Global aquaculture production

Aquaculture, or fish farming, is the production of fish and other aquatic organisms under controlled conditions in freshwater or marine water. It is one of the fastest growing food production sectors in the world and increasingly important for global food supply. However, it is also a sector where the EU does not play a significant role: in 2022, total EU aquaculture production amounted to 1.1 million tonnes, accounting for less than 1 % of global production (see Figure 1). For comparison, in 2022, Norway’s aquaculture output alone – 1.6 million tonnes of aquatic organisms – exceeded that of the EU as a whole. The country is the world’s second largest exporter of aquatic organisms, after China.