Aquaculture’s Premier Conference
Connect. Collaborate. Commit.

Members of the GAA staff will provide updates on the nonprofit organization’s pre-competitive advocacy and education activities, the industry-leading Best Aquaculture Practices third-party certification program and newer initiatives such as Global Seafood Assurances and The Center for Responsible Seafood.

What’s a virtual event? GAA Communications and Events Manager Steven Hedlund will run through the functionality of the GOAL 2020 conference platform and application.

GAA’s GOAL 2020 conference will officially kick off with words of inspiration from GAA CEO Wally Stevens.

The global food system is the largest user of planetary resources by a distance. Large portions of the system are not sufficiently circular, and thus exploit resources without replenishment. A transformation of the food system toward more sustainability is therefore required. The circularity gaps are largest where agricultural productivity is lowest, and where food is most scarce, primarily in Africa and South Asia. This causes a human tragedy of exposing nearly half of the future global population to insufficient food supply. It also causes global environmental damage through the interconnected meta systems such as climate change, ocean pollution and biodiversity loss. Two solution narratives have evolved which increasingly dominate the debate on food system transformation. The one narrative calls for drastic reduction in animal-sourced food production in order to produce more food with fewer resources. The other narrative calls for a drastic increase in animal-sourced food production in order to produce better food with replenishing resources. Both narratives rely heavily on technology as the critical path to success. This keynote presentation from Dr. Peer Ederer, program and science director at Switzerland-based Global Food and Agribusiness Network (GFAN), explores how aquaculture fits into this debate of these two competing narratives, and what are the challenges and opportunities for aquaculture, as animal-sourced food production comes under even more public scrutiny. After his presentation, Dr. Ederer will be available for audience questions.

For the 14th consecutive year, the aquaculture production forecast for shrimp will be presented and analyzed. The forecast is based on GAA’s exclusive aquaculture production survey, and for the first time this year GAA is partnering with Rabobank to deliver the forecast. Rabobank Senior Analyst Gorjan Nikolik will present.

For the 14th consecutive year, the aquaculture production forecast for finfish will be presented and analyzed. The forecast is based on GAA’s exclusive aquaculture production survey, and for the first time this year GAA is partnering with Rabobank to deliver the forecast. Rabobank Senior Analyst Gorjan Nikolik will present.

It’s the audience’s turn. Use the question-and-answer functionality in the conference platform and application to ask questions about GAA’s exclusive annual aquaculture production forecasts for both shrimp and finfish.

Who is pioneering the next generation of aquaculture production systems for shrimp and finfish? For aquaculture to meet its immense potential in feeding a growing global population with a minimal environmental impact, these pioneers must push the boundaries and redefine what’s possible. The first presentation is on Minh Phú Seafood Corp.’s “Technology 2-3-4” shrimp-farming model. The presentation will delivered by Mr. Quang’s assistant, Nguyễn Hoàng Liêm.

Charoen Pokphand Foods Senior VP Robins McIntosh will present Homegrown Shrimp’s “Aquaculture 5.0” shrimp-farming model.

Ragnar Tveteras, a business economist at Norway’s University of Stavanger, will present on the emergence of new sea-based closed-containment systems for salmon aquaculture.

SalMar Chairman Atle Eide will present SalMar’s “Ocean Farm 2” offshore salmon farm.

David Cahill is global head of production at Pure Salmon. Owned by Singapore-based private equity Investment Partners, Pure Salmon is investing in the expansion of large-scale, land-based, recirculating salmon farming systems around the world, with projects planned in Japan, China, Southeast Asia, France, North America and Africa.

Huang Jie, director general of the Network of Aquaculture Centres, will provide an update on the management of emerging shrimp diseases, including Decapod Iridescent Virus 1 (DIV1) and a new disease commonly referred to as “glass post-larvae disease.”

Belinda Yaxley, country coordinator for Australia and New Zealand for the Best Aquaculture Practices certification program, will present the results of a multi-year GAA-administered study designed to identify and strengthen best practices for animal welfare in aquaculture.

It’s the audience’s turn. Use the question-and-answer functionality in the conference platform and application to ask questions about shrimp disease management and animal welfare.

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended the food supply chain and rattled the public’s food-purchasing behaviors, perhaps for good. But how does seafood fit into the equation? Analysts will present original research on how COVID-19 is affecting seafood trading, marketing and consumption, including food safety and sanitation, transportation and distribution, out-of-home vs. in-home consumption and e-commerce. For the first presentation, independent consultant Carson Roper will present the results of a GAA-commissioned survey of top shrimp producers on how COVID-19 has impacted shrimp production and trade.

For the second presentation, Spheric Research Founder Matt Craze will present the results of a GAA-commissioned survey of key members of the seafood-sourcing community. Since June, Spheric Research has documented global trends in food sales, marketing and consumption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and applied them specifically to seafood. Through one-on-one interviews, Spheric Research then polled key members of the seafood-sourcing community on how those trends will affect seafood sales, marketing and consumption in the weeks, months and years to come.

How will Americans eat seafood over the next few years? For the third presentation, Arlin Wasserman, managing director of Changing Tastes, will share the results of an unprecedented forecast of what how seafood will fit into the American diet, what types of seafood Americans will be eating, how ocean health is reshaping preferences, and what makes aquaculture more attractive to American consumers. The session will also touch on how COVID-19 is reshaping where and how often Americans buy and eat seafood.

Join Molly Jacques, supply chain transparency manager for Best Aquaculture Practices, as she moderates a question-and-answer discussion with some of North America’s leading retail and foodservice seafood buyers, who will weigh in on the challenges of managing the supply disruptions caused by COVID-19 without losing sight of corporate seafood sustainability goals. Use the question-and-answer functionality in the conference platform and application to ask questions about COVID-19 and other topics related to the retail and foodservice community.

Big names are setting big targets aimed at pushing a company’s, and the industry’s, boundaries on sustainability as it relates to novel feed ingredients, energy efficiency and the reduction of carbon emissions, and worker voice and social equity. Heads of sustainability at leading players in the seafood production, feed, retail and foodservice sectors will delineate the importance of collaboration as well as the business case for sustainability to be at the heart of corporate strategy. For the first presentation, a Tesco representative will share its vision for the future of aquaculture and feed strategy.

A critical and manageable influence on the sustainability of aquaculture is feed. But there are a myriad challenges and opportunities that the industry faces. Join Cargill to learn how links in the value chain can work together to identify the direction, goals and expectations that will drive a collaborative and holistic approach to nourishing the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way.

Companies face an increasing number of challenges. Strategic alliance, engagement and cooperation are essential to move the sustainable agenda forward and make sure that we succeed in tackling the enormous social and environmental challenges we have ahead. The ProTerra Foundation will share a few good examples how to make this happen.

There can be structural barriers to entry for new players introducing sources of ingredients that the aquaculture industry can benefit from. Ocean Harvest Technology will give a perspective on how to increase the speed of adoption of new technology and examples of best practices.

Join Best Aquaculture Practices Director of Market Development-Europe Iain Shone as he moderates a question-and-answer discussion with some of world’s leading voices on seafood sustainability and aquafeed. Use the question-and-answer functionality in the conference platform and application to ask questions.

GOAL 2021 is scheduled to be held in Tokyo between the delayed Tokyo Summer Olympics and Beijing Winter Olympics. These events require that strict seafood sourcing policies be adopted by the host cities, increasing awareness of seafood sustainability. However, COVID-19 has significantly disrupted businesses throughout the region. Leading players in the seafood production, supply and retail sectors will explore the growing interest in sourcing sustainable seafood, the role that the Olympic Games and certification programs play in driving change, and the production and supply disruptions caused by COVID-19. For the first presentation, JD.com Seafood Procurement Manager Mr. Feng Yu will present.

Hear how Zhanjiang Guolian Aquatic Products Co. Ltd. is pioneering seafood processing automation.

Join Best Aquaculture Practices VP of Market Development-Asia Steve Hart as he moderates a question-and-answer discussion with key members of Asia’s seafood-sourcing community.

The Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions’ Blue Food Assessment is a coalition of international researchers working to put “blue food” (food from marine and freshwater systems) in the center of the global food policy agenda. The ocean has a key role to play in any transformation towards a healthy, sustainable food system. The Blue Food Assessment aims to conduct a robust, high-impact scientific assessment of how the extraordinary diversity of blue foods affects their contributions to nutrition, their environmental impacts, and spur local and national economies.

Historically, marine fish farming has been limited to near-shore waters. But sustainability and investment trends indicate greater interest at aquaculture’s extremes — on land and farther offshore, and for more species than just salmon. As this year’s conference wrap ups, two panel discussions will be convened with leaders in both recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) and other land-based technologies as well as those pioneering production in deeper waters, miles from shore. Led by Global Aquaculture Advocate Editor James Wright, the first panel discussion will focus on land-based aquaculture.

Led by Global Aquaculture Advocate Editor James Wright, the second panel discussion will focus on offshore aquaculture.

At the close of this session, the three finalists of GAA’s eighth annual Global Aquaculture Innovation Award will make their pitches. The winner will once again be selected by the audience. The competition is sponsored by Preferred Freezer Services/Lineage Logistics.

GAA’s GOAL 2021 conference will be held at The Okura Tokyo from Oct. 25 to 28, 2021. Both a live event and a virtual event will be held simultaneously. Registration will open in the spring. Join us!