We share with you the article on How many people are employed in fishing and aquaculture? from the fishing and overfishing report published by OurWorldData.
Fish plays an important role in the nutrition of communities around the world. For many, it is a key source of high-quality protein and provides other micronutrients vital for health.
But people also depend on fishing and fish farming as a primary source of income. How many people are employed in these industries?
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that 59.5 million people worldwide were employed as fishers (catching wild fish) or in fish farming (aquaculture) in 2018. The breakdown of employment by region and the split between fishing and fish farming is shown in the chart.
More people are employed in wild catch than in fish farming: a difference of 39 million to 21 million. As expected, Asia is home to the majority of the world’s fishers and fish farmers, employing 50 million of the 59 million globally.
The other chart shows us how employment has changed since 1995. Globally, employment in the industry has increased by 60%, but with much faster growth in aquaculture. In 1995, fish farming was a very small industry, but it has grown rapidly in recent decades. More of our seafood now comes from aquaculture than from wild catch.
Employment in fishing has increased in all regions except Europe. The number of fishers across Europe has more than halved since its peak in 2000 [you can see these trends by region using the blue “Change region” button].
The fishing industry is not only an important source of nutrition for many; it is also a key source of income for at least 59 million people. I say ‘at least’ because many more will be employed through indirect jobs such as food processing, sourcing, and fisheries management.
Source:
Ritchie H. & Roser M. (2021, October) Fishing and Overfishing, Our World in Data (first published). URL:
with thanks from the authors to Ray Hilborn, Michael Melnychuk, Max Mossler and Daniel Hively from the RAM Legacy Stock Assessment Database for the provision of data and comments on the project.
