International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium

Although the drying up of the Aral Sea and the salinization of a lot of agricultural lands in different regions in Uzbekistan (UZB) and Kazakhstan (KAZ) have major negative consequences, there is a high potential to develop a new profitable industry and create new job opportunities in this region: the environmental-friendly and sustainable pond farming of brine shrimp Artemia, a wellknown source of food in the farming of fish and crustacean species around the world. This workshop aims to show the outcomes of the implemented Artemia pilot project, present guidelines and recommendations important for such a new business sector, lessons learned and discuss prospects of Artemia production to further develop aquaculture sector in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

Opening remarks at the Training Programme on Safeguarding Salt Lake Brine Shrimp (Artemia) Resources for Aquaculture, held 2-6 September 2024 in Rome / Brussels. Speakers were: Xinhua Yuan, Philippe De Maeyer, Simon Wilkinson, Wang Zhongxiu.

Presentation by Nguyen Van Hoa and Patrick Sorgeloos at the Training Programme on Safeguarding Salt Lake Brine Shrimp (Artemia) Resources for Aquaculture, held 2-6 September 2024 in Rome / Brussels.

The first ever IAAC conference was a free half day even held in Ostend, Belgium on 9 September, as a prelude to Larvi 2024, which ran from 9-12 September. The conference featured twelve presentations introducing the IAAC and providing an overview of many of the issues surrounding Artemia, including management of salt lakes habitats that still provide the bulk of global Artemia supplies, Artemia biodiversity, hatching optimisation, and aquaculture of Artemia biomass in tanks and ponds. Video recordings of most will be posted shortly (the programme below will be updated with links).

The first IAAC Members’ Meeting was held in the afternoon following the IAAC Conference. The proceedings involved two panel discussions, by the Academic Sector and Private Sector respectively. The panels included remote members participating via Zoom.

The 8th fish and shellfish larviculture symposium (larvi '24) will be held in Ghent University, Belgium, from 9-12 September 2024. Capitalising on the previous “larvi” symposia (in ’91, ’95, ’01, ’05, ’09, ’13, ‘17), the Aquaculture R&D Consortium of Ghent University, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and SINTEF Ocean have joined again in the organizing committee for “larvi’24” and are inviting the academic as well as the private sector to attend the 8th Fish and Shellfish Larviculture Symposium. Bringing together European and non-European stakeholders, once again the latest progress in academic research and in the production sector will be reviewed, problems identified and avenues for future collaboration explored. Please download the 2nd announcement and programme for further information.

The first International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium conference will also be held in conjuction with larvi '24, on 9 September. See you there!

The first conference of the International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium will be organized on September 9, 2024 in Ostend, Belgium. The 8th International Fish & Shellfish Larviculture Symposium - Larvi ’24 - will be organised at the same venue in Ostend from 9-12 September 2024.

A more detailed first announcement with call for presentations will be mailed in the first week of October 2023. A preliminary website has been opened where you can register your interest to participate in this event.

The seminar was held on 28 July 2023 in Putrajaya, Malaysia, in conjunction with the first meeting of the International Artemia Aquaculture Consortium Steering Committee. Video recordings of the technical presentations are available in this collection.

Presentation by Simon Wilkinson, Network of Aquaculture Centres in Asia-Pacific, at the Seminar on Artemia Research and Production, 28 July 2023, Putrajaya, Malaysia.

Presentation by Prof. Nguyen Van Hoa, Can Tho University Vietnam, at the Seminar on Artemia Research and Production, 28 July 2023, Putrajaya, Malaysia.

Presentation by Dr Parisa Norouzitallab and Prof. Kartik Baruah, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, at the Seminar on Artemia Research and Production, 28 July 2023, Putrajaya, Malaysia.

Presentation by Prof. Patrick Sorgeloos, Ghent University, at the SDG-aligned Artemia Aquaculture Workshop, 22 September 2021.

Presentation by Meezanur Rahman, WorldFish Centre Bangladesh, at the SDG-aligned Artemia Aquaculture Workshop, 22 September 2021.

With the expansion of hatchery production, the demand for Artemia cysts has continued to increase. Annual consumption is now estimated at 3,500 – 4,000 tonnes, underpinning the production of over 900 billion crustacean post larvae and fish fry by a hatchery industry valued at more than USD 2 billion and the final production of over 10 million tonnes of high-value aquaculture species. With approximately 90 percent of the current Artemia production harvested from inland salt lakes, the future of the hatchery industry could be at risk and requires urgent attention. The workshop explored needs and opportunities for a new international initiative to guarantee a more sustainable provision of Artemia, both from farmed and natural sources.

The goal of the webinar was to document differences in practices used by fish and crustacean hatcheries in the use of Artemia cysts for the preparation of live feeds. Over time, the practices used by hatcheries in Asia, Europe and Latin America have diverged from the good aquaculture practices for Artemia production recommended by FAO in the 1996 Live Food Manual. The technical programme included presentations from twelve speakers from around the world, with an introduction from the Director General of NACA, Huang Jie. The webinar was attended by 359 people from 53 countries. Video recordings of the technical presentations are enclosed, together with the report of the proceedings.

The International Workshop on Artemia Pond and Tank Production was held via Zoom / in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh on 15 June 2021. A video recording of the presentations is enclosed and the report of the meeting is available for download.