The Cons of Feeding Soybeans to Fish

It is rumored that companies which are in the business of open ocean aquaculture might soon start using soy in order to feed the fish trapped inside farming pens.

However, a recent study carried out by Food & Water Watch argues that, should the aquaculture and the soy industry partner up, public health and marine ecosystems might end up having to face significant problems.

Moreover, growing sufficient amounts of soy to provide for the fishing industry would require that more agricultural land be made available.

In turn, this will lead to new deforestation campaigns being carried out on land.

Researchers are also worried that, in order to produce the required amounts of soy, farmers would have to use pesticides and fertilizers.

As one can easily imagine, these chemical compounds can easily make their way into our underground water sources, and from there on there is no telling where they may go.

Biologists also explain that fish whose nutrition is soy-based are quite likely to have their digestive systems negatively affected, which means that they will be prone to producing more waste.

Once it hits the waters, this waste will attract bacteria and diseases, thus wreaking havoc in the marine ecosystems nearby.

Triple Pundit reports that Wenonah Hauter, the executive director of Food & Water Watch, argued how “Soy is being promoted as a better alternative to feed made from wild fish, but this model will not help the environment, and it will transfer massive industrial farming models into our oceans and further exacerbate the havoc wreaked by the soy industry on land—including massive amounts of dangerous herbicide use and massive deforestation.”

Given the fact that almost half of the seafood consumed on a global scale comes from ocean fish farms, perhaps it would be a good idea to further investigate this issue so as to make sure that no harm will be done either to the environment, or to public health.