Do You Study What You Eat? Comparing South African Aquatic Food Production Statistics With Research

ABSTRACT In many countries, foods from aquatic sources provide an important source of protein and key micronutrients. However, aquatic food systems can be impacted by hazards, which drive inefficiencies. Such inefficiencies have consequences for the environmental, economic and social sustainability of food. When directing hazard management resources, it is critical to understand which components of the food system are of most importance to producers, consumers and other interested parties along the value chain. In this paper, we use South Africa as a case study in characterising the aquatic food system. To do this, we created a framework combining production and consumption statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations with research from global search engines and an in‐country publication database. Using this framework, we found that South Africa's aquatic food system is dominated by pelagic and demersal finfish fisheries, such as those for Southern African anchovy ( Engraulis capensis ) and Cape hakes ( Merluccius spp). Aquaculture in South Africa predominantly consists of non‐cephalopod molluscs, freshwater fish and some aquatic plants. Although these groups account for approximately 3% of aquatic production in South Africa, they were the focus of over 60% of research from global search engines. In contrast, research from the in‐country database focused on finfish fisheries, which contribute 60 times more production volume compared to aquaculture. Therefore, while statistics from the FAO gave a good first overview of the aquatic food system in South Africa, in‐country research was invaluable in gaining a holistic understanding of the food system. When applied across the network of food sectors in a country, the approach outlined here, combining production, consumption and research values, provides a framework for practitioners requiring a nuanced overview of a country's food systems, as well as highlighting investment, knowledge and data gaps to target future research.