USSEC Americas recently participated in the 2014 Intensive Pond Aquaculture (IPA) technology training meeting in China, which was organized for USSEC’s aquaculture teams worldwide.  USSEC Americas Regional Director Francisco de la Torre and consultant Jairo Amezquita traveled to Shanghai, China with a team of grower leaders to attend this three day seminar.
Participants were presented with an overview of USSEC’s Global Soy in Aquaculture Program, heard about the trends and demand forecast for aquafeeds, and learned about USSEC’s aquaculture public relations program.  Each regional aquaculture team presented an overview of its respective aquaculture markets and activities to be developed for the fiscal year 2015.  Attendees visited IPA fish farms in Pingwang and Shanghai on the second day.  On the seminar’s final day, a researcher from Auburn University gave a training session on IPA technology that has been designed in the U.S. by Auburn University and developed in China under fish culture conditions there.  The researcher explained to the audience the opportunities of working together to develop this kind of technology, which will be brought to other countries.
IPA technology increases the productivity of aquaculture in existing pond units by culturing fish in aerated raceways within ponds and removing solid wastes.  Removal of solid wastes allows for a threefold or greater increase in fish production over traditional pond culture technologies.  The implementation of this technology will result in an increase of the demand for U.S. soybeans and soybean meal.