Hagen Stehr, the founder of leading Australian aquaculture company, Cleanseas, will be amongst the group of top local and international aquaculture experts to speak at a conference being held next week.

The 2010 Australian Prawn Farmers Association (APFA) and Australian Barramundi Farmers Association (ABFA) conference will this year place particular focus on Australian produced aquaculture species with the theme Proudly Australian Produced.

APFA vice president Alistair Dick said the conference is a unique opportunity for farmers and industry representatives to hear what is currently happening in the aquaculture industry and how farmers can best deal with these issues.

“It is important the conference looks at how we can assist our farmers to be kept up to date with global research and technologies and to ensure the Australian aquaculture farming industry can continue to grow and expand,” he said.

“The combined value of the prawn and barramundi farming industries is currently contributes in excess of $78 million to the Queensland economy and both industries should be extremely proud of their international reputation for producing the world’s best prawns and barramundi and we need to ensure this continues.”

Dick said the conference will be a celebration of Proudly Australian Produced species and will also explore how the two sectors compare globally and what is required to ensure progression and continued expansion.

“Aquaculture will play an important role in providing a secure food source over the next 20 years and must be able to meet the challenge of increasing productivity whilst at the same time reducing environmental impact,” he said.

For more information or for a registration form, contact APFA Executive Officer Helen Jenkins on 07 3837 4777 or email info@apfa.com.au.