Biofloc Technology for Nursery and Growout Aquaculture

Abstract

Brackishwater aquaculture is a “sun rise sector” in India, which plays a crucial role in socioeconomic expansion and is considered as influential income and employment generator. In the last three decades (1980–2010), world aquaculture production has expanded by almost 12 times, atanaverageannualrate of 8.8 percent (FAO, 2010). Brackishwater aquaculture in India especially has evolved as a commercial enterprise with an impressive annual growth rate of 6-7 percent. However, along with intensification of commercial shrimp culture, industry started to face issues like spiralling price of commercial feed, diseases outbreaks, sustainability concern etc. Hence, the concepts of delivering high production with sustainable approach through evolvingeco-friendly technologies started getting momentum worldwide. Modern, industrial aquaculture could strengthen its social and ecological roots by articulating its evolution along a sustainability trajectory and by adopting fully the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) ecosystems approach to aquaculture (EAA; Soto et al., 2007). While acknowledging the economicgains and employment opportunities provided by shrimp sector, it is essential to recognize that the growth of brackishwater aquaculture in India is skewed towards monoculture of shrimp. During 2014 -15 shrimp aquaculture has shown a tremendous growth (30.64%) and achieved highest production (4,34,558MT).