|
Photo: IFFO/FIS
IFFO highlights the positive impact of responsible fisheries on global biodiversity, according to new scientific research
UNITED KINGDOM
Friday, January 16, 2026, 06:00 (GMT + 9)
The Marine Ingredients Organisation emphasizes that well-managed fisheries are essential to prevent further land-use change and protect the world’s remaining ecosystems.
 The open-access paper, led by Duncan Leadbitter of the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security at the University of Wollongong, warns that shifting away from seafood toward land-based protein could have devastating consequences for the planet’s remaining wilderness.
The Cost of Replacing Fish with Farming
The research, published in Reviews in Fisheries Science & Aquaculture, argues that while all food production carries an environmental footprint, the expansion of agriculture is the primary driver of biodiversity loss. According to the study, approximately 83% of agricultural expansion during the 1980s and 1990s occurred at the expense of tropical forests.
The paper presents a stark comparison of the land requirements needed to replace current marine protein sources:
-
Replacing all animal protein sourced from marine fisheries would require nearly 5 million km² of new agricultural land—an area larger than the remaining Amazon rainforest in Brazil.
-
Eliminating fish-based ingredients from aquaculture diets alone would necessitate the conversion of over 47,000 km² of land into farmland.
Balancing Land and Sea
 Dr. Brett Glencross, IFFO’s Technical Director, emphasized that responsibly managed fisheries are essential for a sustainable future. “More tools are needed to enable objective, localized comparisons between the biodiversity impacts of land-based animal protein production and marine fishing,” Glencross stated. To address this, IFFO has launched a pilot project to develop a biodiversity framework that measures these impacts and guides global decision-making.
The lead author, Duncan Leadbitter, noted that while agriculture often requires the total removal of native vegetation, well-managed fisheries do not require such fundamental ecosystem shifts. The researchers conclude that a holistic, integrated food system is the only way to avoid "trade-offs" that merely move environmental damage from the oceans onto the land.
[email protected]
www.seafood.media
|
Print
