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GUEST EDITORIAL BY JESSIE KOLLEN Heroes, boffins and BILLION DOLLAR DREAMS H ow is aquaculture seen in the minds of the public – is it really that bad? In the last issue of New Zealand Aquaculture our very own Keith Ingram unceremoniously blasted away any sugar coating regarding the presence of aquaculture marketing in the media. That done, I wanted to know what information about aquaculture is being accessed by the general public. Guess what was the first thing I discovered? The popular Google lodestone Wikipedia gives us these crushing words on salmon farming, which is about 30 percent of aquaculture production in New Zealand: "Salmon farms are typically sited in pristine coastal ecosystems which they then pollute. A farm with 200,000 salmon discharges more fecal [sic] waste than a city of 60,000 people. This waste is charged directly into the surrounding aquatic environment, untreated, often containing antibiotics and pesticide." Ouch. So there you have it, aquaculture is horrifically polluting. But is it really? That statistic is accurate, yet the comparison may not be relevant and a reader doesn't automatically recognise this discrepancy. I am joining the aqua-cult but it's true I'm still a neophyte. I've been trying to cultivate my knowledge, however I still consider myself to have a consumer's perspective. I only recently discovered that there are some reports claiming that as much as half the shellfish and fish consumed globally is provided by aquaculture. So, the salmon I just ate wasn't captured as it swam wild and free in the brisk and blue waters of a deep southern river? Oh. We are familiar with farmed vegetables, animals and even shellfish, but for whatever reason, people still tend to think of fish as being fished. A salmon farm brings to mind a sort of aquatic version of battery hens. Salmon are forced to live in cages, with never the chance to stretch their fins and their life has only one purpose, to end on a plate. Today, the eggs of battery hens are eaten by hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders, but that doesn't mean that people like the idea of chickens living out their lives in strict captivity. The media (to which I belong) has an interest in keeping alive the emotions of its audience. Particularly television news is not going to prioritise the broadcast of a quiet little story about the progress of integrated multitrophic aquaculture, rather it is much more enticing to its viewers to cover a story in which impassioned and heroic environmentalists battle it out with greedy corporations who want to use every available piece of the Marlborough Sounds, or southern coastline for their ethically perverse and polluting farms. Ok, I'm sure my theoretical public perception of aquaculture is not a revelation to anyone in the industry. MPI's senior aquaculture advisor Stephanie Hopkins is hoping the ministry's work with NIWA on fish farm waste will clear up some misconceptions because she believes that while New Zealanders value their environment, it's difficult convincing them of scientific rigour. Here's what I think: There are obstacles in the de-vilifying campaign for aquaculture in the media and bringing it up in the potential investor and consumer consciousness to fulfil the goal of a billion dollar industry by 2050. People don't understand aquaculture – yet. So, educating people is paramount.Yes, yes, I've read lots of media releases from companies in my line of work but I think they need to be more sophisticated than the one I read recently from NZ King Salmon – who are in the midst of all sorts of awkwardness with environmental groups due to their over eager expansion. The release is full of "he-said-she-said". Rosewarne may know what he's talking about, but he doesn't say it very eloquently – even when he's quoting NIWA's highly qualified Andrew Forsyth. So, let the information out there on aquaculture be sophisticated, people can handle boffins. Aquaculture is scientific. We seem to worship science these days, so I think that companies and research institutes which place an emphasis on the science of aquaculture in their information releases are taking the right steps towards aligning aquaculture with modern thinking. Aquaculture is science, and it's business, so I say, be scientific and be businesslike, that will work better in convincing the public of the viability of aquaculture and placing it on the same perception level as agricultural farming – every industry walks the line of responsible use of resources and production growth. We'll get there in the end. 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