Evaluating Costs and Benefits of Prophylactic Health Products and Novel Alternatives on Smallholder Aquaculture Farmers In Asia and Africa (IMAQulate)

国内和出口市场对海产品的需求迅速增长，推动了亚洲大部分地区以小农为主的水产养殖部门的集约化。正如对抗生素使用的限制一样，确保有效的健康管理已成为小农部门可持续集约化的最重要挑战。农民越来越依赖于一系列不断增加的预防性产品（包括益生菌和益生菌），这些产品的来源和功效往往不确定。此外，这些产品的新兴市场缺乏适当的监管框架，不合理的要求造成的经济负担很可能最沉重地落在小农户身上。迫切需要对这些产品的功效、成本和效益进行独立的成本效益评估。该项目还将在一系列主要商品养殖物种和系统类型中开展工作，评估新的低成本替代品的潜力，以促进改善动物健康和强化小农经营的盈利能力。

Rapidly growing demand for seafood products for domestic and export markets is driving intensification of aquaculture sectors dominated by small-holders in much of Asia. Ensuring effective health management has become the single most important challenge for sustainable intensification of the smallholder sector just as restrictions on antibiotic use are being imposed. Farmers are increasingly dependent on a proliferating range of prophylactic products (including pre and probiotics), often of uncertain provenance & efficacy. Furthermore, the emergent markets for these products lack appropriate regulatory frameworks and the economic burden of unjustified claims is likely to fall most heavily on small-holders. An independent cost-benefit assessment of the efficacy, costs and benefits of such products is urgently required. Working across a range of major commodity farmed species and system types, the project will also assess the potential for novel low-cost alternatives to contribute to improved animal health and profitability of intensified smallholder operations.