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Islamic Republic of Iran: A review on marine cage aquaculture by Mehdi Shakouri Iran Fisheries Organization BRIEF HISTORY OF MARINE CAGE AQUACULTURE The Islamic Republic of Iran has some 50 years experience in aquaculture, mainly in pond culture of freshwater fishes including major Chinese carps and trout. The first cage farms were established 40 years ago in a reservoir of Karoon River in Khozestan province, southwest of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The cages were made of metal and some imported. In the 1980s use of hand made cages using traditional material expanded in inland water bodies for trout rearing. The current expansion of freshwater cage farming is limited mainly due to unsolved issues raised by the of water supply authority. Annual production in cage is limited to some 350 tonnes from 200 units. Marine cage culture has a short history in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Early research activities on marine cage culture date back to the early 1990s when the Iranian Research Institute (IFRO) established some small experimental cages for the rearing of wild caught fish juveniles. In 2001 a contract was signed between the Iran Fisheries Organization (IFO) and a Norwegian company (Refa) to conduct a general survey of the coastal areas of the country. This survey gave IFO a general and reliable overview for the development of marine fish cage farming. This study also indicated possible cage farming sites along the entire coast. Following the survey, IFO selected a cage site in the Persian Gulf near by Qeshm Island and established a pilot cage farm (see Figure 1). The farm was established in 2005 with the assistance of Scottish and Nordic companies. Local marine fish species like the yellowfin seabream and the Sobaity bream were farmed experimentally to achieve local standards for marine fish farming. A second pilot farm will be established in Busher province in 2009. In early 2002, IFO invited private companies to investment in marine cage farmin