Aquaculture Production and Value Chains in the COVID-19 Pandemic.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The purpose of this review is to summarize the impacts of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on aquaculture input supply, production, distribution, and consumption. RECENT FINDINGS: The COVID-19 pandemic-related lockdowns, social distancing, supply chain disruptions, and transport restrictions affect seafood production, distribution, marketing, and consumption. Recommendations are suggested to overcome these challenges. The COVID-19 has led to disruption of aquaculture practices worldwide. The pandemic has adversely affected the aquaculture input supply of fish stocking and feeding, which, in turn, has impacted aquaculture production. Moreover, the COVID-19 crisis has had adverse effects on value addition to aquaculture products, through the restrictions of seafood marketing and exporting. Aquatic food production is vulnerable to the effects of COVID-19 outbreak; hence, adaptation strategies must be developed to cope with the challenges. There is an urgent need for collaboration among key stakeholders to rebuild the supply chain of inputs and fish marketing for sustainable aquaculture practices. International agencies, donors, government and non-governmental organizations, researchers, and policymakers need to develop policies to support aquaculture production and supply chains.

Impact of COVID-19 on marine fisheries supply chains: Case study of Malaysia

COVID-19 cases have now been confirmed in every country in the world, and to slow the spread of the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged infected countries to impose several containment and suppression measures. Supply chain disruptions are among one of the most vulnerable food sector caused by the aspects of COVID-19 disease control (i.e., lockdown, travel restriction, or movement control order (MCO)). Thus, the main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on marine food security supply chain and management in Malaysia. To achieve this, the study systematically and specifically addresses the following objectives: (i) to review available literature on Southeast Asia food supply management and COVID-19;(ii) to conduct a survey on purchasing method preferences and perception on marine fish supplies availability;and (iii) to recommend relevant intervention and policy development to improve well-being and livelihood status among the study population. The national survey was conducted from June 1 to September 30, 2020 through Google Forms. The results from the systematic review showed that there are eight main articles within the research areas of COVID-19 and supply chain, which have been focused only in the Southeast Asia region. The web survey results indicated that the self-visit methods for marine fish supplies were the main methods before the COVID-19 pandemic, and were decreased during the MCO period. The study also indicated that the respondents genders and types of living area affected their perceptions of marine fish supplies sources and distribution. Additionally, some respondents decided to use delivery services as well as booking and purchasing via phone and online, which includes the use of social media.

Global trends on Covid-19 and food security research: A scientometric study

Recently, coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) has posed a threat to global food security. Assessing recent literature on food security in the presence of Covid-19 is important for policymakers and funding sponsors to make future decisions. While research on the health impacts of Covid-19 is rapidly emerging, there is limited evidence on the food security impacts of the pandemic, especially in the form of scientometric study. The current study aims to give an overview on the impact of Covid-19 in the context of global food security. A scientometric methodology was implemented using the Web of Science Core Collection database for the period from January 2019 to April 2021. The search strategy utilized the topic search related to Covid-19 and food security with certain constraints. Based on articles retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection database, we found that the search query retrieved 734 documents within the research area of Covid-19 and food security.

Impact of COVID-19 on aquaculture sector in Malaysia: Findings from the first national survey

Malaysian aquaculture sector consists of 391,000 t of cultivated organisms produced per year with an economic value for over USD 700 million as estimated in 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a large global human pandemic and it is currently ongoing, affecting profoundly Malaysian aquaculture, which is vital for seafood provision and security assurance. Thus, to increase our understanding about how the pandemic affects aquaculture sectors is crucial to design possible management measures both at local and national level. To do it, we designed a survey, starting in May 2020, consisting of 25 online questions to collect information about the impact of COVID-19 on the aquaculture sectors in Malaysia. A total of 105 respondents (2625 answered questions) was captured within the Movement Control Order (MCO) period and later extended to the Conditional MCO (CMCO). Almost 90 % of respondents was unanimous in answering that, and COVID-19 had a heavy effect on aquaculture-related activities in Malaysia;80 % of them indicated the market demand and logistic bottlenecks (72 %) as major constraints on their aquaculture activities. While the major option to solve aquaculture COVID-19 related issues was the use of online market or digital platforms (76 %), a large fraction of respondents requested for specific assistance to support aquaculture activities (e.g. financial support). Most respondents (93 %) was aware about the necessity of the Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) provided by the relevant agencies during the MCO / CMCO. Present data are crucial to develop policy measures both at national and international level to support seafood sectors under pandemic.