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Australian cotton growers, feeding and clothing Australia
25/03/2008

With the world’s and Australia’s fish stocks diminishing the demand for fresh seafood is increasing, Australian cotton growers are looking at adding fish to their farming enterprises.

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food-producing industry in the world. Water for irrigation is a substantial and recurring cost to cotton farmers, and aquaculture provides an opportunity to add value to this water.

Australian freshwater silver perch is high quality seafood with an abundant of healthy omega 3 fatty acids. It has a medium to strong flavour, relatively few bones and firm white flaky flesh.

Cotton Catchment Communities CRC and University of New England PhD Student David Foley is currently researching how to boost silver perch availability and lower production costs by using cage culture combined with the water resources currently available in cotton and other irrigation industries.

Mr Foley has an honours degree in fisheries science, won the Ocean Wave’s Seafood prize for designing an off-shore abalone cage and is completing his research at the Grafton Aquaculture Centre.

“With increasing pressure to ensure sustainable use of water in irrigation farming, aquaculture may be a means of returning a higher value from water used for irrigation”, said Mr Foley.

“Not only would cotton growers have the chance to diversify their current farming system, the increased level of nitrogen in the water from fish waste could reduce reliance on artificial fertilisers in cotton production”, said Mr Foley.

The project objectives are based on finding the optimal conditions for cage production and will look specifically at stocking density, feeding, production strategies, disease management and cage design.

If successful, integration of fish farming will provide cotton farmers with a diversification that adds significant value to irrigation water, increased water-use efficiency, economical and environmental sustainability for regional communities within NSW and Queensland.




For more information or an interview please contact David Foley on 02 6640 1687 or for more images contact Yvette Cunningham on 02 6799 2471