aquaculture

noun

aqua·​cul·​ture ˈä-kwə-ˌkəl-chər 

ˈa-

variants or less commonly aquiculture

: the cultivation of aquatic organisms (such as fish or shellfish) especially for food

aquacultural

ˌä-kwə-ˈkəl-ch(ə-)rəl 

ˌa-

adjective

aquaculture transitive verb

aquaculturist

ˌä-kwə-ˈkəl-ch(ə-)rist 

ˌa-

noun

Did you know?

For most of the modern history of aquaculture, only costly fish and shellfish like salmon and shrimp were harvested. But new technologies are allowing cheaper and more efficient cultivation of fish for food, and such common fish as cod are now being farmed. Seaweeds and other algae are also being grown--for food (mostly in Asia), cattle feed, fertilizer, and experimentally as a source of energy. Aquaculture is now the world's fastest-growing form of food production.

Examples of aquaculture in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The tiny fish are sometimes worth more than $2,000 per pound because of their high value to Asian aquaculture companies. —Patrick Whittle, Fortune, 2 May 2024

But in the 1980s, brown tides along the Long Island coast decimated the aquaculture industry, Wicks said. —Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 2 May 2024

Half of the salmon sold worldwide comes from fish farms (in an industry called aquaculture) where they are bred specifically for human consumption. —Veronica Cristino, Vogue, 8 Apr. 2024

Chilean mussels are native to the cold waters of Patagonia and are economically important in aquaculture for domestic and international consumption. —Andrew Wight, Forbes, 26 Mar. 2024

Washington’s shellfish aquaculture industry employs thousands of people and is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. —IEEE Spectrum, 26 Mar. 2024

Currently, octopus aquaculture is predominantly overseas, with the Spanish company Nueva Pescanova a leader in the industry. —Andrew Sheeler, Sacramento Bee, 21 Feb. 2024

So fisheries sell and ship the fish to aquaculture buyers in China, who raise the eels to maturity over about a two-year period in tanks. —Anne Field, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024

They are harvested from rivers and streams in Maine, sold to aquaculture companies and raised to maturity, then resold as food. —Patrick Whittle, Quartz, 5 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin aqua + English -culture (as in agriculture)

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

aquaculture

noun

aqua·​cul·​ture ˈak-wə-ˌkəl-ˌchər 

äk-

: the cultivation of living things (as fish or shellfish) naturally occurring in water

aquaculturist

-ˈkəlch-(ə-)rəst 

noun