OCEAN LECTURE SERIES

"Integrated Aquaculture Education: Food for Thought"
• Kenneth Riley

About the Lecture - 2004

As consumers become increasingly health conscious and aware of the relation between diet and good health, consumption of seafood will increase. To address the increase in demand, many people are turning to aquaculture as a source for safe, high quality seafood. Aquaculture, the farming of aquatic plants and animals, has become one of the fastest growing segments of agriculture with production in the United States having increased by 300% since 1980.

While the aquaculture industry is primarily focused on producing fish such as catfish, tilapia, trout, and salmon, researchers at Harbor Branch and the USDA Agricultural Research Service are investigating methods to produce high-value marine fish such as flounder, black sea bass, and Florida pompano. The technologies emerging from this collaborative research program are being used to advance the industry and to train students with the latest techniques for marine fish culture.

In this lecture, let's learn how fishermen and aquaculturists are working together to provide the highest quality safe and nutritious seafood.

About the Speaker

Mr. Kenneth Riley is Director of Aquaculture Education. He has worked in the field of aquaculture and marine fisheries for the past eight years. As a graduate of Louisiana State University and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Mr. Riley's education and research background has focused on the culture of freshwater and marine finfish with emphasis on broodstock management, genetics, and larval culture. His goal is to develop and transfer to commercial producers cost-effective and environmentally sound culture techniques for high-value species. Currently, he is responsible for teaching and developing course materials for aquaculture training workshops, specialized short courses, and community college classes taught at Harbor Branch's Aquaculture Center for Training, Education and Demonstration.