If we want to build a better future, we all need to eat more fish | Environment

As the international community continues to grapple with the future of humanity, most recently at this month’s UN Summit of the Future, the question of how we can nourish and feed a growing population without destroying the planet has become increasingly urgent.

An additional 150 million people went hungry last year compared to 2019, while more than 730 million people worldwide are malnourished, and the outlook remains precarious. At the same time, food systems are under increasing pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There is evidence that they are responsible for about a third of all human-made emissions, two-thirds of which are generated by land-based systems.

Sustainably meeting future global nutritional needs will therefore increasingly rely on fish and other aquatic foods, which have a lower environmental impact than food from terrestrial animals, yet provide the same – if not greater – nutritional returns.

Aquatic foods already make a significant contribution to global nutrition. The fish currently landed by small-scale fisheries worldwide represent half of the recommended nutrient intake of omega-3 fatty acids of 987 million women. And farmed bivalves such as oysters and mussels, for example, require limited freshwater and land, while containing 76 times more vitamin B12 and five times more iron than chicken.

But protecting and conserving fish stocks and aquatic ecosystems to maintain necessary production and supplies also requires greater investment and innovation. As of 2017, about a third of global fish stocks have been overfished, while the effects of climate change have undermined production through changing ocean temperatures, salinity and excessive algae growth or eutrophication.

Despite the enormous potential of aquatic food systems to feed the world more sustainably, a significant funding gap remains in research and development. The investment gap in African aquaculture alone is $12 billion per year. Addressing this gap is essential to restoring global progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The food systems of the future will need more fish, and the future starts now.

In many of the countries where my organization, WorldFish, works, we have seen the benefits of investing in better access to fish and aquatic foods. For example, introducing fresh tilapia into school meals in Timor-Leste, where fish consumption remains significantly below the global average, increases intake of protein, omega-3, vitamins and minerals among children to support healthy growth and development. And adding fish powder to school meals three times a week in Assam, India, has reduced stunting and increased the average body mass index of children.

WorldFish and our partners have also developed a range of innovations to sustainably increase aquatic food production to ensure these nutritional benefits reach more people, especially vulnerable groups such as children and women.

For example, scientists have used selective breeding to improve species of commonly caught fish such as tilapia and rohu carp so that they mature up to 37 percent faster using the same resources. This means greater returns for fish farmers and more nutritious food reaching supply chains faster, without extra costs to the farmer or the environment.

Advanced techniques to identify common fish diseases have also helped improve fish health, simultaneously increasing production and reducing emissions from disease losses.

And improvements in sustainable fish and aquatic food production have opened the potential for new trade corridors, such as the Program to Improve Fisheries Management and Blue Economy Trade Corridors (PROFISHBLUE) in the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

By scaling these innovations around the world, we can make huge gains in food and nutrition security, and in turn improve health and development, livelihoods and equality.

Research shows that with sustainable management, the fisheries and aquaculture sector could produce six times more than it does today, and that greater affordability through increased supply could prevent an estimated 166 million micronutrient deficiencies by 2030. In addition, with more fish available, fishermen need to spend less time and fuel at sea, reducing emissions by up to 50 percent.

The future nutritional needs of the world’s population are inescapable and must be met through the most sustainable diets and production systems.

Fish and aquatic foods are rich in nutrients and, when produced according to the latest best practices, are sustainable and climate resilient.

A new pact for the future must therefore include a commitment to using fish and aquatic foods as the cornerstone of the food systems of the future, starting today.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera.