Credit: Public domain
Global development and population growth has led to an increased demand for seafood around the world, but along with that demand comes a need for improved production. To meet this need in one of the most popular fish in the U.S., the University of Maryland (UMD) was recently awarded a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) to explore genomic selection as a method of increasing fillet quality and yield in rainbow trout. Rainbow trout represents a $100 million industry in fish sales alone. This is separate from the significant recreational appeal of the fish, with trout fishing attracting about 8 million anglers throughout the year. But while genomic selection has been widely adopted in livestock programs as a way to increase yield, it is yet to be adopted in aquaculture. With this grant, UMD and collaborators across academia and industry are taking the lead in showcasing the benefits of genom