Ensuring the proper care of any animal’s welfare first requires a detailed understanding of what exactly a good standard of welfare actually entails. As the modules in this course have outlined, reaching a satisfactory conclusion on all aspects of welfare is no easy task, especially finding answers for questions such as:“What is important for welfare?”, “How can it be assessed effectively?”, and “What makes a life worth living?”

Broader considerations when identifying and understanding gaps in our knowledge:

Challenge of species diversity: The species used within aquaculture, particularly in Southeast Asia, are extremely diverse. Many of these aquatic species are more taxonomically different from each other than they are from terrestrial animals. In the same way that certain welfare conditions & OWIs would not be as applicable for sheep as they are for cows, neither will they be for tilapia and shrimp. This results in the obvious challenge of determining the most important welfare factors (and consequently, most applicable WASs) for each major farmed aquatic species present. A high priority for future research is to ensure sufficient knowledge is obtained on this.

Emerging sector = adaptation to global standards: Of particular significant due to the relatively new expansion of aquaculture sectors, farmers and retailers will need to adjust to increasing demands for welfare standards. Likewise, even for developed sectors, there needs to be clear enforcement in certification schemes; this is particularly regarding what actually happens on-site when the required conditions / practices are not met). In addition, more social studies are imperative so that stakeholders in various sectors are consulted and engaged with to understand where improvements in welfare practices can be made, and how.

Precision farming: This involves the use of digital technologies to aid in monitoring animals and to potentially turn certain LABWIs into OWIs through virtue of eliminating certain practical issues that currently exist with their use. Of particular interest in this module is the use of computer vision as an emerging technology; used in tandem with underwater cameras, infrared and sonar, and additional algorithms and individual recognition technologies, a whole new suite of health and behavioural changes could soon be made readily accessible for farmers around the world.