Thierry Chopin

University of New Brunswick · Seaweed and Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture Research Laboratory

Aquaculture of extractive species, such as bivalves and macroalgae, already supplies a large amount of the production consumed worldwide, and further production is steadily increasing. Moving aquaculture operations off the coast as well as combining various uses at one site, commonly called multi-use aquaculture, is still in its infancy. Various pr...

ABSTRACT Finding ways to keep global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius is urgent and will need a portfolio of solutions. Seaweeds are marine photosynthetic organisms that humans harvest either from the wild or farm, to be used in many applications and providing various ecosystem services. large scale farming of seaweeds for absorbing carbon has lat...

The majority of the world's coastal zones are acidifying because of excess nitrogen from eutrophication, says Dr. Barry Costa-Pierce Interest and excitement about the power of restorative aquaculture are ballooning, sparking discussion amongst the seafood industry, researchers and non-pro t organizations about mariculture's potential for climate ch...

There is presently a renewed interest in the mariculture of seaweeds in the western world. It was triggered by: 1) their cultivation in Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) systems, in which they are the key component to recapture dissolved inorganic nutrients (e.g. nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon); 2) the emerging understanding of the ecosy...

A recent publication by Belton et al. raises points for policy-makers and scientists to consider with respect to the future of aquaculture making recommendations on policies and investments in systems and areas of the world where aquaculture can contribute most. Belton et al. take an ‘us versus them’ approach separating aquaculture by economics, li...

Highlights 1. This policy brief highlights key challenges that must be addressed for the long-term sustainability of the global seaweed industry, ensuring its role in providing nature-based solutions within the sustainable ocean economy agenda and in contributing to the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030). 2. Seaweed...

Cottier-Cook, E.J., Nagabhatla, N., Asri, A., Beveridge, M., Bianchi, P., Bolton, J., Bondad-Reantaso, M.G., Brodie, J., Buschmann, A., Cabarubias, J., Campbell, I., Chopin, T., Critchley, A., De Lombaerde, P., Doumeizel, V., Gachon, C.M.M., Hayashi, L., Hewitt, C.L., Huang, J., Hurtado, A.Q., Kambey, C., Kim, G.H., Le Masson, V., Lim, P.E., Liu, T...

We are experts from ocean related disciplines from all regions and ocean basins of the world, convened under the auspices of the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy. We are deeply alarmed by the conclusions of the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and the impact that anthropogenic climate change is having on the health of our ocean and ocea...

Video of the plenary presentation of Thierry Chopin at the virtual conference "INFOFISH e-dialogue on Seaweed", in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on April 21, 2021.

Presentation on Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) to people working at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations

The FAO recently published its biennial State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture up to 2018. The FAO continues to treat the seaweed aquaculture sector as a different category, with separate tables and comments in different sections. As this could lead to a distorted view of total world aquaculture, the statistical information provided by FAO was re...

Executive Summary In the fall of 2018, the Northeast Coastal Acidification Network (NECAN) Industry Working Group released a survey to industry members, including aquaculturists and wild harvest fishermen, in the US Northeast and Canadian Maritimes to identify their questions and research priorities regarding ocean and coastal acidification (OCA)....

In integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA), species from different trophic levels are raised in proximity to one another and the co-products (organic and inorganic wastes) of one cultured species are recycled to serve as nutritional inputs for others. IMTA can reduce the ecological impacts near aquaculture operations , improve social perception...

Human activities can elevate coastal levels of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN). As macroalgae readily absorb and accumulate DIN, the elemental (total N and C:N ratio) composition of their tissues is less affected by temporal fluctuations compared to more direct measures of DIN concentration. Additionally, their isotopic (δ15N) composition can re...

In integrated multi-trophic aquaculture or IMTA, species from different trophic levels are raised near one another and the organic and inorganic wastes of one cultured species serve as nutritional inputs for others. IMTA can reduce the ecological impacts near aquaculture operations, improve social perceptions of aquaculture, and provide financial b...

The heavy reliance of most global aquaculture on the ambient environment suggests inherent vulnerability to climate change effects. This review explores the potential effects of climate change stressors on aquaculture biology and resources needed to support decision-making for vulnerability assessment, planned adaptation, and strategic research dev...

Increases in global population and seafood demand are occurring simultaneously with fisheries decline in an era of rapid climate change. Aquaculture is well positioned to help meet the world's future seafood needs, but heavy reliance of most global aquaculture on the ambient environment and ecosystem services suggests inherent vulnerability to clim...

We assess the financial performance of an Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) monoculture versus an Atlantic salmon, blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), and sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) operation. Using updated methods and models, we improve on earlier studies of IMTA economics. A discounted cash-flow analysis w...

Prepared by 50 experts and based on a detailed analysis of current seaweed aquaculture practices, regulations, health benefits and consumer demands, these guidelines aim to foster sustainability and protection of the marine environment. These guidelines also include expert opinions and assessments from the academic, private and associative sectors,...

With 25% of the world’s coastline, Canada is endowed with enormous potential for marine aquaculture. Its development on both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, however, has come under increasingly intense public scrutiny and generated heated debate over many issues including First Nations territorial rights, impacts on wild fisheries, and environment...

By moving away from coastal waters and hence reducing pressure on nearshore ecosystems, offshore aquaculture can be seen as a possible step towards the large-scale expansion of marine food production. Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) in nearshore water bodies has received increasing attention and could therefore play a role in the transf...

The Nova Scotia mussel industry has been hit very hard by invasive tunicates over the past decade. This has resulted in several industry members no longer seeding their mussel lines. At many sites, lines have been left in the water and, in some cases, naturally settling seaweeds have colonized the lines. Mussel growers are looking for options for t...

A renewed interest in the mariculture of seaweeds in the western world has been triggered by their cultivation in integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA) systems, the ecosystem services they provide (e.g. nutrient biomitigation, irrigation-less and deforestation-less food production, oxygen provision, habitat restoration, carbon sequestration,...

In 2016, farmed seaweeds accounted for 27.3 million metric tonnes (wet weight), worth USD 5.6 billion and represented the largest group of maricultured organisms. Farmed seaweed production exceeded wild seaweed harvesting in 1971 and now represents 95.6% of the world's seaweed supplies. It is, however, mostly an Asian story, as 97.6% is produced in...

A major rethinking is needed regarding the functioning of an "aquaculture farm". It should be managed using an integrated coastal area management (ICAM) strategy, according to the movement of the different elements considered. Different nutrients mean different spatial and temporal recovery strategies. There is, consequently, a need for amendments...