14:30 CET. Stefany Almeida Pereira is a marine biologist at Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp) and with a master in aquaculture at the Unesp Aquaculture Center (Caunesp). Stefany works in the areas of production of aquatic organisms with an emphasis on integrated systems, sustainability, and bioeconomics.
In the Brazilian Northwest, shrimp farming is a very traditional activity and has economic importance for society. However, shrimp monoculture has suffered from disease incidences, like the white spot syndrome (WSS), that results in loss of farm productivity. Solutions may be found in management, for example, reducing the amount of shrimp by area. However, it also affects productivity.
This case study, conducted at Primar Aquacultura farm, is related to the organic shrimp farming system, which is more environmentally friendly than traditional ones, as it does not use chemical products like pesticides, antibiotics, and formulated feed. As it is non-fed aquaculture, it operates at low shrimps stocking densities and still suffers from diseases. So, the combination of disease outbreaks and low stocking densities resulted in low productivity on the farm.
Check the full recording of the webinar here:
