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Environmental performance of blue foods.

Author information

Affiliations

  • 1. Department of Environmental Science, American University, Washington, DC, USA.
      Authors
    • Gephart JA 1
    • Gorospe KD 1
    (2 authors)
  • 2. Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm, Sweden.
      Authors
    • Henriksson PJG 2
    • Jonell M 2
    • Troell M 2
    (3 authors)
  • 3. School for Resource and Environmental Studies, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
      Authors
    • Parker RWR 3
    • Mifflin K 3
    • Tyedmers P 3
    (3 authors)
  • 4. Department of Environmental Studies, The Porter School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
      Authors
    • Shepon A 4, 7
    (1 author)
  • 5. Department of Agriculture and Food, RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Göteborg, Sweden.
      Authors
    • Bergman K 5
    • Hornborg S 5
    • Ziegler F 5
    (3 authors)
    • Show all (11)

ORCIDs linked to this article

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Nature, 15 Sep 2021, 597(7876):360-365
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03889-2 PMID: 34526707 

Abstract 

Fish and other aquatic foods (blue foods) present an opportunity for more sustainable diets1,2. Yet comprehensive comparison has been limited due to sparse inclusion of blue foods in environmental impact studies3,4 relative to the vast diversity of production5. Here we provide standardized estimates of greenhouse gas, nitrogen, phosphorus, freshwater and land stressors for species groups covering nearly three quarters of global production. We find that across all blue foods, farmed bivalves and seaweeds generate the lowest stressors. Capture fisheries predominantly generate greenhouse gas emissions, with small pelagic fishes generating lower emissions than all fed aquaculture, but flatfish and crustaceans generating the highest. Among farmed finfish and crustaceans, silver and bighead carps have the lowest greenhouse gas, nitrogen and phosphorus emissions, but highest water use, while farmed salmon and trout use the least land and water. Finally, we model intervention scenarios and find improving feed conversion ratios reduces stressors across all fed groups, increasing fish yield reduces land and water use by up to half, and optimizing gears reduces capture fishery emissions by more than half for some groups. Collectively, our analysis identifies high-performing blue foods, highlights opportunities to improve environmental performance, advances data-poor environmental assessments, and informs sustainable diets.

Full text links 

Read article at publisher's site: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03889-2

Read article for free, from open access legal sources, via Unpaywall: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03889-2.pdfUnpaywall

STORRE: University of Stirling repository
http://hdl.handle.net/1893/33056

References 

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Funding 

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National Science Foundation (1)