June, 2013 Work on reducing the risk of white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) at shrimp farms in East Africa through improved management and policy is progressing, thanks, in part, to a Responsible Aquaculture Foundation (RAF) case study conducted in mid-May. The case study, the third such project administered by RAF, dealt with a WWSV outbreak
June, 2013 Research conducted on early mortality syndrome (EMS) at a large integrated shrimp farm in Malaysia has indicated that the disease repeatedly manifests in ponds with an increase in pH to 8.5 to 8.8. Conducted by Noriaki Akazawa, managing director of Agrobest Sdn. Bhd., with assistance from Kinki University and the National Research Institute
May, 2013 After months of investigation by a research team led by Donald Lightner at the University of Arizona, the elusive pathogen causing early mortality syndrome (EMS), an emerging shrimp disease in Southeast Asia more technically known as acute hepatopancreatic necrosis syndrome (AHPNS), has been identified. The researchers found that EMS is caused by a
February, 2015 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Viet Nam Pangasius Association (VNPA), in which the two organizations will work collaboratively to advance responsible aquaculture in the Pangasius sector in Vietnam and globally through the exchange of information and research. GAA and VNPA agreed to the MoU
February, 2015 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) is launching a program designed to help aquaculture farmers attain Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification, the organization announced in late January. The new program is called iBAP, with the “i” representing “improver.” It incentivizes aquaculture facilities capable of attaining BAP certification to engage in a deadline-driven improver program,
January, 2015 Robert Fields of Sam’s Club has joined the board of directors of the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA), the world’s leading standards-setting organization for aquaculture seafood, GAA announced in early January. Fields is senior director for fresh meat, seafood and gourmet deli at Sam’s Club. A division of Walmart, Sam’s Club is a leading
January, 2015 With the Jan. 6 death of Kenneth Morrison, the Global Aquaculture Alliance lost a great aquaculture pioneer and one of its greatest supporters. Morrison received the first Global Aquaculture Alliance Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004 for his many enduring contributions to food and seafood production. As founding and governing members, his companies helped
December, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance has published an open letter applauding the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) for requiring adherence to the country’s VietGAP standards for good aquaculture practices for Pangasius producers in 2015 and shrimp producers by 2020. In the letter, GAA announced that it has launched a benchmarking initiative
September, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance is recognizing Vietnamese seafood champion Dr. Nguyen Huu Dzung with a Lifetime Achievement Award at its GOAL 2014 conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, next month. Dzung will accept the award on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at the Sheraton Saigon Hotel & Towers, the location of the four-day GOAL
October, 2014 Rodrigo Prado, a civil engineer and director of USONIC Ltda. in Puerto Montt, Chile, is the winner of the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s Preferred Freezer Services Global Aquaculture Innovation & Leadership Award. The winner was announced on Day 2 of GAA’s GOAL 2014 conference in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on Oct. 9. USONIC’s
June, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) is appalled by the abuse and exploitation of workers in any industry, the organization said on June 23 following the U.S. State Department’s decision to downgrade Thailand, Malaysia and two other countries to a Tier 3 designation in its 2014 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report. GAA remains fully
July, 2014 In collaboration with the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) and Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP), National Fish & Seafood in late July announced that is launching a project to bring small-scale shrimp farmers closer to Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification. With the support of GAA, National Fish & Seafood will pilot the first four groups
June, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the China Aquatic Products Processing and Marketing Alliance (CAPPMA), in which the two organizations will work collaboratively to advance responsible aquaculture in China and globally through the exchange of information and research. GAA and CAPPMA inked the agreement during the
June, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) is fully committed to social justice as one of the key pillars of its responsible aquaculture program. Social issues are prominently addressed within GAA’s Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) third-party certification program. BAP-certified processing plants, farms, hatcheries and feed mills are required to meet standards for adequate wages, a
January, 2014 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Seafood Importers Association of Australasia (SIAA), in which the two organizations will work collaboratively to advance responsible aquaculture. More than 70% of edible seafood consumed by Australians is imported, much of it by the SIAA’s 25 member companies. In
July, 2013 The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) carried out an unannounced audit at the Narong Seafood Co. Ltd. shrimp processing plant in Samutsakorn, Thailand, in mid-June. As a result of the audit, the organization recommends that the plant maintain its Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification. The BAP third-party certification program has a rigorous grievances procedure in
June, 2013 The Global Aquaculture Alliance takes very seriously the accusations of labor abuse in a June 6 report by Warehouse Workers United and the International Labor Rights Forum and is determining a corrective course of action to ensure that the shrimp processing plant cited in the brief is adhering to Thai labor laws and
September, 2012 Through the development of its Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification standards, the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA), the world’s leading standards-setting organization for farmed seafood, addresses the type of labor abuses cited in two recent reports in the U.S. mainstream media. The first is a Washington Post article documenting the tribulations of Burmese migrant workers