Acuicultura¿Asignatura pendiente en el grado de Veterinaria?

Abstract

Aquaculture, as highlighted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, is one of the main tools to cover a large part of the food needs foreseen for 2050. In 2018, the World Veterinary Association issued a statement on the role of the veterinarian in aquaculture animal health, stating that the veterinarian has important competencies within aquatic animal health specifically in the areas of food safety, health management and animal welfare. They encouraged to Veterinary education establishments around the world that have not incorporated into their curriculum the practice of aquatic veterinary medicine to do so. Many Spanish veterinary faculties include specific subjects on aquaculture in their curricula, which increases the knowledge of aquaculture production and the curiosity of students about this professional field. This is not the case at the University of Murcia, where aquaculture does not appear as a specific subject within the official university degree in Veterinary Science (VSD). This study has evaluated the role of aquaculture in the VSD at the University of Murcia. To this end, the teaching guides for each of the subjects that form part of the syllabus were analysed and compared with the teaching guides for the Degree in Biology and the Degree in Food Science and Technology at the same university as well as with the teaching guides for the VSD at the remaining Spanish Veterinary Faculties. Likewise, the number of Final Degree Projects related to aquaculture offered to students of the VSD of the University of Murcia between the academic years 2014/15 and 2022/23 has been evaluated. The results will allow recommendations to be made for future modifications of the VSD Study Plan of the University of Murcia.