OATA's plan to raise fishkeeping's profile

How can awareness of fishkeeping as a hobby be increased?

That's the question that OATA will be asking at a special meeting next week, and they're asking any businesses in the aquatic trade to come along and join in the discussion.

The Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association (OATA) believe that it's vital to increase the numbers of fishkeepers in the UK, and increase the volumes of business generated for the aquatic industry as a whole.

The competition faced by fishkeeping, and other hobbies, has grown ever greater, and there are now more leisure options for the public to chose from and spend their money on.

"Does the profile of fishkeeping need to be raised to ensure the future of fishkeeping and that of our industry?" asks OATA.

Got an idea as to how fishkeeping can be promoted? Tell us about it on the blog.

The proposal is that a mechanism should be created to increase the awareness of fishkeeping as a hobby, and that funds should be raised centrally and used to promote the hobby as a leisure option.

While individual businesses will contribute to promotional activities, it's not intended that any individual businesses or products will be promoted as part of those activities.

However, OATA believes that all businesses in the trade should benefit from creating a bigger overall market.

To guage the interest in setting up such a centrally organised initiative, OATA are organising a meeting on June 14 at Lidbury Hotel, Bicester, Oxfordshire.

Anyone from the industry interested in taking part should contact the OATA office on 08700 434 013.