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STORY: FAO / STATE OF WORLD FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE REPORT
TRT: 4:43
SOURCE: FAO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT FAO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: PLEASE SEE SHOTLIST FOR DETAILS
11-18 JUNE 2023, GALAXIDI, GREECE
1. Drone shots, marine aquaculture production
2. Various shots, processing of fish produced in aquaculture
20 MARCH 2025, ABENGOUROU, COTE D’IVOIRE
3. Drone shot, terrestrial aquaculture ponds in rural area
4. Various shots, fish production in aquaculture ponds
25 JULY 2022, QUANG NINH PROVINCE, VIET NAM
5. Med shot, producer at aquaculture shrimp pond
6. Close up, shrimp
3 JUNE 2026, ROME, ITALY
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
“Aquaculture continues to be the fastest-growing food production system around the world. In fact, from the turn of the century to now, it's been growing at almost 5 percent per year continuously. And this tendency remains. What we can see as well is that capture fisheries continue to be stable. It has been stable for the last 40 years, and this is good, because aquaculture is adding to a sector that was already important for food security and nutrition.”
MAY 2026, UDAPPUWA, SRI LANKA
8. Drone shot, shrimp production in aquaculture area
9. Various shots, shrimp producers working in aquaculture ponds
03 JUNE 2026, ROME, ITALY
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
“The geographical distribution of aquaculture production is very skewed. Almost 90 percent of the production takes place in Asia. In other continents, the production is very, very low. For example, in Africa, less than 2.5 percent of the global production. So that shows also the opportunities for the future, if we can actually replicate the successes in some regions, to bring them [the successes] to other regions to improve the food security and nutrition of these areas that need more food and need more protein.”
NOVEMBER 2024, GRANADA
11. Drone shots, algae aquaculture production
SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2023, KIBRAY DISTRICT, TASHKENT REGION, UZBEKISTAN
12. Various shots, aquaculture production
03 JUNE 2026, ROME, ITALY
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
“By 2034, the fisheries and aquaculture sector will continue to grow. Almost 20 million tonnes will be added to the production of fisheries and aquaculture, most of that production coming from aquaculture, in fact, almost 85 percent coming from aquaculture. What this means is that we expect that by the end of 2034, our consumption of aquatic foods (of fish, and crustaceans, and molluscs) will almost reach 22 kg per person, significantly more than today [21.3 kg], and therefore continuing to improve food security and the nutrition of our global population.”
02 - 05 JULY 2025, JEJU, REPUBLIC OF KOREA
14. Drone shot, village of Pyeongdae-ri, Jeju
15. Drone shot, haenyeo diver walking toward water
16. Various shots, Ryou-jin Ko preparing to enter water
17. Various shots, haenyeo diving and harvesting shells
03 JUNE 2026, ROME, ITALY
18. SOUNDBITE (English) Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
“The sustainability of marine resources is particularly problematic. 62 percent of the fisheries around the world are sustainable, and that means that more than one-third of the resources are not sustainably exploited, and that needs to be reversed.”
08 - 09 MAY 2026, MPULUNGU, ZAMBIA
19. Various shots, fishers working at the Tanganica Lake
03 JUNE 2026, ROME, ITALY
20. SOUNDBITE (English) Manuel Barange, Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO):
“In marine fisheries, what we see is that climate change has two particular impacts. The first one is that some species become less productive, and some more productive. And the second effect is that the distribution of the species changes. This is a great disruption to everything around fisheries, from where we catch, what is it that we catch, how do we manage what we catch, and what is it that we provide to the markets and to the consumers, so adaptation will be essential at all levels. We need to adapt institutions. We need to adapt management systems, we need to adapt the operations of fisheries, and we need to adapt providing livelihoods, alternative livelihoods, to those that may be affected more than others.”
11 - 18 JUNE 2023, GALAXIDI, GREECE
20. Various shots, fish processing
Global aquaculture production reached a record 103 million tonnes in 2024, confirming its role as the world’s fastest-growing food production system, according to a new Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report.
While aquaculture has an expanding role to nourish the world's population, ensuring equitable development remains a key challenge.
Aquatic animals such as fish, molluscs, and crustaceans play an increasingly important role in healthy diets, with 89 percent of production destined for human consumption, according to the 2026 edition of The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA).
Widely recognized as a leading reference, this FAO flagship report provides the most up-to-date data and information on global fisheries and aquaculture. It also assesses the state and health of marine fishery resources.
In 2024, aquaculture production reached an all-time record of 103 million tonnes, while capture fisheries production was 92 million tonnes.
Production from capture fisheries has largely plateaued and has remained within the 86–94 million tonnes range since the late 1980s, reflecting ecological limits and improved management of global seas and oceans.
On the other hand, aquaculture has emerged as the main driver of growth, according to Manuel Barange, FAO Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division.
Manuel Barange, FAO Assistant Director-General and Director of the Fisheries Aquaculture Division, said, “Aquaculture continues to be the fastest-growing food production system around the world. In fact, from the turn of the century to now, it's been growing at almost 5 percent per year continuously. And this tendency remains. What we can see as well is that capture fisheries continues to be stable. It has been stable for the last 40 years, and this is good, because aquaculture is adding to a sector that was already important for food security and nutrition.”
Aquaculture growth can further support the rise in production that a planet with a growing population needs, according to Barange, but this requires a more balanced geographical distribution of production, which remains largely concentrated in Asia.
Barange said, “The geographical distribution of aquaculture production is very skewed. Almost 90 percent of the production takes place in Asia. In other continents, the production is very, very low. For example, in Africa, less than 2.5 percent of the global production. So that shows also the opportunities for the future, if we can actually replicate the successes in some regions, to bring them [the successes] to other regions to improve the food security and nutrition of these areas that need more food and need more protein.”
The SOFIA report also provides an outlook on the fisheries and aquaculture for the coming decade.
FAO projects continued growth in production, consumption and trade, with total production of fish, molluscs, crustaceans and other aquatic animals expected to reach 214 million tonnes by 2034.
Aquaculture will play a pivotal role in driving this growth and sustaining “food security and nutrition” globally, said Barange.
He also said, “By 2034, the fisheries and aquaculture sector will continue to grow. Almost 20 million tonnes will be added to the production of fisheries and aquaculture, most of that production coming from aquaculture, in fact, almost 85 percent coming from aquaculture. What this means is that we expect that by the end of 2034, our consumption of aquatic foods (of fish, and crustaceans, and molluscs) will almost reach 22 kg per person, significantly more than today [21.3 kg], and therefore continuing to improve food security and the nutrition of our global population.”
The SOFIA report also examines the growing pressures faced by the fisheries and aquaculture sector, which supports more than 600 million livelihoods across the value chain.
With more than one-third of marine fishery resources exploited unsustainably, concern over the state of stocks persists, underscoring the urgent need to scale up effective fisheries management, explained Barange.
He said, “The sustainability of marine resources is particularly problematic. 62 percent of the fisheries around the world are sustainable, and that means that more than one-third of the resources are not sustainably exploited, and that needs to be reversed.”
Still, when weighted by volume of landings, 72.6 percent of fish landings are estimated to originate from sustainably fished stocks, confirming that larger and more productive stocks tend to be better managed, according to the report.
Other pressures affecting the performance and sustainability of aquatic food production are environmental degradation, economic shocks, geopolitical shifts, and climate change.
The climate crisis will reshape what can be fished and where we can fish.
Under high emissions scenarios, exploitable fish biomass could decline globally by over 10 percent by 2050 in several regions. Adaptation is key to mitigating disruptions to the livelihoods of fishers and coastal communities, explained Barange.
He also said, “In marine fisheries, what we see is that climate change has two particular impacts. The first one is that some species become less productive, and some more productive. And the second effect is that the distribution of the species changes. This is a great disruption to everything around fisheries, from where we catch, what is it that we catch, how do we manage what we catch, and what is it that we provide to the markets and to the consumers, so adaptation will be essential at all levels. We need to adapt institutions. We need to adapt management systems, we need to adapt the operations of fisheries, and we need to adapt providing livelihoods, alternative livelihoods, to those that may be affected more than others.”
FAO works with Members and partners through its Blue Transformation Roadmap to improve sustainability, productivity and inclusiveness.
Since its launch in 2021, the initiative has driven concrete action worldwide.
In aquaculture, FAO has worked with Members to produce a set of guiding principles for a productive, sustainable and resilient sector, these are included in the Guidelines for Sustainable Aquaculture.
The Organization promotes science-based governance, spatial planning and innovation, including climate-smart and integrated systems such as integrated aquaculture-agriculture systems, and models combining aquaculture with renewable energy.
In capture fisheries, FAO supports stronger governance, better fisheries data and more effective monitoring, control and surveillance.
The Organization works with regional fishery bodies to promote science-based management of shared stocks to promote sustainable exploitation and to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
FAO also helps countries implement international instruments and guidelines that support the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who depend on fisheries and aquaculture for their livelihoods, including the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries.
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