The Department of Conservation is ''watching with interest'' progress towards farming whitebait.
Freshwater technical adviser Jane Goodman said yesterday there were several reasons behind whitebait decline, including habitat loss, water quality, barriers to migration and fishing.
''Because of all these reasons, it's not possible to say at this early stage what impact commercial farming will have on the wild population. However, anything that reduces the pressure on wild whitebait stocks will be welcomed.''
Ms Goodman said commercial farming of whitebait was allowed as long as the company involved had permits from the Ministry for Primary Industries.
It was important the brood stock was not released back into the wild without consultation because of concerns about genetic issues and possibly diseases being spread.
