Biofloc-based nursery production system: Heeding the call towards a sustainable shrimp culture industry in the Philippines

Abstract

The increasing global population resulted in intense pressure on the food production sectors to meet the rise in food demand. The aquaculture industry, which is one of the major food production sectors, provides opportunities in addressing issues on malnutrition and poverty alleviation. Shrimp farming is an important sub-sector in aquaculture because shrimp are not only good sources of food, but they contribute to the national economy through export revenues. This resulted in the rapid intensification of shrimp aquaculture, which created negative issues on sustainability and environmental impacts. Hence, this necessitates an urgent need to develop aquaculture production systems that yield high productivity and profitability yet possess a low carbon footprint. Biofloc technology (BFT) fit into these criteria as this technology permits intensive culture of aquatic species, less use of resources, and improved water quality as a consequence of the production and activity of beneficial microbial biomass, which, at the same time, can be utilized as a source of feed for the growing shrimp. BFT has been shown to be successful on a commercial scale during shrimp grow-out, and recent studies have shown that this technology can be further refined and optimized for the production of shrimp during the nursery phase. This review, therefore, highlights the basics of BFT and how this technology is being optimized in the production of shrimp during the nursery phase. More specifically, this discusses the benefits of this approach in ensuring a productive yet sustainable way of producing shrimp in the context of Philippine aquaculture.