“Emptying seas, mounting tensions in fish-hungry Asia” was published yesterday by the Nikkei Asian Review. It discusses the state and future of oceans and fisheries in Asia, with increasing demand yet overfished stocks, and features insights by Nereus Director of Policy Yoshitaka Ota.

“Aquaculture could potentially cover the future gap created in our diet due to fish stock loss,” said Yoshitaka Ota, director of the Nippon Foundation Nereus Program and research associate at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia. However, farmed fish may be an acquired taste, he said. “The aquacultured fish that are increasing in volume, such as catfish or tilapia, are not the species preferred for consumption by all countries. Therefore it won’t fill the gap unless we change our consumption preferences.”