ISSUE FOCUS 30 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE August 2025 Climate Change and Aquaculture: STRATEGIES TO ENHANCE HEAT STRESS RESILIENCE Dr. Vivi Koletsi Global Technical Support Specialist Alltech’s Technology Group Climate change and aquaculture are deeply intertwined, with rising temperatures intensifying heat stress and threatening the productivity, health and survival of farmed aquatic species. From disrupted physiological processes to oxidative and gut stress, the consequences are complex. How can producers adapt to shifting thermal limits, maintain immune resilience and sustain growth performance under pressure? Emerging nutritional strategies may hold key answers. Aquaculture production is expected to grow at a slower pace from 2022 to 2032, with an average annual growth rate of 1.6%. This represents a significant decline compared to the 4% growth rate observed between 2012 and 2022 (FAO, 2024). One of the main aquaculture problems contributing to this slowdown is climate change, which may impact water availability, suitable farming locations, disease prevalence, overall productivity, and the contribution of farmed seafood to global food production systems. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2014), global mean surface air temperatures are projected to increase by up to 4°C by the end of the century. Warmer regions, such as the Mediterranean in southern Europe and the tropics, are expected to experience even more intense temperature rises (Mugwanya et al., 2022). Over 90% of the excess atmospheric heat driven by rising greenhouse gas concentrations has been absorbed by the ocean, leading to ocean warming and an expected increase in the frequency, intensity and duration of extreme regional warming events, known as marine heat waves (Venegas et al., 2023). Climate change will impact not only marine environments but also freshwater and brackish ecosystems, posing a significant threat to the aquaculture industry. Since many aquaculture operations are located in open farming systems, these changes will also make aquaculture-dependent livelihoods increasingly vulnerable (Handisyde et al., 2017). Among the various environmental impacts of climate change on aquaculture — such as rising sea levels, algal blooms, reduced oxygen levels, salinity fluctuations, disease outbreaks, fluctuations in wild fisheries production and potential disruptions in the supply of raw materials like fishmeal and fish oil — rising temperatures stand out as the primary driver of change (De Silva and Soto, 2009). Since aquatic animals are ectothermic, their body temperature fluctuates with environmental chang-
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