Fish Farmer February 2018

Fish Farmer VOLUME 41

Serving worldwide aquaculture since 1977

NUMBER 02

FEBRUARY 2018

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SEA LICE SPECIAL

SUPPLY AND DEMAND

INDUSTRY INQUIRY

INCONVENIENT FACTS

New technology on trial - in Scotland and Norway

Scottish Sea Farms’ Jim Gallagher on meeting growth potential

Nothing to fear in environment probe - Martin Jaffa

Beware of entrenched views writes Phil Thomas

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05/02/2018 12:20:55

Contents 4-15 News

What’s happening in aquaculture in the UK and around the world JENNY HJUL – EDITOR

Set the record straight

I

N our special sea lice feature this month we bring news of the various treatments being deployed on farms in Scotland and Norway. Some are still in the very early stages of development while others have been put to the test for several years, constantly undergoing refinement. As two recent seminars devoted to sea lice control confirm, these parasites might be a drain on industry finances but they have driven much innovation, in science, technology, and farming practices.

Meanwhile, the debate over the environmental impact of salmon farming goes on, with the first of two Scottish parliamentary inquiries hearing evidence from the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) in January. The second session of the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee, due to be held just after our February issue went to press, was a chance for salmon farmers to put their case, through the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation. The findings will feed into the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee’s forthcoming inquiry into aquaculture in Scotland. This was prompted by critics of the sector but is being welcomed as an opportunity to set the record straight.

Aquaculture provides jobs and keeps many people in business - as Jim Gallagher of Scottish Sea Farms writes on page 26. All MSPs who value salmon farming’s contribution to the economy will no doubt give their wholehearted support to its continued existence and growth.

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Contact us

Editorial Advisory Board: Steve Bracken, Scott Landsburgh, Hervé Migaud, Patrick Smith and Jim Treasurer Editor: Jenny Hjul Designer: Andrew Balahura Advertising Manager: William Dowds wdowds@fishupdate.com Advertising Executive: Scott Binnie sbinnie@fishupdate.com Publisher: Alister Bennett

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Cover: Farm manager Harald Holm of Midt Norsk Havbruk checks for lice following Hydrolicer treatment

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Tube Net

40-41 Sea lice

Mechanical flushers

18-19 Comment Martin Jaffa

42-44 Sea lice

Bubble technology

20-21 Comment

46-51 Sea lice

Phil Thomas

Closed containment

22-23 Shellfish

52-55 Sea lice

24 BTA

58 Archive

Janet Brown

Doug McLeod

26-27 Industry platform

Jim Gallagher, Scottish Sea Farms

Hydrolicer trials

Long view on louse control

60-61 Innovation

Backing for start-ups

28 Sea lice

Introduction

30-33 Sea lice

SSPO seminar

62-63 Processing & Retail News SSC upgrades salmon plant

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Contents – Editor’s Welcome

64-65 Aqua Source Directory

Find all you need for the industry

34-37 Sea lice

FHF conference

66 Opinion

By Nick Joy

3

05/02/2018 15:11:47

United Kingdom News

NEWS...

Marine Harvest wins go ahead for wrasse hatchery create up to 10 jobs, outweighed the objections and last month the application was unanimously approved

by Argyll and Bute’s planning committee, the Campbeltown Courier reported.

Once completed it is expected to produce around 800,000 wrasse a year. It will be located adjacent to the Machrihanish Marine Environmental Research Laboratory that produces around 200,000 farmed wrasse annually, in a joint Above: Planning members at the existing Machrihanish facility (Campbeltown Courier) farming programme with Scottish Sea Plans for the MARINE Harvest 20,000sq m plant were Farms. has won planning Steve Bracken, first mooted two consent to build a Marine Harvest’s years ago but met with wrasse hatchery in business support opposition from a local Machrihanish that will manager, who reprehelp meet the growing conservation group.

However, support for sented the company at demand for farmed the project, which will the planning meeting cleaner fish.

along with Marine Harvest environment manager Chris Read, and Paul Featherstone, who runs the current Machrihanish hatchery, welcomed the decision and the fact that it had widespread community backing.

‘We’re delighted because out of the planning committee of 10 councillors, all 10 voted in favour,’ said Bracken.

‘Now we need to look at all our plans for cleaner fish and then once we’ve done that we’ll come up with a better plan of what we want to do.

‘We’ve got to look to the future; with the industry expanding there is going to be a requirement for a greater number of

New fish farm will bring jobs to Rum MARINE Harvest won planning approval last month to install a salmon farm off the northeast coast of Rum. Part of a move to expand the business by developing a number of new sites on the west coast of Scotland, the application was made almost two years ago.

The farm, expected to create 12 new jobs, would be one of the next generation of ‘open sea’ farms being developed by the aquaculture company to meet continuing demand for Scottish salmon.

Since 2009 Marine Harvest has opened new

Above: Isle of Rum

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farms off Barra, the Isle of Muck and Colonsay. It was following the success of the Muck farm that the Isle of Rum Community Trust invited Marine Harvest to discuss siting a farm off Rum. The company held consultations with the local community at the start of the application process.

Rum has permission for 12 x 120m pens providing a maximum standing biomass of 2,500 tonnes, with feed being delivered from a 400 tonne Gael Force barge.

The new farm is planned to be stocked in Q3 2018 with 900,000 smolts.

As well as 12 permanent jobs created, there is also likely to be work for one or two seasonal workers.The average combined annual salary of the farming staff would be £300,350, and accommodation will be built for staff. The salmon farm on Muck has created 10 new jobs with new homes built to accommodate some of the farm staff.

hatchery reared cleaner fish.’

As well as securing planning permission for Machrihanish, Marine Harvest is also developing Anglesey Aquaculture in north Wales, and possibly other sites. The Anglesey hatchery, formerly a sea bass farm, needs a lot of upgrading before it becomes operational, said Bracken.

Before the planning meeting, in Campbeltown, councillors had been given a short tour of the proposed site, facing Uisead beach, north of the Gauldrons.

Save the Gauldrons protestors, led by Sound of Kintyre based Bob Miller, vowed to continue the battle to preserve the

coastal environment.

‘The development can only proceed if the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Marine Scotland approve the Controlled Activities Regulations,’ he said. ‘These will provide a number of further hurdles.’

In its approval, Argyll and Bute Council found that Marine Harvest’s application was an exceptional case and did meet the Area Capacity Evaluation criteria.

Marine Harvest managing director, Ben Hadfield, said: ‘We are delighted that the council has supported this project which will allow for an increase in the production of wrasse to tackle the challenge of sea lice.’

But company cuts 34 staff MARINE Harvest confirmed last month it was to make 34 of its staff redundant. Half the job losses will be at farms on the west coast where fewer salmon are expected to be harvested this year.

The rest will be in the Fort William fish processing division.

Marine Harvest’s Steve Bracken said the company was ‘very sorry’ at having to take the action.

‘Almost half the jobs are in process-

ing which reflects the seasonal nature of work in this particular part of the business.

‘In addition, there will be some redundancies in farming, largely because we will be harvesting fewer fish this year.’

The company employs around 1,200 in its Scottish operations, including some 500 at its Rosyth processing plant. It will take on 55 staff at its feed plant on Skye, due to be completed this year.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:29:33

All the latest industry news from the UK

Scotch boss takes on top salmon role A FORMER chief of the Scotch Whisky Association has been appointed to represent the interests of Scottish salmon farmers.

Julie Hesketh-Laird is to take over as chief executive of the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation (SSPO) following the retirement of Scott Landsburgh, who has held the position for nearly 10 years.

Hesketh-Laird was most recently acting (and deputy) chief executive of the Scotch Whisky

Above: Scott Landsburgh

Association and brings her experience of representing Scotland’s and the UK’s largest drink export to the salmon body, which supports Scotland’s and the UK’s largest food export.

She has held various senior roles at the whisky group since 2005, helping to create the conditions for record exports.

Previously, she held strategy and policy roles in London and in Edinburgh with the CBI, the Chemical Industries Association and the then newly privatised water industry.

Hesketh-Laird said: ‘I am delighted to have been appointed CEO of Scottish salmon and to join Scotland’s most successful and important food sector.

‘It is an exciting but challenging time for the development of the salmon industry and I look forward enormously to working with the industry and its stakeholders to help forge further sustainable growth.’

Chairman of the SSPO Gilpin Bradley said: ‘Julie will bring a wealth of experience and fresh leadership to the capable SSPO team.

‘Her background in food and drink representation will be invaluable as we work with the government and stakeholders to keep growing our successful industry.

‘I would like to pay tribute to Scott Landsburgh’s decade in the role as SSPO CEO. We have valued his leadership and he leaves the

Above: Julie Hesketh-Laird

organisation and industry in good health. We wish him well for his retirement.’

Hesketh-Laird will take office on February 19 and will tour the industry to meet the salmon farming companies and see their operations.

She will then attend the Seafood Expo in North America, where the Scottish salmon industry has achieved significant export success, with US sales worth around £200 million.

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05/02/2018 15:30:43

United Kingdom News

New SAIC chair will be ‘great asset’ THE Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) has announced that David Gregory will be its new chairman. He takes up his post on March 1, and replaces Jack Perry.

Gregory brings more than four decades’ experience in the food chain, from agriculture to aquaculture, fisheries to food production, and retail to food service.

He has also had close involvement with science and research funding through his role as a member of the governing council of the BBSRC (Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council), as current president of the Institute of Food Science and Technology and as trustee and former chairman of the British Nutrition Foundation.

Commenting on his appointment, Gregory said:‘I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with such an

outstanding and high quality industry and to be supporting the excellent work being done

by SAIC.’ Heather Jones, CEO of SAIC, said: ‘The team at SAIC is delighted that someone of David’s calibre is joining us as we move into our next phase, and we look forward to working with him over the coming years.’

Above: David Gregory

SSC partners with genetics expert THE Scottish Salmon Company (SSC) has signed an agreement with breeding technology company Hendrix Genetics.

The move will support the development of SSC’s broodstock and freshwater programmes.

Craig Anderson, chief executive of the Scottish Salmon Company, said: ‘Hendrix are international leaders in their field and we look forward to working closely with them both to ensure consistent smolt supply and to further develop our Native Hebridean broodstock development programme.’

Native Hebridean salmon won two awards at the Highlands and

Islands Food and Drink Awards 2017, and feedback from export markets is promising, said SSC, with sales to North America, Europe and the Far East.

Neil Manchester, managing director of Hendrix Genetics Aquaculture, said: ‘We are delighted to be working with the Scottish Salmon Company in the further development of this premium brand.

‘Scottish salmon already has the highest level recognition globally, and Hendrix Genetics is proud to be part of the team taking this unique heritage brand to what will undoubtedly be world leading status.’

Above: Scottish Salmon Company’s Native Hebridean salmon

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UK wants easy movement of fish on and white fish THE British - and is growing. government is Edwards, who striving to achieve was also reprethe frictionless senting the UK movement of Industry Seafood seafood and other Alliance, which commodities, includes his own Nigel Edwards, company and technical and other big players social responsuch as Young’s, sibility director said the industry of Seachill, told was anxious to the Norwegian avoid tariff and Seafood Council Above: Nigel Edwards non-tariff barriers. summit in London.

‘That is still subject to negotiaThe conference, held last month, was called by the council tion and an important aspect of the next round of EU-UK talks,’ to discuss the impact of Brexit he said. and developing trends among ‘There are border implications consumers. of the UK having to apply a hard It attracted more than 200 frontier to all imports but it delegates, including 160 from can decide how the inspection Norway, the UK, France and regime will be implemented.’

Russia. The council described He pointed out that UK seathe event as a great success and food processors had a combined a valued opportunity to bring turnover of £4.2 billion and the supply chain together. employed some 14,000 people, It also emerged that Norway a significant percentage of which is keen to avoid any impasse by were EU nationals. But the bulk striking immediate post Brexit of raw material - 90 per cent deals with the EU and the UK. in the case of cod - came from Britain is one of its most imoutside the EU. portant markets for both salm-

Top apprentices make awards shortlist AQUACULTURE apprentices Scott Forder and Alan Tangny have been shortlisted for Lantra Scotland’s Landbased and Aquaculture Learner of the Year Awards.

Scott, aged 26 from Kinlochewe, has been doing a Modern Apprenticeship in Aquaculture through Inverness College UHI, while working for Marine Harvest.

He first became interested in salmon farming through family and friends who worked locally in the industry.

‘I just want to thank the judges for shortlisting me, and my tutor at Inverness College UHI, Murray Stark, for nominating me in the first place,’ said Scott.

Alan Tangny, aged 30 and from the Isle of

Above: Lantra finalist Scott Forder

Mull, is doing a Modern Apprenticeship in Aquaculture through Inverness College UHI, while working for Scottish Sea Farms.

In addition to his day job, Alan actively promotes aquaculture at major rural events, including the Mull Highland Games.

He has given a number of talks promoting the opportunities, products and economic

benefits that the industry offers.

Alan said: ‘If I was to receive this award, it would show that anything is possible, not just for school leavers or people starting out, but for those with lives, commitments and bills to pay, or people who are stuck in a rut and need a change.’

The winners will be announced at a ceremony on March 1.

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05/02/2018 15:31:16

All the latest industry news from the UK

Benchmark seeks new chairman BENCHMARK chairman Alex Hambro is to retire from the board to focus on his other business interests.

The board is now looking for his successor and said it will plan for an orderly handover once an individual is identified.

In a press release Benchmark said: ‘This process corresponds with the company’s ongoing transition from a phase of rapid acquisition led growth since its IPO in December 2013, to one more focused on organic growth, integration and operational execution.

‘Over the last three years, Benchmark has built an international platform with strong market positions in health, advanced nutrition and genetics, that are each centred on the large and growing aquaculture market.

‘The group is now focused on improving its profitability through leveraging its global platform and is reviewing its activities in areas that fall outside of aquaculture.

‘As reported in our recent preliminary results, substantial progress is being achieved across all of the group’s activities.’

The company reported a revenue rise from £109 million to £140 million in preliminary

results for its last financial year, ending September 2017. Losses in the aquaculture health, nutrition and genetics business were down, from £20.5 million to £7.6 million, while EBITDA increased nine per cent to £10 million,.

Malcolm Pye, Benchmark’s CEO, said 2017 had been a year of ‘significant operational and strategic progress’.

‘Despite certain challenges, we have continued our focused investment in the development of the group’s pipeline and have put in place important technological, infrastructure and organisational building blocks.

‘The organic growth delivered in the year and the achievement of significant milestones, together with the increased activity in many of our key markets at the end of the year, leaves us full of confidence going into the new financial year.

‘The continued growing global demand for aquaculture products, the disease challenges faced, and pressure to limit the use of antibiotics, puts the group in a strong position to drive growth for many years to come.’

Sales in animal health decreased from £24.8 million to £15.1 million as a result of a drop in sales of Salmosan. Investment in R&D, which

Measures to save English salmon rivers…

THE Environment Agency of England is proposing new measures to protect salmon stocks across England and in the Border Esk, which are currently among the lowest on record.

The 2015 national salmon stock assessment indicated that salmon stocks in many rivers across England had failed to meet their minimum safe levels.

The 2016 assessment showed this trend continued and the new measures proposed are based on this assessment.

They come after an Environment Agency consultation last year to understand how the better management of salmon fishing in England and the Border Esk can reduce the impact on salmon. The Environment

Agency is now proposing the following measures to protect salmon stocks: 1. Stop the taking of salmon from the majority of net fisheries by 2019. Other nations have closed their net fisheries; 2. For rivers with the lowest salmon stocks, a mandatory requirement to return all salmon caught; 3. Voluntary catch and release targets for all other rivers; 4. Restriction on the number, size and type of hooks that can be used when fishing.

Other countries that have closed salmon net fisheries

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UK news.indd 7

include Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland and the Faroe Islands.

Kevin Austin, the Environment Agency’s deputy director for Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment, said the reasons for the decline are complex, there is no single solution, and reducing the catch of salmon can only partly contribute to stock recovery.

‘We continue to work closely with water companies and others to improve water quality and low flows on salmon rivers.

‘It is only through continuing to take concerted action, and through the cooperation of others, that we will successfully protect this iconic species for future generations.’

Above: Alex Hambro

included the development of the Clean Treat water purification system, amounted to £15.2 million in total.

The strongest performance in the group was in its genetics division, which reported a 47 per cent sales growth to £30.5 million, driven by increased demand for salmon eggs, with sales up in every major market.

…and bird cull proposed in Scotland

Above: Goosander duck

FISHERIES managers on one of Scotland’s most important salmon rivers are calling for a ‘sensible debate’ on whether some birds should be culled to protect fish stocks.

The Dee Salmon Fishery Board said almost three quarters of young salmon are not making it to the sea. It said this is largely because they are being targeted by predators.

As part of a study, researchers tagged more than 100 smolts and tracked their progress down the River Dee. They found that 70 per cent from the upper reaches of the river died before getting to the sea.

The study blames predation, with birds such as the goosander duck taking them from the river for food.

River director Mark Bilsby said: ‘When we are losing so many young fish as they migrate down the river, we need to have a really good discussion with the Scottish government and other agencies about how we can protect these further. We need to have all the tools in the toolbox to remove these predators.’

Some of the birds are already shot under licence but fishery managers now want a ‘sensible debate’ over whether more should be culled to protect the fish stocks.

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05/02/2018 15:31:35

European News

NEWS...

Maine chance for land based salmon farm A NORWEGIAN aquaculture company has announced plans to build one of the world’s largest land based salmon farms more than 3,000 miles from home in the United States.

The eventual $500 million project by Nordic Aquafarms will be based in the state of Maine, on the outskirts of a small coastal town called Belfast.

Nordic Aquafarms said that after international market assessments and comprehensive land site searches, it has entered into agreements for a property in Maine to develop what would be one of the largest land based salmon farms internationally.

CEO Erik Heim said they have secured a 40-acre property near Belfast.

‘The area has abundant access to sea and freshwater resources that provide a good match with land based aquaculture requirements.’

Helm unveiled the plan before an audience of 100 people at the University of Maine Hutchinson Centre, saying Belfast was chosen after a search that started in Japan and China, then took stock of Ireland and Spain before settling on the United States, New England, Maine, and finally Belfast.

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Above: (From left) Elizabeth Ransom (Ransom Consulting), Lars-Henrik Røren (chairman of Nordic Aquafarms), US Senator Angus King, Erik Helm (Nordic Aquafarms CEO), Peter DelGreco and Ashley Pringle (Maine & Co)

He explained that Maine was chosen because it had ‘pristine environment, cold water conditions, a long history as a leader in the seafood industry and proximity to major consumer markets in the north-east US’.

Construction is expected to start in 2019 and the farm will initially take on 60 staff, rising to around 140-plus people in what have been described as highly skilled jobs.

Nordic Aquafarms describes itself as a progressive producer in land based fish farming, with production in Norway and Denmark.

Based in Fredrikstad, south of Oslo, it was

established just four years ago, but has rapidly developed into a considerable business operation with international involvement.

It says on its website it is backed by a ‘financially solid group of investors from various parts of Norway’.

Among those believed to be investing in the company are the Rasmussen group in Kristiansand and Sundt, which is also one of the largest shareholders in Atlantic Sapphire, the company that plans to build a giant land based salmon plant in Florida.

Nordic Aquafarms said in a statement: ‘We are proud to have recruited experi-

enced people from a range of countries and backgrounds as an important step in building a world class company.

‘Our production companies benefit from financial support from prestigious grant organisations, including Horizon 2020 (EU), Innovasjon Norge (Norway), Skattefunn (Norway) and MUPD (Denmark).’

The Nordic Aquafarms Maine project involves constructing a land based salmon farm with 33,000 tonnes (66 million pounds) annual production capacity, in several phases.

‘This equals approximately eight per cent of US consumption of

salmon. The project has been enthusiastically welcomed by Maine politicians and commercial interests.

US Senator Angus King, Congressman Bruce Poliquin and the Governor of Maine, Paul LePage, all met Nordic Aquafarms before the announcement.

‘Aquaculture is

a growing force in Maine’s economy, bringing new jobs and opportunities to our state’s fishing industry,’ said Senator King.

‘This is an investment in Maine people, Maine jobs, and the future of our economy.’

Open and shut case: Page 44

Norway 2017 salmon volumes up THE volume of salmon in cages at Norwegian fish farms as measured by weight rose by seven per cent year-on-year in 2017, the industry lobby group Seafood Norway has said. However, it added that the figures also showed that the quantity for the final and normally busiest month of December was estimated at 739,000 tonnes of salmon, down from 752,000 tonnes during the previous month. Seafood Norway represents about 500 Norwegian seafood companies, including all of the big names in the business.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:34:49

All the latest industry news from Europe

SalMar creates aquaculture professorship THE salmon farming giant SalMar is working with Norway’s University of Science and Technology (NTNU) to create a new professorship in the field of aquaculture.

The project is being driven by the huge technological surge within the industry which both the company and the university believe will lead to major changes in how the sector operates in the future.

SalMar said: ‘One of the most important challenges the industry is facing is ensuring sustainable production that provides good fish wellbeing and reduced organic footprints, while maintaining a high quality and efficient production capacity.’

As an example of this new technological revolution, SalMar points to its Ocean Farm 1, which is the world’s largest floating laboratory, and which it is now offering to the university to further its research work.

Ocean Farm 1, which was made in China and arrived in Norway last year, is a full-scale pilot plant that allows for research on biological and technological aspects of fish farming at sea in a way that has not been possible so far.

SalMar said it is equipped with the best in instrumentation and sensor systems for the aquaculture industry, providing unique opportunities to collect large amounts of data about the fish and the environment in the ocean.

Feed main driver in salmon costs

PRODUCTION costs for Norway’s aquaculture industry rose by 50 per cent in the four years between 2012 and 2016, reports Nofima, Norway’s Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research.

And the main culprit seems to be the rising price of fish feed. Nofima researchers Audun Iversen and Øystein Hermansen said the increasing cost of fighting salmon lice has been given the most attention in recent years, but it was feed prices that are currently presenting fish farmers with the biggest challenge.

They said keeping production costs down was important to maintain future growth within Above: SalMar’s Ocean Farm 1 the industry, adding: ‘There is a limit to what breeders can do when it comes to increased The new professorship will be an inter-disfeed prices.’ ciplinary initiative that links the areas such as Nofima has been working with research firm cybernetics, biology and aquaculture.

Kontali on behalf of the Fisheries and AquaculIt will act as a link between the aquaculture ture Research Fund (FHF), in a bid to determine industry and academia. the main driving force when it came to costs.

SalMar’s Gustav Witzøe said: ‘We are pleased to be able to offer our floating research station Between 2014 and 2018 feed costs increased from 14 kroners (NOK) per kilo to NOK 18. for this important work.

A weakened Norwegian kroner was partly to ‘The NTNU will be able to collect data on a free blame, but there were other factors and feed and independent basis and carry out the sort of analysis that can help develop an even more was becoming more expensive generally.

The cost of trying to prevent lice had fallen sustainable and knowledge based aquaculture. slightly in the period between 2015 and 2016.

‘By further developing core competence in Meanwhile, Norway’s aquaculture authorities Norwegian aquaculture, we will also strengthen have received almost 900 applications for dethe industry’s competitive position internaAbove: GoXxxx velopment permits. The deadline is now closed. tionally.’

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05/02/2018 15:35:11

European News

Aquaculture debate goes nationwide Norway PM in trade talks with Trump NORWAY’S ongoing debate about how plans for huge future growth in aquaculture should be managed has taken on a nationwide focus.

Last month more than 20 organisations from the industry, research groups and the environment held a series of meetings in Oslo to give their views on how fish farming can become more sustainable.

The government has set an ambitious long-term target of five million tonnes of farmed fish - mostly salmon, more than four times the current output.

Geir Ove Ystmark, CEO of the industry organisation Seafood Norway, said: ‘When we presented our vision, Havbruk 2030, in August last year, we received positive feedback on the work we had started.

‘We believe that Norwegian aquaculture can provide our country’s most important contribution to achieving the UN’s sustainability goals.

It is ambitious, but it is also within reach.’

The first strategy document from the meetings should be ready by March this year.

But Ystmark stressed that the seafood industry should not work in its own bubble: ‘We are committed to doing the right things to develop Norwegian aquaculture in the best possible way.’

The meetings covered sustainability, fish health and welfare, research and business, and the impact of growth on coastal communities.

In parallel with Havbruk 2030, Seafood Norway is also working with another vision - Seafood Industry 2030 - which aims to expand the fish catching and processing sector over the next 12 years.

Above: Geir Ove Ystmark - vision for growth

FEARS that the United States could impose curbs on Norwegian seafood exports receded after Norway’s prime minister, Erna Solberg, met the US president, Donald Trump, last month.

The industry and salmon producers in particular have been worried for some time that Trump’s ‘America first’ policy and the threat of high import tariffs in the form of a border adjustment tax on overseas commodities like fish could hit future sales.

The US is Norway’s fourth largest and fastest growing market.

Seafood sales mostly salmon - last year increased by one billion kroners or 23 per cent to a total value of NOK 5.7 billion.

America is also an important purchaser of Norwegian trout, which fish farmers have been struggling to sell recently.

Although the two leaders are far apart on issues such as the environment and immigration, they are reported to have got

Marine Harvest last quarter profits drop MARINE Harvest’s operating profit for the final quarter of 2017 was €177 million, down from €259 million in the same period in 2016.

The company’s profits for the third quarter of 2017 were €194 million.

The Faroe Islands had the highest EBIT per kilo at €3 while Ireland recorded €2.75, harvesting respectively 4,000 tonnes and 2,500 tonnes.

Marine Harvest Scotland harvested 13,000 tonnes in the quarter with an EBIT of €1.20 per kg, while Norway’s EBIT per kg was €1.75 per kg, from 66,500 tonnes harvested.

The company’s Chilean and Canadian operations were the least profitable, with an EBIT of €1 per kg for harvests of 17,000 tonnes and 10,000 tonnes.

The complete Q4 2017 report will be released on February 14.

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Above: Profitable

on well during the visit. They have met before at G20 and Nato gatherings.

Trump’s meeting with Solberg at the Oval Office was his first this year with a foreign leader. He noted that Norway has been a strong customer for US built military equipment, including the F-35 aircraft.

Solberg said: ‘The US is an important partner in the fields of trade and security.

This meeting gave us an opportunity to present our views on global free trade and the importance of international cooperation to address climate change.

Trump told Solberg: ‘Norway is a great customer, and a great ally and a great friend.’

Above: Donald Trump

The seafood industry has yet to comment on the visit, but there is known to be relief that it went well.

Trump provoked international outrage last month after allegedly asking a group of senators why the US had to allow in immigrants from ‘s…hole countries’ in Africa and the Caribbean rather than from places like Norway.

Global ocean panel launched A NEW international panel to promote a sustainable ocean economy was launched in Davos last month by Erna Solberg.

The Norwegian prime minister told the World Forum for Development and the Environment: ‘The ocean has enormous potential for meeting the world’s Above: Erna Solberg resource needs and providing jobs and economic and social development. This can only be triggered through sustainable growth in the marine industries globally.’ Premier Solberg added: ‘We have to take far better care of the oceans than we do today, otherwise, we may risk that they will contain more plastic than fish by 2050.’

The panel will be open to both rich and Third World nations.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:45:29

All the latest industry news from Europe

Investors will drive global aquaculture growth INVESTMENT will fuel growth in global aquaculture according to a recent report by Rabobank.

Advances in feed ingredients and biosecurity, together with the growing worldwide demand for farmed seafood, will continue to attract a wide range of investors, said the Dutch bank’s senior analyst, Gorjan Nikolik, in ‘Riding New Waves of Change in Aquaculture’.

Above: Gorjan Nikolik He said that large agro-industrial groups were looking to invest in the aquaculture industry, recognising the strength of the sector.

‘Aquaculture is the youngest, fastest growing, and most dynamic protein producing industry,’ said Nikolik in a summary of the report.

‘Having grown by a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of over six per cent in the last decade (2005-2015), aquaculture has overtaken the volumes produced by the beef industry. And it will overtake wild catch seafood and eggs in a few years to become the third largest protein producing industry globally, behind poultry and pork.’

This growth is driven by technological advances, as well as by demand – for example, for healthy omega-3-rich proteins.

Three key factors will shape the industry in the next decade, according to Nikolik: the development of new feed ingredients; changing farming technology and farming business models; and China’s move from being the world’s largest exporter of seafood to potentially one of the leading seafood importers.

‘With these dynamics in place, long term aquaculture could be one of the key solutions to feeding our rising global population with a healthier diet, while using less of the planet’s scarce resources.’

Strong start for Norwegian exports NORWAY’S seafood sector has got off to a sound start in 2018 with January export figures up in both volume and value.

Sales last month totalled 198,000 tonnes, an increase of 23,000 tonnes or 13 per cent, while the overall value rose by two per cent or 143 million kroners to NOK 7.7 billion.

The farmed salmon market remains stable, with exports at 85,400 tonnes, worth NOK 5.1 billion. The volume rose by 23 per cent or 16,000 tonnes but the sharp fall in prices over the past 12 months means the value remains the same as January 2017.

The average price today is NOK 57.10 per kilo compared with NOK 72.02 per kilo 12 months ago. Once again, Poland, France and Denmark were the largest buyers of Norwegian salmon.

Paul T. Aandahl, analyst at the Norwegian Seafood Council, said: ‘The EU market has taken a larger part of the fish (salmon) this year compared with a year ago. It shows that the market has largely recovered from last year’s price shock…the market in France in particular is very positive.’

Aandahl said China continued to be the main driver in Asia, buying record volumes last month. The council expects sales to China to become even stronger as the year progresses.

The demand for farmed trout showed signs of a revival in January. Exports rose by 28 per cent by volume to 3,200 tonnes and by NOK 207 million.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

European News.indd 11

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05/02/2018 15:35:54

World News

NEWS...

Cooke fined $332,000 for salmon escape COOKE, the largest US producer of farmed Atlantic salmon, was fined $332,000 on January 30 following the escape of thousands of fish into Puget Sound last summer, the Associated Press reported.

Washington State’s Department of Ecology released a report saying Cooke violated water quality laws by failing to adequately clean nets holding farmed salmon, leading to a net pen failure in August 2017.

The nets failed because they were laden with mussels and other marine organisms, the department reported. That increased the drag on the nets from tidal currents and overwhelmed the

Above: Mass salmon escape was blamed on a failure to clean nets adequately

mooring system.

‘Cooke knew they had a problem and they didn’t appropriately respond to deal with the problem,’ said state ecology director Maria Bellon.

State officials also accused the company

of under-reporting how many fish escaped into Puget Sound on August 19 and over reporting how many fish were captured.

However, Cooke dismissed the state’s investigation as incomplete and inac-

curate. The company said Cooke employees under state supervision counted each fish as it was recovered Company vice president Joel Richardson said in a statement that Cooke was shut out of the investigative

July 2017. But he said the company provided records showing it had washed the nets at the site after that July incident and before the August event.

Governor Jay Inslee said he would keep in place the state’s moratorium on net pen permits.

In December, the state terminated Cooke’s lease at another farmed salmon operation in Port Angeles, saying the company violated the process, leading to terms of the lease. ‘an inaccurate and Cooke has challenged misleading document’, that decision. referring to the report The pen off Cypress by state officials.

Island held about He said Cooke 305,000 Atlantic salmacknowledged that the on that were close to facility fell behind in being harvested, with cleaning the nets bean estimated 160,000 fore moorings failed in fish escaping.

Dunn leaves salmon group for Marine Harvest THE head of British Columbia’s salmon farmers association has announced he is leaving to take up a new post at Marine Harvest Canada.

Jeremy Dunn, executive director at the BC Salmon Farmers Association, will be joining Marine Harvest Canada’s public affairs division.

Dunn (pictured) had led BCSFA’s five-person team for the past four years, during which he expanded a programme of public farm tours to raise awareness of the industry.

Beginning May 1, he will replace Ian Roberts, Marine Harvest’s director of public affairs, who earlier this month announced his transfer to Marine Harvest Scotland’s operations.

Roberts is to take over the communications role in Scotland once long

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World news.indd 12

serving business support manager Steve Bracken retires in the summer.

Dunn said: ‘The past four years with the BCSFA have been an incredible experience and introduced me to the talented women and men working in BC and the global seafood sector.

‘This experience has led me to want to become involved on a deeper level, and I’m excited to join Marine Harvest.

I can’t thank the board of directors enough for their guidance, leadership and support.’

A search for BCSFA’s executive director position will begin immediately.

Farmed salmon is BC’s highest valued seafood product, the province’s top agricultural export, and generates more than $1.5 billion towards the BC economy, resulting in more than 6,600 jobs.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:36:56

World News

Newfoundland deal good Choice says Grieg THE Grieg Group and Canada’s Ocean Choice The Newfoundland provincial Department of Municipal Affairs and International (OCI) have finalised an ownership Environment’s assessment committee confirmed it was seeking feedback agreement to develop the large Placentia Bay from the public on proposed guidelines for the company on what will be Aquaculture Project in Newfoundland. required in its environmental impact statement submission.

A statement from Grieg said the deal blended its experience in the salmon industry with OCI’s expertise in seafood processing and marketing.

Under the agreement, OCI will handle the processing of products farmed at one of the 11 Grieg NL (Newfoundland) Seafarms marine farms.

The project, which Grieg says represents a multi-million dollar investment in the province’s rural economy, is currently under environmental assessment.

Ocean Choice International describes itself as a ‘proud Atlantic Canadian company’ with decades of experience in the seafood business.

While its roots are in Newfoundland and Labrador, it has strong connections throughout the Atlantic provinces.

Grieg NL says on its website that its mission is to provide the North American market with the highest quality salmon, in which the Placentia Bay project will play a major part.

The Newfoundland and Labrador provincial government said the plan involved the construction of a land based recirculation aquaculture system (RAS) hatchery for Atlantic salmon in the Marystown Marine Industrial Park.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

World news.indd 13

Below: Placentia Bay

13

05/02/2018 15:37:16

World News

Top speakers lined up for Taiwan show FAO to chair offshore conference INNOVATION, sustainability and food safety are the themes for the World Aquaculture Society conference in Taiwan in April.

Organised by the Asia Pacific Chapter of WAS and hosted by the National Taiwan Ocean University (NTOU), the conference and exhibition will focus on aquaculture development in the Asia Pacific region.

Plenary speakers will include Dr Ching Fong Chang,

president of NTOU and co-chair of the conference.

Also delivering a plenary address will be Dr Wang Qingyin, president of the China Fisheries Society, and senior researcher at the Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, CAFS, China.

He will talk about ‘Green Development - a Rational Approach to Sustainable Aquaculture’, discussing progress Above: Dr Ching Fong Chang in China

in tackling sustainability problems.

His work, since the early 1980s, has been in the field of genetics and the breeding of maricultural organisms and maricultural technologies – focusing on the selective breeding and genetic improvement of new varieties, with traits such as faster growth rate and disease resistance, in farming shrimps.

He has published more than 260 peer reviewed articles and 20 books as an award winning author on breeding and mariculture.

Alongside Asia Pacific Aquaculture (APA) 18, which runs from April 24-26 at the Taipei International Convention Centre, there will be a trade show, with more than 100 stands.

ALESSANDRO Lovatelli, regional fisheries and aquaculture officer at the FAO, has been named as the chairman of the Offshore Mariculture Asia Conference 2018, to be held in Singapore in May. The FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department promotes ‘policies and strategies aimed at sustainable and responsible development of fisheries and aquaculture in inland and marine waters’.

According to the organisation, fisheries and aquaculture have the capacity, if supported and developed in a regulated and environmentally sensitive manner, to contribute significantly to improving the wellbeing of poor and disadvantaged communities in developing countries.

The need to increase the intensity and improve the approach of marine fish production per square metre in South East Asian waters was voiced by the FAO chairman at the 2016 Offshore Mariculture Conference Europe, held in Barcelona.

In light of this, Singapore has been chosen to host the first Asian edition of Offshore Mariculture.

Above: Alessandro Lovatelli

Held in association with the US Soybean Export Council, USSEC, the conference will provide attendees with the chance to learn from and network with well established and pioneering producers and stakeholders, including expert equipment suppliers and investors.

The conference will conclude with a technical visit to a local fish farm followed by a question and answer session with the farm managers.

The 2018 Offshore Mariculture Conference will be held on May 15-17 at the Marina Mandarin, Singapore.

South African farmer claims ‘unprecedented’ success A LAND based pilot scale fish farm in South Africa has grown yellotwtail kingfish from egg to 2.5kg in 12 months, said the pioneering farmer behind the project.

Andre Bok, of Aqua Management Systems, told Intrafish that his East London farm had achieved unprecedented production efficiencies in land based farming.

Bok started his farm in 2008 with a dusky kob venture, and generous investment, which was easier to come by then. However, he said investor ignorance led to the failure of many enterprises.

Having overcome subsequent financial difficulties, Bok has forged ahead with the farm’s technical progress and, he said, it is now proving to be industry leading internationally.

‘The breakthrough came with a prescribed feed formulation and careful feed application.

The results were almost too good to be true,’ he said.

The farm’s dusky kob is now being grown

14

World news.indd 14

from egg, spawned by on-site broodfish, to an average size of 1kg in 12 months.

Yellowtail kingfish, meanwhile, is being grown to an average size of 2.5kg in 12 months at a temperature of 21.5 deg C. Based on his success, Bok has secured the financial backing to commercialise his operation at the East London Industrial Development Zone.

He believes the commercial scale farming of both species will be economically viable and said ‘international markets beckon’.

Last June, Bok gave a talk at the World Aquaculture Society conference in Cape Town, during which he advised farming entrepreneurs that due diligence must be ‘very strong on the technical front – they must understand the farm’s true production potential’.

‘Don’t paint a picture of confidence when you know it’s untrue.

‘Over the last 10 years we’ve learnt a huge amount and now this is the strongest position ever to invest in the industry,’ said Bok.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:38:22

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News focus – Parliamentary inquiry

Industry’s impact Environmental probe into salmon farming looks at welfare and waste

T

HE welfare standards in salmon farming in Scotland are currently very high and there is no reason to believe these will slip if the industry expands, a committee in Holyrood heard on January 30.

Dr Adam Hughes, from the Oban based Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), was part of a panel answering questions on the environmental impact of salmon farming.

The evidence session discussed sea lice, impacts on wild salmon, the sustainability of fish feed, enclosed farming systems and fish welfare.

The panel was asked by Mark Ruskell, the Green list MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, about the high level of mortalities in the past year and how the proposed expansion of the industry would affect fish welfare.

Hughes said the recent mortalities were a one in five or even a one in ten-year high, and that there are environmental impacts in any form of food production; it is up to society to decide what is acceptable and what is not.

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Norway – Research Council

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“

The environment is more stable and the fish use less energy adapting to it

Under control

Above: Project participants at the centre’s opening. Right: CtrlAQUA scientists.

Photos by Terje Aamodt/Nofima.

Joint approach between scientists and industry to address challenges of closed-containment systems

F

our Norwegian research institutions, two outside Norway and several industry partners from technology and the aquaculture industry have started operations at a centre for innovation in closed-containment systems.

The centre, CtrlAQUA, has been given NOK 200 million and eight years to reach its goal of making closed-containment systems for salmon up to one kilogram.

Innovations in closed-containment, where the salmon is separated from the outside environment by a tight barrier, can be important for the further development of the industry,

32

helping to address challenges such as sea lice, diseases and escapes, as well as reduce production times.

Closed systems can be land-based, where water is recycled, or sea-based, in which large floating tanks receive clean water from depth.

In CtrlAQUA, the research will deal with both approaches.

The main focus of the centre is innovation in closed-containment systems for the most vulnerable periods of the salmon production cycle, such as the first sea water, post-smolt, phase.

The centre will also contribute to better production control, fish welfare and sustainability

in closed-containment farms. This will happen through the development of new and reliable sensors, minimising environmental impact through recycling of nutrients and reducing the risk of escape, and diseases transmission to wild stocks.

Senior scientist Bendik Fyhn Terjesen, from Nofima, who is the director of the centre, said that closed-containment systems for salmon up to one kilogram have further advantages than simply preventing lice and escapes.

‘We can control the environment in which the fish lives in a closed-containment system.

The environment is more stable and the fish

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use less energy adapting to it. This means that the salmon has more energy available for growth and good health.’

Closed systems for strategic phases in salmon farming can help to make the Norwegian vision of an eight-fold growth in value creation from aquaculture possible, and lead to an increased number of jobs and the production of healthy seafood.

In the centre there will be three departments: technology and environment, led by Dr Fyhn Terjesen; preventative fish health, led by Harald Takle, also from Nofima; and fish production and welfare, led by Lars Ebbesson of Uni Research.

CtrlAQUA is one of 17 Centres for Research-Based Innovation (SFI), a major programme created by the Research Council of Norway.

The primary goal of the SFI programme is to strengthen companies’ capacity for innovation, and to develop leading industry relevant research.

Nofima is accompanied by five solid institutions in CtrlAQUA: Uni Research, the University of Bergen, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the Freshwater Institute in the US and the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.

The University of Bergen will have principal responsibility for research education at the centre. The total budget for CtrlAQUA will be

”

NOK 196 million, spread over eight years.

Industrial partners from the supplier industry are Krüger Kaldnes AS, Pharmaq Analytiq, Pharmaq AS, Oslofjord Ressurspark AS, Storvik Aqua AS and Aquafarm Equipment AS. Participants from the aquaculture industry are Marine Harvest ASA, Grieg Seafood ASA, Lerøy Vest AS, Cermaq Norway AS, Bremnes Seashore AS, Smøla klekkeri og settefiskanlegg AS, Marine producers Norway AS and Firda sjøfarmer AS. The formal opening by the Research Council took place at the end of May at Nofima, Sunndalsøra. Norwegian fisheries minister Elisabeth Aspaker, present at the ceremony, said the goal of the CtrlAQUA SFI is perfectly compatible with the government’s ambitions for the aquaculture industry.

‘I have great expectations for the achievements of CtrlAQUA. Even though eight years is a long time, it is urgent that we find solutions to reach the goals. CtrlAQUA is an important part of this.’

The director of innovation in the Research Council, Eirik Normann, presented the SFI plaque to Fyhn Terjesen, saying: ‘You have put together a very strong consortium. I want to point out that the committee that evaluated the application was fascinated by the innovation that the concept brings with it, and it believes that the centre will probably produce important innovations within aquaculture.’ FF

NOFIMA FACTS With 360 employees and customers from 49 different countries, Nofima’s turnover in 2014 was £527 million The company is currently engaged in 620 projects worldwide.

Nofima has several laboratories and pilot plants, which it uses for research, including: BioLab – an accredited contract and research laboratory; NAMAB – a flexible minifactory; and Patogen Pilot Plant – Europe’s first highsecurity production hall.

Nofima carries out research for the fisheries, aquaculture and food industries, including: breeding and genetics; capture-based aquaculture; fish health; and consumer and sensory sciences.

Each year Nofima organises several symposia, courses and seminars in which its scientists share their expertise.

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mittee had earlier commissioned a report by SAMS to review the literature on the environmental impacts of salmon farming in Scotland, the scale of the impacts and approaches to mitigating the impacts.

It took evidence from SAMS personnel, including Dr Hughes, Professor Paul Tett and Professor Nick Owens. Also on the panel was Professor Eric Verspoor from the Rivers and Lochs Institute and the University of the Highlands and Islands.

The ECCLR committee’s inquiry was undertaken in advance of the Rural Economy and Connectivity (REC) Committee’s forthcoming inquiry into aquaculture in Scotland, expected to take place after Easter.

The committee, convened by the SNP MSP for Angus South, Graeme Dey, also heard views on alternative production methods, such as closed containment, which may afford greater control over biosecurity.

However, the MSPS were told that while there had long been a focus on research into recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), and the technology had advanced, the costs are much higher than in conventional net pen farming.

Also, societal perception surveys suggest that consumers believe open sea pens are more

Norway “seems to

be so much further ahead than us in terms of investment and research

”

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05/02/2018 15:39:37

Industry’s impact

natural and environmentally friendly, said Hughes. There were also welfare implications because of the likely increase in stocking densities in closed containment production.

Looking at the impact of sea lice on wild salmon, Verspoor said an excessive sea lice burden on wild stocks can have a negative effect on their survival.

However, whether this is a concern in any given location is another question; ‘not all salmon have the same journey’, with some rivers near salmon farms reporting historically high stocks levels, he said.

The SAMS scientists told MSPs that Scotland must invest in more research and consider where it will source an increasing demand for fish feed if its salmon farming industry is to keep pace with global leaders such as Norway.

The marine scientists explained that their review of current scientific literature had identified gaps in published research into the environmental effects of the industry and a lack of available data.

Members concluded that a running theme to the session was a need for greater investment in research, when compared with aquaculture leaders such as Norway.

Dey asked how long it would take to build up a ‘body of robust science’ to fill these knowledge gaps.

Owens, director of SAMS, said: ‘We would need to double or treble the current effort going on in Scotland. You are looking at a decade of really intensive work and we will need to up our game by an order of magnitude.’

Asked which areas of research required most attention, Owens said sea lice and organic material from fish farms were two key areas identified by the SAMS report.

Tett was asked to consider the main environmental impacts of an increasing Scottish salm-

on farming industry. He said the two biggest environmental impacts to consider were the global impact of getting the ingredients for fish feed and the long term effects of chemicals on the environment. ‘We don’t know enough about these long term [chemical] effects,’ he said.

Committee member Alex Rowley, the Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, said: ‘Throughout this evidence session, it seems to me that there is a lack of data and research in so many areas and Norway seems to be so much further ahead than us in terms of investment and research. Would that be a fair conclusion to draw?’

Hughes responded: ‘In my opinion, absolutely. The level of investment in research in Norway is much higher, as is the level of technical knowledge.’

Claudia Beamish, the Labour list MSP for South Scotland, questioned the accessibility of data from farms.

Verspoor agreed that, in principle, transparency was desirable but warned that ‘there is misuse of this information on both sides of the debate’ and that ‘science takes a long time to crunch the numbers’.

On the subject of the discharge of waste nutrients, John Scott, the Conservative MSP for Ayr, asked what effect the breakdown of emamectin benzoate, used in some sea lice treatments, had on other species.

Professor Tett said it was very difficult to get evidence from the seabed as most monitoring is not sensitive enough. He suggested that a longer term investigation of sea lochs was needed.

‘One conclusion that I’ve come to is that there is no standard sea loch,’ he said, adding that each farmer should understand the local conditions of their farms.

As far as other chemicals go, he said there is comparatively little use of antibiotics in Scotland now as vaccines seem to have done their job.

And anti-fouling chemicals, such as those used on nets (as well as by other marine users, including sailing boats), had undergone a big change following the discovery of the harmful effects of Tributyltin (TBT) on molluscs. Less harmful chemicals, such as copper and zinc, are now used.

The committee also questioned the panel on a review by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) into biomass consenting, and the advantages of ‘adaptive management’.

The committee was due to take further evidence on February 6 from the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation, Scottish Environment Link, Friends of the Sound of Jura, Loch Duart, Sepa, the Scottish government and Highland Council.

Martin Jaffa: Next page. FF

Opposite: Professor Nick Owens of SAMS. Right: Fish welfare was discussed

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New Extra.indd 17

17

05/02/2018 15:40:36

Comment

BY DR MARTIN JAFFA

Farmers have nothing to fear After more than 40 years in operation there have been no Braer type incidents

W

HAT a way for the salmon farming industry to begin a new year! Even before the month of January had expired, the industry was being investigated by the Scottish parliament’s Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee.

The MSPs decided to become involved in the process leading to the parliamentary inquiry that has been promised by the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee.

The investigation did not get off to auspicious beginnings. The Scottish parliament’s Information Centre (SPICe) commissioned the Scottish Association of Marine Science (SAMS) to produce a review of the science relating to the various impacts of salmon farming on the environment.

The problem with this investigation, as I see it, is that the salmon industry is a working, living and functioning entity not a scientific study.

Science has a role, but it should not govern everything the industry does.

One of the points raised in the discussion between MSPs and SAMS was the lack of data showing how the industry has impacted on the environment. I would argue that the reliance on such data is unnecessary as the industry has been in operation for more than 40 years and there is no specific evidence of any adverse impacts in Scottish waters.

Certainly, there have not been any major incidents of a Braer type nature due to salmon farming.

The biggest complaint is that a few anglers are not catching and killing the same number of fish as their forebears. Even then, they are unable to actually prove that salmon farming is to blame.

I repeat, where is the evidence that salmon farming has had a major negative impact on the environment? It seems that the current concern is over a truck that spilled some liquid when transporting dead fish.

The discussion during the committee’s evidence session raised the point that science has shown eleven adult sea lice will kill a salmon smolt. The problem is that quoting a paper in a report does not provide the full story.

The work quoted involved a laboratory based experiment, rather than what is actually happening in the wild.

In addition, what the review failed to mention was that this specific work also exposed the fish to abrupt salinity changes as well as to louse infestation. Exposure to such abrupt salinity changes would never happen in the wild so its inclusion is questionable.

The abrupt salinity changes clearly stressed the fish, made them

18

Martin Jaffa.indd 18

more susceptible to the lice and subsequently caused their deaths.

The science is littered with questionable research, which may add to the wider picture, but should not be seen as definitive proof of anything.

The MSPs questioned the SAMS team expecting simple answers but the scientists evaded most questions by saying that there are so many potential variables that they could not really draw any conclusions.

They said they had been asked to compile a review of peer reviewed literature and this is exactly what they had done but, unfortunately, they found little data that relates to Scotland.

The next evidence session was due to include representatives from the industry and also from a community group. It will be interesting to see what they bring to the table other than repeating the same old mantras as spread by the usual critics.

The specific group called to give evidence has argued in the past that salmon farming in the local area will destroy the good fishing available on the River Add. Interestingly, several years ago I contacted a leading industry critic, the late Bruce Sandison, who claimed that salmon farming had destroyed the fishing in many Scottish rivers.

I asked him to give me examples of rivers which have been destroyed by salmon farming as he claimed. The River Add was top of the Opposite: Drawing of a sea list, so the river has either recovered to offer good fishing, despite the presence of local aq- louse uaculture, or the claims made by the community group are wrong.

Actually, the answer is that this grade 3 river was already in trouble long before salmon farming came to the west coast, but this is

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05/02/2018 15:44:14

Farmers have nothing to fear

typical of the accusations made against the salmon industry.

Of course, salmon farming has impacts on the environment, but they are minor in relation to the benefits they bring to the local area and communities.

However, this parliamentary investigation and the forthcoming inquiry are the consequence of a vocal minority who have managed to get excessive media coverage, painting the industry in the worst possible light.

The reality is very different and as long as the inquiry is conducted in a fair manner, the industry should have nothing to fear.

Yet the way the ECCLR investigation is being conducted does heighten concerns, not least because anyone responding to the 196-page

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Martin Jaffa.indd 19

SAMS report is being limited to just a few days to digest what has been written and only four pages with which to reply.

If the combination of a bad press and limited opportunity to reply taints the views of the MSPs then the real losers will be the west Highland communities that depend on salmon farming for their economy and jobs.

Is this what the MSPs really want? FF

is the evidence that salmon farming has had “Where a major negative impact on the environment? �

19

05/02/2018 15:44:33

Trade Associations – SSPO

Comment

BY

BY PROFESSOR PROFESSOR PHIL PHIL THOMAS THOMAS

The curse of cognitive Underpinning

dissonance provenance

Do we think enough about what gives the industry its edge in key markets?

Beware of evidence prepared to support entrenched views

I

N a recent thoughtful article about public trust in politicians, James t may not be politically correct to say so at Hohmann, writing in the Washington Post Newsletter, paid homage to present but farmed Atlantic salmon would the adage: ‘Credibility is like virginity, you only get to lose it once.’ not have become Scotland’s leading food While this may be a statement of fact, it left me cogitating over export without the Crown Estate’s positive what it really means in the modern social environment, where narrowly engagement with aquaculture development framed but strongly promoted opinions often impact disproportionately back in the 1980s. on public policies.

Now, aquaculture is a significant part of the At a simple level, you might argue that if a scientist, policy maker, polagency’s marine leasing portfolio and is reguitician or lobbyist consistently gets things wrong their credibility would larly celebrated by the Crown Estate’s Scottish soon be shot and their opinions ignored.

Marine Aquaculture Awards event. This year’s However, both casual observation and some well documented exameventdemonstrate in Edinburgh onisthe was ples that by 11 no June means thethe case. usual highly successful showcase for Scottish The media and, perhaps more disturbingly, the politicians often become aquaculture andloudest a rare voiced, opportunity indusbeguiled by the issue for driven advocacy, and the consetry to joinintogether mark its success. quences social andtoeconomic terms can be very damaging.

The Crown Estate is presently at the There is particularly an issue where thecentre advocacy is being underpinned of further devoluti on discussions between the they can only be ‘guided by scientific research, and politicians argue that UK government and Scotti sh government.

The by the science’. long-term future of key Scotti shbeen functiexamples ons re- where scientists and othThroughout history there have mains unclear and professional experti se could ers with the ear of politicians have presented their findings as irrefutable be squandered in the process of organisati facts, when they have really been theories oronal beliefs. change.

As a scientist, I will always argue that truth will ultimately out. However, se scientific and it Both wouldthe beCrown naïve toEstate’s suggestcore thatexperti evolving theory and observathe facts Marine Awards are imporble areAquaculture always completely aligned. tant maintaining thethat distithese nctivediscontinuities coherence between understandIt isintempting to think of Scotland’s aquaculture and it would be are a usually small and quickly ing (based on theory) and observable facts tragedy if they became es of political corrected.

But that is notcasualti the case. change.

For example, it has become progressively apparent that policies and This year’s was hosted bybeen disastrously wrong for guidelines onAwards human event diet and health have actress, writer and comedian Jo Caulfi eld, an years, and the impact has made a major contribution to the current inspired choice by whoever made the booking. public health crisis.

She wasisvery funny tendency and entertaining There a modern to blameand thiskept problem on the widespread the proceedings a swing.physiologist Only once Ancel Keys, who in acceptance of thegoing work with of American did she stray, wonderedand what ‘prove- focused public health the 1960s andwhen 1970sshe misguidedly myopically nance actually attention on themeant’. claimed adverse health impacts of dietary saturated fats.

In a roomafull ofbook, folk whose livelihoods However, new Healthy Eating: The Big Mistake, by Verner Wheelock, a former colleague, provides a much broader and fuller un12 derstanding of the situation.

In an extremely well researched analysis, Wheelock highlights a long

“

We should be organising our training and education provisions much better

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Phil Thomas.indd 20

catalogue of instances where the human nutridepend on the provenance of their products she quickly sensed an autionists and public health specialists involved dience response and moved to safer comedic material: there are some made important underlying misjudgements things you just don’t joke about! and wrong turns over half a century, inadHowever, her remark left me asking myself whether we think enough vertently and indirectly creating many of the about the underpinning of the provenance of Scottish farmed fish – and public health problems that are now of major for me that’s farmed salmon. concern.

There is no doubt that Scottish provenance is important to our indusSo how could this happen among well qualitry – it gives us the edge in all our key markets. fied professionals in their specialist fields? Why Provenance can be defined in various ways but most people will agree didn’t they lose their credibility along the way? that it goes beyond the appearance and sensory qualities of the final Well, the constant theme in Wheelock’s findproduct: flavour, texture, visual presentation and product consistency ings is that the researchers were very effective arevery always key factors in consumer appeal but provenance is about and focused in presenting and promotmuch more. ing the results that fitted with their theories.

It reflects a wider concept of consumer However, in numerous instances, they simplyquality assurance, including: the place where the fi sh is grown ignored observable facts that did not.and processed; the professional integrity the producti and processing This may of appear a hugelyon damning criticism,methods; and the quality, commitment and care of the people involved – the professional skills, but it should not be entirely a surprise. Psyexpertise,since passion and1950s dedicati on recognised of the producers themselves. chologists the late have Scotland our ‘place of producti on’ gives us a huge natural advanthatInhuman beings strive for internal consisttage because we grow fi sh in the pristi nethe coastal waters of some of ency to allow them to function mentally in the most beauti ful and wild scenic areas of the world, and our brand is real world. protected by its status. with new eviWhen people arePGI presented Likewise, adoption of their the Scotti sh Finfiview sh Code of Good Practice dence that conflicts with established allied with the industry’s deep commitment they either accept it and change their view or to a range of independent farm quality assurance programmes, ignore it, allowing their established viewincluding to pre- the RSPCA fish welfare scheme, buildsthe onstress the underlying strength of our statutory regulatory vail.

This avoids of what the psycholosystems our producti on systems. gists refer to to assure as cognitive dissonance.

Finally, the skills, experti se, passion dedication of our farmers The important lesson for scientists andand policy can be demonstrated in abundance day in makers is that different scientific methodol- and day out – and they were showcased by intervention the recent awards ogies, including studies,event. experiHowever, beingtesting, wholly and objecti ve and forward looking, it is this third mental hypothesis observational area of provenance where Scotti sh industry has greatest scope for measurements in practice, allthe have a valid systemati c development.

That is not say that our industry’s skills role in generating factual evidence; andto it is and professional experti seevidence are not of thetheir highest calibre, but it is to essential to integrate all the into recognise of that our vocational educational and training structures, and framework understanding.

Unless that is done, the framework of understanding is likely to be wrong headed and lead www.fishfarmer-magazine.com them in the wrong direction.

hope “a Let’s wiser and

more informed approach will emerge in the forthcoming parliamentary committees

”

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com 03/07/2015

14:31:33

05/02/2018 15:52:44

The curse of cognitive dissonance

The relevance of this is likely to come to the fore for Scottish fish farmers over the coming months as the Scottish parliament’s Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee and the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee separately consider ‘review’ documents that are being lined up as background material for their investigation into salmon farming.

Based on the material published to date, there is likely to be a good deal of documentation prepared to support the views of those who are

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Phil Thomas.indd 21

long-term critics of salmon aquaculture.

However, even on brief reading, what has appeared so far reveals that the inconvenient facts that don’t fit the critics’ established theories, and which would create a more enlightened understanding, are being ignored or deliberately rationalised away through selective presentation. In short, the impacts of cognitive dissonance abound!

It may be wildly optimistic to expect anything different. But there are important lessons to be learned from the history of failures in the field of human nutrition and public health.

Let’s hope a wiser and more informed approach will emerge in the forthcoming parliamentary committees, so that future policy development supports positive progress rather than creating future problems. FF

Above: Industry under investigation

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est aquaculture Looking further afield there are also interesting insights – ASSG SG and SSPOTrade – to Associations into oyster growing around the globe and also an t topics of the day overview of the Hungarian aquaculture industry, which is ors respectively. beginning to evolve from production of carps to higher Shellfish value predatory fish.We hope you enjoy all the changes. FF d we hope you’ll

has 0 years of the stry. Now ournalist, er afood magazine.

ry Board

ws

ons aculture

BY JANET BROWN H BROWN

Rob Fletcher News Editor

Paul Wheelhouse is Scotland’s Minister for the Environment and Climate Change and is an MSP for the South of Scotland.

Janet Brown works to support and promote all aspects of sustainable shellfish culture and restoration via The Shellfish Team and edits The Grower.

The some other side of thein pond Put mussels Reducing salmon liceofinfection it starts – canlearn bivalves help?from the Can the Association Scottishbefore Shellfish Growers anything 8 way America’s East Coast Shellfish Growers Association is organised?

their own or in association with phytoplankton.

The species of bivalves used were basket cockles, (Clinocardium nuttallii), Pacific oysters r Robert B Rheault – more commonly substantial federal research grants to address critical industry research (Crassostrea gigas), mussels (Mytilus edulis and known as ‘Skid’ Rheault (Rheault being priorities.

M galloprovincialis and their hybrids) and Pacific pronounced ‘row’) or Bob – set up the How has the ECSGA grown and is it still growing? scallops (unconfirmed hybrids of MizuhopectEast Coast Shellfish Growers Association We grow in membership by about 10 to 20 per cent a year and we en yessoensis x Patinopecten caurinus), which ols (ECSGA) in 2004 and has been its executive had a sharp increase this past year, but we still only have a small fracwere obtained from commercial growers in director for six years. tion of the industry as members. Of the estimated 1,300 farms on the d Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

Skid became involved in the idea of an asEast Coast, we only have about 15 per cent. The nature of the industry For the trials, bivalves were placed individually sociation because he had been working as an is such that many farmers are very small, part-time operations who in two litre containers with 450 copepodids in oyster farmer in a state without an aquaculwon’t pay dues. There are few large farms, and several of these believe 750ml of water. ture industry at the time – Rhode Island. they don’t need to join an association. They can hire their own lobbyist.

All four species were found to ingest the rectory ‘I had to be very active on the state level to What are the main issues facing ECSGA? larvae, and temperature was not a significant get things going,’ he said. ‘I established a state We spend a lot of time and energy dealing with shellfish sanitation factor. Large shellfish individuals ingested far growers’ association with a few allies, started issues.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus control seems to dominate much of my asurer, Steve Bracken, Herve Miguad, Sunil Kadri and Ken Hughes more than small. writing an industry newsletter and sent it to all time. We are also trying to rectify the trade war with the EU so we can n: Andrew Balahura Of the species investigated, scallops were the state legislators, brought in guest speakers restore some of the lucrative connections we had in EU markets five wds wdowds@fishupdate.com Publisher: Alister Bennett found to take in greater numbers of larvae, but from other states where things were going years ago. We are trying to get acknowledgement for the ecosystem size for size the cockles consumed the most.

Fax: +44 (0)well 131and 551where 7901 e-mail: editor@fishfarmer-magazine.com nary a negative word was services we provide through nutrient credit trading, and we are conIn separate experiments, the shellfish were .com www.fiheard. shupdate.com Eventually we got some traction and stantly working to improve water quality and expand harvest areas. found to consume between 18 to 38 per cent of regulations thatEH5 were2DL holding back ettes Park, 496fixed Ferrythe Road, Edinburgh Are there different chapters in the ECSGA or are members mainly the copepodids presented to them. While the NTEGRATED multi-trophic industry.’ er’, P.O. Box 1, the Crannog Lane, Lochavullin Industrial Estate, Oban, Argyll, PA34 4HB oyster folk? bivalves took in the larvae regardless of whethaquaculture (IMTA) aims We represent about 60 per cent clam farms, 40 per cent oyster farms 0) 1631 568001This led on to a larger consortium, with a to reduce the environer phytoplankton was present or not, they took number of growers getting together at various Clockwise from top right: and there is a nascent mussel industry. of world £95 including postage. All Air Mail. in a far higher proportion of phytoplankton mental impacts of monECSGA meeting; oyster; meetings and the idea of establishing an East I have heard you talk at conferences about the importance of lobbywhen both were present. oculture of fish by farming them in rietors Wyvex Coast MediaShellfish Ltd by Headley Brothers Ltd., Ashford, Kent ISSN 0262-9615 Dr Robert B Rheault.

Growers Association was baning – what do you advise?

This could be related to findings from much association with filter feeding molluscs, died about. They had seen how well organised It is really important to ensure that the regulators don’t put you out of older work on the behaviour of sea lice larvae, and so remove particulate waste the Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association business. If you are not involved the process of writing the regula3 itinwas m where shown that the copepodids can material and algae to utilise dissolved (PCSGA) had become, how effective they could tions, then the law of unintended consequences dictates that they will take evasive action when they detect the nutrients. A further possibility has been considered be in meetings with regulators, how they probably hurt you if you don’t protect yourself. You need to participate feeding flow field of a bivalve. This evasive be- that of pest control. It sounds ideal: why not use the siphoning focused government research dollars toward in the scientific research, the public outreach and the education of your haviour can actually be viewed in this YouTube power of mussels or other bivalves to take out the infectious key problems – they wanted that. legislators. By demonstrating the growth in green jobs, the sustainable 08/02/2013 11:24:01 clip, http://bit.ly/2neRpfg stage of the sea louse, Lepeophtheirus salmonis?

While setting up the ECSGA, Skid continued seafood production and the ecosystem benefits, we can enlist the help How can this be applied in the commercial This is a free swimming planktonic stage, the copepodid. Since the size to run his own company, farming and marof politicians when the regulators get crazy, or if we have a need of resituation? This is more complicated. The first of this infective stage is around 500μm, it is within the range of particle keting oysters trading as Moonstone Oysters search dollars. Educating the legislators is a constant task. There is huge issue is the larvae of L salmonis are positively size that can be taken up by mussels, although their normal diet of phytoworking out of Narragansett, Rhode Island, turnover and they know nothing about your industry. If you don’t have phototactic and will be found at greater concenplankton is much smaller. and he is still an adjunct faculty member in time to do it then you need to pay someone to do it for you. This is why trations in the surface metres of the sea.

Initial trials carried out in the University of Maine demonstrated that Above: Mussels the University of Rhode Island’s Department busy professionals are members of trade associations.

This behaviour would have to be accommomussels in experimental situations did indeed take up the copepodids.

Opposite page: Scallops; of Fisheries and Aquaculture. He established Is export a major interest for your growers? dated for by the placement of the shellfish but They were found in the stomachs of mussels but also in other parts of Pacific oysters the East Coast Shellfish Research Institute We are experiencing an explosion in the market for oysters right this is easily possible with suspended culture. the mussel, but the main point was that they were clearly being removed and has been successful in attracting several now, so there is not a lot of surplus production to send overseas, but And how effective is it likely to be? from the water column.

Much of the work on IMTA and also on this Researchers further north, in New Brunswick, Canada, looked at a wider 12 www.fishfarmer-magazine.com potential control of sea lice has been carried range of filter feeding bivalves and also looked at the effects of temperaout in the north eastern states of the US. ture, shellfish individual size and whether the sea lice were presented on

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Put some mussels in Dr Michael Pietrak, formerly of the University of Maine, where much of the work was carried out (now at the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) Agriculture Research Service based at the National Cold Water Marine Aquaculture Centre in Franklin, Maine) told me that their situation is one of high tidal currents and these obviously change directions regularly.

Current speeds can be around 26cm/sec. He had calculated it would take a copepodid less than a minute to pass through a mussel raft typical of their area (12m x 12m rafts). This would suggest the chances of any copepodid being siphoned up would be low (albeit that this current speed is one that is optimal for Mytilus edulis clearance rates).

He also pointed out that for the mussels to benefit from the salmon waste food they need to be placed close to the salmon pens; in practice, this makes them rather less popular with the salmon farmers as it hinders boat access to the pens.

Prof Ian Bricknell (University of Maine) gave me some more rough calculations to illustrate the issue, based on as yet unpublished work in field trials using real time PCR. He said: ‘As for how many lice they consume?

Well that’s the million dollar question. We had a positive rate of about five per cent in individual mussels.

‘Assuming this is a snapshot of a single hour in time and our mussel raft was pretty typical (say 60,000 animals), the maths suggests that those mussels trap around 9,000 lice per hour (that timeframe is a guess though, it could be 900 per minute or 9,000 per day as we didn’t sample over a 24-hour period in the field).

‘The shedding rate of lice from a farm is poorly modelled. Some say it is in the billions per day, others are more conservative.

‘At the high end of those shedding models that is a two per cent reduction in lice burden around a farm; at the conservative end it’s closer to 22 per cent reduction in lice burden around a farm.’

Would this idea work better in more sheltered fjord type conditions in Europe perhaps? However, there is one other important question that has to be answered and which has already been looked into by the research group at the University of Maine. What might the role of shellfish be in the disease status of the fish?

The question is, could bivalves be useful in filtering out pathogens from the water column or, conversely, could they perhaps act as a reservoir of infection? The first pathogen they

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investigated in this regard was Vibrio anguillarum O2ß and in relation to the blue mussel.

The mussels were found to take up and to concentrate the vibrio in their digestive glands to levels twice that of the inoculated water.

The researchers then investigated whether the vibrio was released from the mussels that had been exposed to it.

No vibrio was detected in the water but high levels were found in the waste material from the mussels (the faeces and pseudofaeces).

In a further trial they showed that this faecal material could result in a 58 to 70 per cent mortality in challenged cod.

A similar study was carried out in relation to Infectious pancreatic necrosis (IPN) in salmon smolts but in this case levels of the virus, while shown to be taken in by the mussels, were not concentrated above the surrounding water levels.

In this study, the exposed mussels were held with salmon smolts and while there was some

“

transmission to the young fish it was at a very low level.

However, the researchers suggest the risk may depend on the virulence of the virus and this can vary geographically.

In a study of a different type of virus, an enveloped virus as opposed to the non-enveloped virus such as IPN, and also a serious pathogen for salmon, it was shown that the ISAV particles were taken up despite being a very small size (80-120nm) but they appeared to be inactivated by the mussels.

The researchers concluded that in the case of ISA, mussels were unlikely to form a reservoir for the pathogen.

So, while in terms of reducing sea lice infection rates there may be advantages to culturing bivalves alongside salmon cages, there are also pros and cons in the case of fish pathogens.

As with every question dealing with living systems there is perhaps not a clear-cut answer to be had, or at least not yet. FF

As for how many lice they consume? Well that’s the million dollar question

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05/02/2018 15:56:44

Trade Associations – British Trout Association

Excess of consultation Questions over post Brexit duties are too much to ask

BY DOUG MCLEOD

T

HERE are times when responding to requests for information feels like facing a deliberately complex way of wasting a trade association’s inevitably limited time and resources.

This ‘crie de coeur’ is the result of a recent Call for Evidence from the Department for International Trade (DIT) concerning the replacement of current EU tariff protection following Brexit, including the countervailing duties currently applied on imports of trout from Turkey (fresh, smoked, frozen – all formats basically).

The British Trout Association is in favour of retaining the duties following Brexit and therefore wishes to make a submission to the DIT. However, the ‘evidence’ required is outlined in the mandatory questions required of any consultee – and for trade associations this means for every one of their members, as follows: ‘1. Do you produce any of the products, or like products, covered by any of the existing EU measures or current investigations? Please specify these product(s) and provide a description of the product(s) that you produce, and state which measures the products relate to.

2. For each of the measures you identified at question 1, please state whether you support, oppose or feel neutral about them being maintained when the UK begins to operate an independent trade remedy framework.

3. Please provide information about your business’s structure, including parent businesses, subsidiaries and any relationships with overseas exporters or importers of the relevant product(s).

4. Of the product(s) which you identified at question 1, how many of each of the relevant product(s) did you produce in the UK, by value and volume (in standard industry units), for each of the last three financial years?

• Please specify the data sources that these figures are based on. If you do not have three years of data, please provide what you can.

5. How many of each of the relevant product(s) did you sell in the UK in the last three financial years, by value and volume (in standard industry units)? Please separate information about

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I have “ strong doubts about the number of responses that will be generated sales of relevant products which you produced in the UK from information about any imported relevant products you sold.’

There are also four optional questions, and a further eight questions if you are classed as an ‘other party’.

Now, as aquaculture folk, you will know how much time you have available to answer the details of these questions – and given that much of the information is commercially sensitive, can one seriously expect individual SMEs to provide these data to their trade association (no matter how much they trust their personnel)?

As a result, we shall probably be forced to request member companies to submit individual responses, which will deflate the potential impact from a UK national, unified response.

And I have strong doubts about the number of responses that will be generated by the request.

In addition to this Brexit created consultation (which for the trout industry could be resolved in a one-sentence assessment: ‘We required it within the EU, we will certainly still require it when the UK is ex-EU’) we have the plethora of consultations from Marine Scotland/Scottish government, VMD/Defra, SEPA/EA and many more – an overload of consultations.

And there is always the thought that the carefully crafted and helpful suggestions in our responses are consistently ignored in favour of the proposers’ initial drafting.

It’s a situation that Brexit may well make worse, as the new regulatory and trade environment will require government to show willing to consult with the newly independent stakeholders of UK plc. FF

”

Below: Trout farmers too busy for form filling.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 15:57:49

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05/02/2018 12:22:53

Industry platform – Scottish Sea Farms

BY JIM GALLAGHER

Opportunity knocks Supply chain has vital role to play in meeting growing demand

M

EETING growing demand – three little words on many people’s lips. Scotland’s salmon producers want it and are investing millions in their farming practices to better supply customer demand at home and abroad.

The Scottish government wants it, recognising the potential of a sector that already contributes £1.8 billion to the economy each year, provides the UK’s number one food export and supports more than 12,000 livelihoods.

And the global food supply is crying out for it, with the United Nations estimating that the world population will exceed 9.7 billion people by 2050. That’s an additional 2.4 billion mouths to feed in just 32 years.

As with other producing countries, the drive is on to help meet the demand for this healthy and most sustainable of protein sources.

But producers aren’t working solo. We’re working hand in hand with Scotland’s supply chain to deliver new and improved approaches and solutions.

Scottish Sea Farms alone spent a record £100 million with 709 local suppliers in 2017 – up £13.9 million on 2016 and testament to the huge level of investment we’re making towards innovation and growth.

Which areas did we invest in most? Tellingly, feed, nutrition and optimising fish health which accounted for half our total annual spend.

We invested the remaining £50 million in:

Above: Gael Force barge Below: The Emma Louise workboat made

by Scottish builder Northwind Opposite: Fusion Marine pens at the Wyre site in Orkney

Above: Xxxxxx

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Industry Platform.indd 26

• Increased use of cleaner fish to reduce sea lice and the use of medicines; • New net cleaners to enhance the efficiency of these cleaner fish; • Camera supervised feeding systems to minimise waste and, in turn, impact on the surrounding environment; • New boats and barges with state-of-the-art control rooms, enabling a quicker response to any changes in conditions; • More robust pens and nets to keep the fish in our care safe from natural predators; • Phytoplankton monitoring to help preempt any potentially damaging changes in the local environment.

In other words, each and every pound of our £100 million spend was aimed at ensuring optimum fish health and welfare, in order to meet the increased demand for farmed Scottish salmon in the most responsible, sustainable way.

As with any farmer at the mercy of Mother Nature, the marine environment continues to present new challenges, which is why we are constantly reviewing and honing our practices.

For example, we now put smolts out to sea at a bigger size and at a time that better equips them to withstand biological hazards.

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05/02/2018 15:59:03

Opportunity knocks

There’s every potential that this same skills base, know-how and expertise could open up new export markets.

There are some great early examples of this already, including the award winning Ace Aquatec which exports its electric stunner to 10 countries, including Norway, Chile and the US, while Aqualife vaccinates lumpfish in several major salmon producing countries.

Likewise, Fusion Marine has successfully transferred its salmon pen technology to suit other species in over 30 countries worldwide, and Gael Force is now selling its SeaSight Underwater Cameras to Iceland and its SeaQureMoor mooring system to Spain.

Scotland is blessed with many experienced, talented minds, and the local supply chain has delivered many of today’s solutions, but there’s Delivering a £100 million boost real potential for it to provide more.

The value added, as proven by our record spend in 2017, is considCapitalising fully on that potential will erable – and not just to the traditional aquaculture heartland. Scottish require local suppliers to have a greater unSea Farms worked with suppliers the length and breadth of Scotland: from Shetland and Orkney in the north, to Ayrshire in the south-west; derstanding of industry needs.

It will require increased and ongoing investand from Aberdeen in the east to Mull on the west coast. ment in new facilities and technologies. Equally, Widen this spend out to include the whole of the Scottish salmon it will require competitive pricing. farming sector and it’s estimated that the industry now invests a total However, get those three key qualities right of £390 million in local suppliers and services.

Consider that many of these local suppliers go on to spend with local and the opportunity for growth – both of the local supply chain itself and of harvest volumes suppliers of their own and the figure grows and grows. of Scottish farmed salmon – is huge. FF Not only that, but by investing in innovation right here in Scotland Jim Gallagher is managing director of Scottish we are adding to the country’s skills base, know-how and expertise, Sea Farms attributes that are vital if we’re to remain competitive longer term.

We also adopt regular fallow periods to enable the sea to naturally clear itself of any such hazards.

Wherever we identify opportunities to do things better, we will seek to do so, which is where the Scottish supply chain plays such a vital role.

Quite simply, for us to succeed in meeting increased demand for our salmon, we also need increased support from the Scottish supply chain.

Does that mean we work exclusively with Scottish suppliers? No – our number one priority is that we get the best solution, regardless of where it comes from. But where local suppliers do offer an appropriate solution, it makes sound business sense to ‘buy Scottish’.

For one thing, it means we get local solutions to local needs, supported by a local service. For another, it means the communities in which we farm derive maximum value from us being there, in terms of jobs created, in terms of the boost to local businesses and in terms of the onward spend within the area.

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“Where local

suppliers offer an appropriate solution, it makes sound business sense to buy Scottish

”

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05/02/2018 15:59:23

Sea lice – Introduction

Driving change Fight against parasite spurs innovation in salmon farming industry

F

ISH Farmer’s regular February focus on sea lice might seem superfluous, given that this is now an issue visited every month in the pages of the magazine. However, it is useful perhaps to take stock of what remains a significant challenge to salmon farmers, and to review the current trends in treatment, as well as the latest research.

Although last year brought high mortalities at Scottish farms, there was encouraging news from those on the front line of the fight against parasites.

Figures in December 2017 showed the best autumn sea lice management results for the past five years, according to the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation (SSPO).

This was achieved through the increased use of cleaner fish and new technologies, with spending on medicinal treatments dropping over the past two years from 71 per cent of total fish health management costs to 28 per cent.

Cleaner fish – both wrasse and lumpfish- are being used on farms and in entire regions, and have produced impressive results in sea lice management, said the SSPO. All the lumpfish used are farmed and the production of farmed wrasse is increasing.

Major investment of around £14 million has been made in the development of cleaner fish, including an increase in the number of facilities producing farmed wrasse, although more are still needed.

As we report in this issue, Marine Harvest won planning permission in January to build a new wrasse hatchery in Machrihanish, in addition to the ongoing development of its Anglesey hatchery.

Last year also saw £21 million invested in Scotland in the use of mechanical methods to remove lice. In Norway, too, the transition from drug to various non-drug treatments continues.

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority’s lice report in the summer of 2017 showed almost twice as many mechanical treatments during the first eight months compared to the same period in the previous year- 1,014 in 2017 versus 586 in 2016.

This was a result not just of the reduced efficacy of drugs, but also the increasing capacity of non-drug treatments. To our knowledge, there are currently five types of mechanical delousing devices in operation in Norway – the Skamik ‘fishwash’, Optilicer, Thermolicer, FLS delouser and the Hydrolicer.

Although they are still in their early development, results are mostly positive

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and companies are training dedicated teams of workers to establish best practice. Over the next few pages, we look at how some of these methods are progressing.

The race to find a solution to sea lice has been an important driver of innovation, and some of the best brains in aquaculture, in all the salmon producing countries, are now engaged in parasite control, either in the research centres or in private enterprise.

Last year we highlighted projects funded by the European Maritime Fisheries Fund (EMFF), including one by the award winning Ace Aquatec.

The Dundee based company, already a pioneer of electronic stunning technology and acoustic seal deterrents, has been working on a new concept, described as ‘beyond state of the art’.

Still undergoing trials at Scottish Sea Farms, this protoype brings hope for future sea lice strategies, based on indigenous inventions. We are promised more details soon.

Salmon farmers are also in the process of changing their production methods, reducing the time at sea and thus the exposure to sea lice. While there are a number of initiatives looking into novel structures to protect young fish, farmers are already producing larger smolts.

At least two new freshwater hatcheries are being built – by Scottish Sea Farms at Barcaldine and Marine Harvest at Inchmore - to produce larger salmon smolts with a higher health status.

Meanwhile, the industry is also working with Marine Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre to develop a 10-year fish health management strategy to safeguard sustainable production and promote growth.

Scott Landsburgh, chief executive of the SSPO, said in December: ‘Managing sea lice on the farms has become more challenging in the past few years, with higher water temperatures and an increase in the incidences of algal blooms and jellyfish.

‘However, the investment in cleaner fish like wrasse and lumpfish, as well as the new machinery to remove lice, is proving successful and looks encouraging for the future. We will always need responsible access to medicines as part of a mulLeft: Farmers continue to ti-faceted strategy, but this has been a significant develop new tools for tackling sea lice turnaround for the salmon farmers.’

(The SSPO releases a quarterly and annual summary of average sea lice numbers on fish farms per reporting area in Scotland. SSPO Fish Health Reports can be found in the ‘farming’ section; http:// scottishsalmon.co.uk/farming/). FF

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05/02/2018 15:23:01

Sea lice – SSPO conference

Rising to the challenge Industry collaboration key to successful pest control

BY JULIE EDGAR

T

HE threat of Storm Caroline deterred few in the salmon farming industry from travelling to Inverness in December for the Integrated Fish Health Management seminar, organised by the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation (SSPO).

The two-day event may have had sea lice as its main topic of discussion but, despite the frustrating subject, the 100-strong crowd was clearly enthusiastic about the presentations.

These included talks from the Fish Health Inspectorate, the Institute of Aquaculture, Fish Vet Group, the Moredun Institute and several salmon farming companies such as Marine Harvest, the Scottish Salmon Company, Cooke Aquaculture and Scottish Sea Farms.

Starting on a positive note, Charles Allan of the Fish Health Inspectorate opened with the

news that September 2017 had been the best September since sea lice reporting began. He attributed this to the hard work and investment by industry in tackling the sea lice issue.

While the key purpose of the Inverness seminar was the exchange of knowledge, from practical experience to scientific research to new trials, the dominant theme was ‘change’.

From a reference to sea lice management in 1970s - using Vapona style fly traps! - to the current scientific studies around feeding behaviour and sea lice management, the use of cleaner fish and lice analytics, the event was evidently a forum to share ideas and encourage collaboration for the future.

Jarle Ravndal of Cargill explored the relationship between feeding strategies and sea lice management. He outlined the company’s work at a specialist pilot site in Norway to understand the possible benefits of advanced techniques such as sub-surface feeding and twice daily timed feeding.

With scientific advances and greater understanding of nutrition also comes a recognition of the importance of ‘good old fashioned’ stock-

Below: Focus on health.

Right: Loch Duart’s Alban Denton; Fish Vet Group’s Chris Matthews; Andrew Davie of the IoA; and Jon Arne Grottum of SjomatNorge.

“Xxxxx”

30

Lice - SSPO.indd 30

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:01:56

Rising to the challenge

It’s always “valuable to share experiences for the common good of the sector

”

manship. Without the hands-on experience The benefits of these diets as far as sea lice management is conand knowledge of the fish farmer it is impossi- cerned are two-fold. While in the water, the fish stay below the usual ble to create a feeding regimen that maximises sea lice area, but with the faster growth could be at sea for less time the potential to grow healthy, high quality fish. than conventionally. Their potential exposure to lice is, therefore, Satiated fish stay down under the surface of the water and, therefore, are less susceptible to the sea lice which tend to inhabit the top 5m of the water column.

Understanding how to keep fish satisfied is key to both healthy growth and minimising exposure to lice. Trials by Cargill showed that this feeding regime indicated a 24 per cent reduction in the number of sea lice on fish.

Feeding twice a day, early in the morning and again in the afternoon, is the natural feeding choice for salmon and is a pattern being trialled on some Scottish farms. Loch Duart managing director, Alban Denton, is committed to the new thinking.

‘No one understands the fish and their needs better than the farm manager,’ he said.

‘Good stockmanship and great fish are at the heart of our consumer brand, our business and our reputation, so if feeding the fish at certain times to promote good growth and nutrition also minimises the exposure to sea lice then it makes sense to build our farming process around that.’

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Rising to the challenge

Julie Edgar is head of news and PR at the SSPO

reduced and the second summer ‘risk’ period could be avoided.

Chris Matthews of the Fish Vet Group spoke about the impacts of climate change and the increasing occurrence of algal blooms and their impact on fish welfare.

Looking at the 100-year trend for water temperature, it is clear that the oceans are changing and the creeping effect of climate change is being experienced on Scottish salmon farms. As a consequence, a range of challenges, both direct and indirect, are having an effect on the industry’s ability to manage fish health in the traditional ways.

The increasing use of cleaner fish was discussed, including a presentation from Andrew Davie of the Institute of Aquaculture on the solid progress being made on research, and an industry discussion of the experiences of using cleaner fish.

It was noted that no other animal production sector uses such biological controls in this way. The cleaner fish model was inspired by crop protection and related pest management, and the type of biological control is believed to be a world first in the animal production sector.

Representatives from companies - including Zane Pretorius of the Scottish Salmon Company and Martin Roed of Marine Harvest - gave presentations of their experiences with Thermolicers, Hydrolicers and the use of freshwater for the control of sea lice.

As well as the many speakers from the Scottish sector, Jon Arne Grottum of SjomatNorge offered a Norwegian perspective on sea lice management. Philip Skuce and Dave Bartley of the Moredun Institute were guest speakers to give perspectives on the use of medicines in the agricultural sector.

While the salmon industry’s regulatory framework differs widely from that of terrestrial farming, there are clearly parallels and useful comparisons which stimulated lively discussion.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

Lice - SSPO.indd 33

The event was informative throughout, with a packed programme of speakers and discussions. Ralph Bickerdike of Scottish Sea Farms thanked the SSPO for organising it and described the two-day programme as a great success.

‘There were lots of interesting presentations, with plenty to take away and think about post-workshop,’ he said.

‘It’s always valuable to meet others who share a keen interest in fish health and welfare, and to share experiences for the common good of the sector.’ FF

Above: Farm staff shared their experiences

33

05/02/2018 16:03:06

Sea lice – Trondheim conference

Focus on welfare ‘Unseen’ symptoms creating concern over novel treatments

A

MAJOR sea lice conference in Trondheim last month attracted 440 delegates over three days, said Eirik Sigstadsto, the director of R&D at FHF, the event’s organiser.

FHF (Fisheries and Aquaculture Industry Research Fund) organised the conference into three different sections: cleaner fish, prevention strategies and the various mechanical treatments.

There were exciting results from a farm trial, conducted by Marine Harvest, which found there was more efficient prevention against sea lice when ‘everything was thrown at it’, said Sigstadsto – with the measures including underwater feeding, lights, skirts, and cleaner fish (see next page).

There was also much focus at the conference on the welfare of salmon during treatments and the consensus was that much work remains to be done.

‘One of the take home messages from the conference perhaps was that the mortalities of salmon during these operations needs greater attention,’ said Sigstadsto.

In a presentation on hot water and flushing, Kristin Ottesen of FHF asked ‘who takes responsibility for good welfare’.

She highlighted concerns over salmon sustaining head traumas in warm water treatments.The injuries were not apparent for two or three weeks after the treatment but then the fish started to die.

She stressed the risks of fish handling and said regardless of the method of treatment, the procedure must follow strict protocols.

Factors such as the health of the fish, average weight, the logistics, previous treatments, the time involved, rest periods, and the environmental parameters in the sea all had to be taken into consideration.

Welfare can be measured by looking out for gill bleeding, eye damage, flesh wounds and mortality rates. But what about the symptoms we can’t see?

34

Trondheim.indd 34

She said the industry still lacks knowledge about how cold water species such as salmon and rainbow trout experience warmer water temperatures.

‘Although 30-34 degrees is lukewarm for us humans, it can be perceived as burning hot for young rainbow trout.’

Today, millions of salmon are routinely exposed to this new treatment but to allow a treatment of land animals without the ‘pain aspect being thoroughly elucidated’ would be highly controversial, she suggested.

Pointing out the symptoms ‘we can’t see’ after treatment, she showed pictures of fish with damaged palates and massive bleeding inside the head.

The findings included head injuries such as acute bleeding in the eye and/or brain, bleeding in and behind the eyes, bleeding under the meninges, and bleeding in the palate.

She said there was a high degree of stress induced self-injury, in addition to handling, and that less damage was seen ‘where panic becomes more

The “ mortalities

of salmon during these operations need greater attention

”

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:04:24

Focus on welfare

directionally controlled through a piping system’.

Are there other factors that may adversely affect welfare and health in regard to these systems, Ottesen asked, looking at oxygen, gas and nitrogen levels.

The fish needs extra oxygen due to consumption (stress and panic). Oxygenation draws nitrogen gas out of the water. Water exchange does not help because it is warming up the water that makes it over-saturated and the water is hot Opposite: Conference in contact with the fish organiser Eirik In addition, waste materials accumulate in the Sigstadsto of FHF. water that can become poisonous to the fish, so Opposite below:: Head the water must be changed continuously. trauma. Above: Sigstadsto Ottesen’s stark conclusion was to be ‘sceptical opens the conference. and critical of new methods’ of treatment.

Rght: Bleeding inside the All the presentations from the National Conhead. ference on the Prevention and Control of Salmon Lice, held from January 22-24 in the Clarion Hotel, Trondheim, are available (in Norwegian) at http:// fhf.no/nyheter/arrangementer/nasjonal-konferanse-paa-kontroll-og-forebygging-av-lakselus/ FF

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Trondheim.indd 35

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05/02/2018 16:04:42

Sea lice – Trondheim conference

Norwegian farms use 60 million cleaner fish – but still more needed

THERE was a big discussion at the Trondheim conference about the supply and demand of cleaner fish in Norway, said Eirik Sigstadsto of FHF. It all depends on the ratio of cleaner fish in the cages.

‘In Norway we have an input of about 320 million smolt each year and if you have a mix of about 10-15 per cent maybe you need 60 million cleaner fish.

‘Last year, we almost had 60 million cleaner fish – the production was a bit more than 30 million and the wild caught cleaner fish were about 27 to 28 million.’

For the first time, farmed cleaner fish exceeded wild caught supplies. The forecast for 2018 is more than 40 million farmed cleaner fish, an increase of 33 per cent.

The production was mainly lumpsuckers and the wild catch was mainly wrasse, according to a presentation by Erlend Waatevik of EWA Consulting.

Ballan wrasse production – mainly by Marine

36

Trondheim.indd 36

Harvest, which is expanding production, and SalMar - in 2017 was about one million, and lumpfish was around 30 million.

New facilities and the extension of existing plants, plus better production control, increased knowledge, a greater focus on health and protection against infection, and better screening all contributed to the increase in farmed cleaner fish.

He said improved farming of cleaner fish will not lead to over production in 2018 because wild catches are limited by the introduction of quotas and the total available (farmed and caught) will still be around 60 million.

There are a few new initiatives to start ballan wrasse production. The wrasse are working very well in the cages, maybe even better than the lumpfish because they are more robust. But production has been more difficult.

Top: Lumpfish In conclusion, Waatevik said the production of lumpfish is still limited Above: Wrasse at work and larger facilities were needed.

Left: Wrasse The health focus in farming cleaner fish needed to be on prevention, and vaccine development must be strengthened - vaccine development is still ‘going too slowly’, said Waatevik.

He predicted that cleaner fish would remain one of the most important measures against sea lice but there would be a continued shortfall for the next five to seven years.

There should be an increased focus on quality – the gap between demand and access promotes volume rather than quality.

As well as better knowledge and a commitment to R&D, it was important that cleaner fish use was ‘rooted in top management’.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:05:03

Focus on welfare

Positive progress with multiple measures MARINE Harvest’s Henrik Trengereid, R&D technical group manager, talked about an ongoing project looking at drug-free control of sea lice combining multiple measures.

The measures include 6m deep lice skirts, functional feed (from Skretting), underwater feeders and lights (from Akva) and cleaner fish.

The measures have been trialled in 12 cages with four different combinations to see if more preventative tools would result in lower lice levels. The researchers also looked at performance and welfare.

The control cages have just cleaner fish; then the others have cleaner fish and functional feed; cleaner fish, functional feed and deep lighting and feeding; and in the final cages lice skirts were also added.

‘The goal was to determine if several measures used simultaneously gave us progressively fewer lice and fewer treatments,’ said Trengereid.

The trial has been taking place throughout a production cycle, and will last until the second quarter of 2018.

The experiment has found significantly lower lice levels during the period in the group with the most measures – with the fish being particularly clear since last July.

For the moving stages of lice, they still saw a mismatch between the number of early stage lice and the number of motile lice.

Despite the low lice count, there were no clear differences in the number of motile lice and no significant difference in the number of treatments per group.

Trengereid could not explain the discrepancy between the results in the earlier and later lice stages.

In terms of growth, this was higher in the trial groups compared with the control cages.

Among the trial groups, there was slightly better growth in the fish with deep feeding compared with surface feeding.

There were no noticeable differences in fish welfare between the different groups.

Trengereid said more research was needed and a follow-up project has already been planned, called ‘Environmentally controlled prevention against lice’.

This will examine the environmental conditions on the site - for example, if there is a brackish layer at the site, the fish should have access to it.

The experiments, financed by the Norwegian Seafood Research Fund, are being conducted at the Centre for Aquaculture Competence (CAC) plant in Vindsvik, Norway. CAC, formed by Marine Harvest, Skretting and Akva Group in 2003, is the world’s largest research centre for Atlantic salmon.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

Trondheim.indd 37

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Top: The 12 cages had different combinations of preventative measures.

Left: Significantly lower levels in the group with the most measures (D).

Below: Various measures, including deep lights,were trialled

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37

05/02/2018 16:05:32

Sea lice – Snorkel technology

Tube journey

Latest trials with novel net show significant reduction in lice and AGD

T

RIALS in Norway to combat sea lice through use of a ‘snorkel’ cage, or Tube Net, continue to produce positive results.

Snorkel cage technology excludes salmon from the upper layers of the cage using a narrow tube sewed into a net roof.

Originally developed by the Institute of Marine Research’s Dr Frode Oppedal and made by Egersund Nets, the Tube Net keeps the fish below 10m, away from sea lice but enabling them to rise to the surface to fill their swim bladders.

It has been trialled by Bremnes Seashore at farms in Rogaland since 2014, after initial tests at the institute. Last year, Fish Farmer visited one of the sites to see how the Tube Net works and to hear first hand from the farm manager about how it was helping in the fight against lice and AGD (Fish Farmer, April 2017).

The farm is using three standard and three snorkel cages over a full production cycle to assess effects on salmon lice and general production performance. Fortnightly fish sampling showed that attached lice were reduced by 80 per cent in the snorkel relative to standard cages in the previous year.

Treatments were similar between cage types in 2016 (in-feed delivery of Slice and hydrogen peroxide treatments to combat both salmon lice and AGD). However, in 2017, snorkel installation resulted in 50 per cent less treatments against salmon lice (Thermolicer and hydrogen peroxide treatments). Lice consuming cleaner fish stocking has remained equal between cage types.

Bremnes’ Geir Magne Knutsen brought the results of the latest trials (that started in 2016 and will go on until 2020) up to date during a talk at the recent sea lice conference in Trondheim.

Titled ‘Total strategies and operating experience when using the Tube Net together with other measures’, his presentation considered the challenges of ‘Project Tube Net’ and the results so far.

In 2016, Bremnes trialled a 10m Tube Net,

38

TubeNet - Egersund.indd 38

then in 2017 they and the research team experimented with depths up to 16m, and this year they are investigating the deployment of other measures alongside the Tube Net. Bremnes’ trials have found that a snorkel depth of 10m resulted in lice reduction of between 75-80 per cent.

The principle of deep swimming works against lice, said Knutsen, and along with reduced lice, fish growth and behaviour were both normal. There were also promising results from treating AGD in freshwater.

He said it was important to focus on the water environment in the snorkel and that some technical challenges remain.

Future investigations are looking into ideal depths, whether the Tube Net should be fitted for all or part of the year, the area effect, the impact on AGD, using larger smolt to shorten the production period in Tube Net cages, and combining lice lasers and cleaner fish with the Tube Net. The Institute of Marine Research and the University of Melbourne published a research paper last year on snorkel lice barrier technology and its effect on seal lice and AGD. They reported on the pilot tests and case studies of snorkel technology use in commercial scale production cages, as mentioned above, with substantially more fish (100,000s compared to 1,000s of fish per cage) and larger snorkels than previous investigations at a research scale.

The researchers found that during an autumn/winter study involving only snorkel cages, high AGD related gill scores were observed to decline when freshwater was pumped into snorkels, creating a freshwater surface layer for salmon to enter for self-treatment.

In a spring/summer study incorporating snorkel and standard cages, snorkel cages were found to reduce new lice infestations by 84 per cent.

What’s more, the deployment of snorkels and intermittent oxygen depletion detected within them in the spring/summer study did not alter fish welfare parameters.

‘At a considerably larger scale than investigations hitherto, we found that snorkel technology reduced salmon lice infestations in commercial salmon sea cages,’ said the researchers.

‘Higher AGD related gill scores were initially recorded in snorkel relative to standard cages, potentially associated with exclusion from brackish surface water and increased fish swimming densities in the modified cages.

‘However, continuous addition of freshwater into snorkels appeared to remedy AGD outbreaks, in the absence of normal AGD treatment methods.

‘Snorkel deployment and the periodic declines in dissolved oxygen concentrations within it was not found to affect fish welfare parameters.’

From case studies, ‘there is evidence that snorkel lice barrier technology use in commercial scale salmon farming provides prophylaxis against salmon lice infestations with the potential to diminish chemical treatments against the parasite’, the scientists found.

‘For AGD outbreaks, freshwater filling the snorkel shows promise as an in situ therapeutic or prophylactic control method.’

However, they identified several challenges, such as the risk of damage from severe storms – particularly at the most exposed sites.

Also, snorkel cages may be more prone to AGD outbreaks if a freshwater surface layer is not created inside snorkels.

In addition, lice reduction effects from the snorkel barrier are expected to vary under certain conditions and farm locations (surface brackish layer, for example), and depend on its depth.

Snorkel cages may also increase labour intensity at lice bath treatments

Top: Tube Net. Above: Geir Magne Knutsen of Bremnes Seashore.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:06:42

Preventive Veterinary Medicine 140 (2017) 97–105

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Filling the “snorkel with

because snorkels must be dismantled and reassembled.

‘Therefore, in situ lice and AGD controls (cleaner fish, in-feed medicaments and a freshwater surface layer) will be preferred in conjunction with this technology.’

While further studies into the commercial use of snorkel technology is vital to determine how best to minimise parasite levels and chemical treatments, said the research team, the results

fresh water shows promise as an in situ control method

”

Tube journey

Preventive Veterinary Medicine overall suggest snorkel technology has a place in the toolkit of commercial journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/prevetmed salmon sea cage farmers, co-managing salmon lice and amoebic gill disease outbreaks. FF ‘Snorkel’ lice barrier technology reduced two co- occurring parasites, the salmon louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) and the amoebic gill disease causing agent (Neoparamoeba perurans), in commercial salmon sea-cages D.W. Wright a,∗,1 , L.H. Stien b , T. Dempster a , T. Vågseth b , V. Nola b , J.-E. Fosseidengen b , F. Oppedal b a b

Sustainable Aquaculture Laboratory − Temperate and Tropical, School of BioSciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne 3010, Australia Institute of Marine Research, Matredal 5984, Norway

a r t i c l e

i n f o

a b s t r a c t

SAFE SUPPLIER OF NET-TECHNOLOGY, SERVICES AND EQUIPMENT FOR THE AQUACULTURAL INDUSTRY Article history: Received 5 November 2016 Received in revised form 31 January 2017 Accepted 8 March 2017 Keywords: Parasite control Aquaculture Commercial sea- cage Salmo salar Lepeophtheirus salmonis Neoparamoeba perurans

Diverse chemical-free parasite controls are gaining status in Atlantic salmon sea-cage farming. Yet, intricacies of their use at commercial scale, including effects on co-occurring parasites, are seld reported. A new salmon lice prevention method involves installing a deep net roof and ‘snorkel’ barrier in cages to shelter salmon from free-living infective larvae which concentrate at shallow dept and allows salmon to jump and re- inflate their buoyancy-regulating swim bladder by swallowing air. document use of snorkel cages (10 m deep barrier) in commercial farms, where their effects on salm lice levels, amoebic gill disease (AGD)-related gill scores, the cage environment, fish welfare and fa management practices were compared to standard cages. During an autumn–winter study involving o snorkel cages, high AGD-related gill scores were observed to decline when freshwater was pumped i snorkels, creating a freshwater surface layer for salmon to enter for self-treatment. In a spring–summ study incorporating snorkel and standard cages, snorkel cages were found to reduce new lice infes tions by 84%. The deployment of snorkels and intermittent oxygen depletion detected within them the spring–summer study did not alter fish welfare parameters. Overall, the results suggest snorkel te nology has a place in the toolkit of commercial salmon sea-cage farmers co-managing salmon lice a amoebic gill disease outbreaks − two principal parasite issues facing the industry. © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserv

Egersund Net is a part of Egersund Group, founded in 1952. Egersund Net started net production in the early 1970s and was turned into a separate company in 1996. Since then, Egersund Net has established itself as one of Europe’s leading suppliers of seine nets and services for the fish farming industry.

www.egersundnet.no

1. Introduction Intensive sea-cage farming of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar in their billions (2.3 million tonnes produced in 2014: FAO, 2016) has fuelled the proliferation of their parasites (Nowak, 2007). This causes poor welfare and production outcomes for farmed salmon (Barber, 2007; Torrissen et al., 2013), and is suggested to affect wild salmonid populations (Krkoˇsek et al., 2011, 2013). Ecto-parasitic sea lice species including the salmon louse Lepeophtheirus salmonis are the most important parasite problem, though the amphizoic amoeba Neoparamoeba perurans responsible for amoebic gill

∗ Corresponding author.

E-mail address: daniel.william.wright@imr.no (D.W. Wright).

1 Present address: Institute of Marine Research, Matredal 5984, Norway.

disease (AGD) is a rising concern (Murray et al., 2016). Pre ously problematic only in warmer salmon farming regions such Australia (Munday et al., 2001; Nowak, 2012), AGD outbreaks ha emerged in higher latitudes including Scotland, Ireland and Norw (Rodger, 2013; Oldham et al., 2016) where they are increasin controlled alongside salmon lice epidemics.

Chemical treatments remain a dominant salmon lice cont method in salmon farming (Aaen et al., 2015). However, th prolonged and widespread use has led to reduced efficacy ov time from chemical resistance evolution in salmon lice populatio (Aaen et al., 2015), extending to hydrogen peroxide which is co monly used to treat against AGD (Adams et al., 2012; Helges et al., 2015; Oldham et al., 2016). Furthermore, some chemi inputs bio-accumulate in marine ecosystems and may harm lo fauna (Burridge et al., 2010). Consequently, the adoption of va ous chemical-free lice control techniques is increasing. Mechani

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.prevetmed.2017.03.002 0167-5877/© 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

OUR COMPETENCE - YOUR SAFETY

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05/02/2018 16:07:00

Sea lice – Mechanical delousing

Pure dead

brilliant

Norwegian team claims 90 per cent efficiency with seawater treatment

A

NORWEGIAN mechanical delousing system that achieves near zero mortalities is looking at expanding into the Scottish market.

Pure Shipping, based in Smøla, just north of Kristiansund, has grown quickly in the past two years, delivering an efficient sea lice treatment using seawater along the length of the Norwegian coastline.

Jan Eirik Nordseth, who gave a presentation at the Trondheim sea lice conference in January, said the company also owns three small fish farms and it first became involved in delousing as a means of treating its own fish.

‘Some of the big companies didn’t want to help us or were expensive so we decided to go for the FLS system and bought a boat that was scrap metal,’ he told Fish Farmer. ‘We took it up to the standard needed and had one FLS line to begin with.’

The FLS system, devised by local company Flatsetsund Engineering, was fitted to the 29m Laugar and once other farmers in the region saw what it could do they asked if the boat could come to their farms too.

‘We expanded very fast,’ said Nordseth. ‘The customers started to call us when the ship came out and we worked every day and night.

‘We needed to do more tonnes per hour so we put another FLS line on the first boat. The customers still called us so we then bought a new boat [the 31m Lautus] in January 2017 and we put three FLS lines on that boat.

So in total we have five FLS systems at work.’

A third vessel, a 15m catamaran, Labor, was also acquired last year and is deployed as a work boat.

Each FLS line can process 50 tonnes of salmon per hour so capacity is now 250 tonnes an hour. Last December, around 10,000 tonnes of salmon were treated by Pure Shipping and the company was delousing for customers along the whole coast, from from Kjøllefjord in the north to Haugesund in the south.

‘And we have also looked at the Scottish market and have some contacts – maybe we will get another vessel to work in Scotland,’ said Nordseth.

Current Norwegian clients include SalMar and Marine Harvest and the Scottish introductions were made during the Aqua Nor exhibition in Trond-

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heim last August, where Pure Shipping shared a stand with FLS. ‘A couple of Scottish fish farmers made contact there and also one boat was in the sea there so they could see the system in action.’

Farmers who approach FLS directly can see how the system works on one of Pure Shipping’s boats, said Nordseth, adding that training is also given.

He said the FLS system achieves around 90 per cent efficiency in removing lice and is a gentle treatment for the fish.

‘It’s about 0.1 per cent mortality- almost all the fish are in the same condition after the delousing because we don’t use any high pressure, we don’t use any chemicals, we don’t use any moving parts, only seawater.

‘And the fish start feeding the same day. They don’t know what’s going on!’

The treatment boat is positioned between two pens, and the untreated fish enter the delousing line and pass through low pressure delousers before being ejected, lice-free, into the second pen (see demonstration on Facebook https:// www.facebook.com/966085346854850/videos/1127827747347275/) Nordseth has operated the system in very cold temperatures successfully and says another of the advantages of the FLS procedure is that the salmon being treated are enclosed in seawater so

The fish “ start feeding the same day. They don’t know what’s going on

”

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Pure dead brilliant

the fish aren’t exposed to the cold air.

The purification process was upgraded by FLS last year, with the new generation of delousers recycling the pump water and running it through a filter on the deck of the ship.

The lice are collected in a secure environment and the risk of lice being accidentally discharged into the ocean is eliminated. This ensures that users have complete control over the collection process, FLS said when it launched the new system at Aqua Nor.

Opposite page - top: Jan Eirik Nordseth. - below: The Lautus in action.

Top and above: The Laugar positioned between pens. Far right: The 31m Lautus. Right: Cleaned fish released into a new pen.

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Announcing the development, Kristian Lillerud, general manager of Flatsetsund Engineering, said: ‘In recent years, industry players have focused on the challenge of containing the lice that are collected during the delousing process.

‘We believe that our new system is the solution to the problem; it ensures that no salmon lice are discharged into the ocean in the course of the treatment process. At the same time, the system handles the fish gently, thus guaranteeing fish welfare.’

Jan Eirik Nordseth said his company – which encompasses Pure Shipping and Pure Farming and employs 21 people- will carry on expanding in 2018, and could get another vessel if a long-term contract is secured.

‘It depends on the type of customer we come into contact with… we can do everything, if the customer wants it, we can do it.’ FF

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05/02/2018 16:10:31

Sea lice –Innovation

Break out the

bubbles

Technology that destroys larvae stage is aquaculture’s ‘best kept secret’

A

N ultrasonic device that uses imploding bubbles to destroy sea lice larvae and other parasites is proving effective in salmon pen trials.

So says the Dutch company behind the invention, Aqua Farming Solutions (AFS), which introduced the technology to the aquaculture market more than a year ago.

That was during the European Aquaculture Society conference in Edinburgh in 2016, where the C-Dome was first exhibited.

The company’s Nina Hanssen said that since then the product has sold worldwide, although they continue to run tests on farms, including in Scotland.

‘We’ve initiated a few more trials because we understand that people have been sceptical, thinking ‘is this really going to work’, she said.

‘That’s perfectly understandable because there are so many people claiming to have the solution and so many different techniques tried.

‘We’re waiting for a couple of reports, not just from aquaculture trials but also from extensive trials in aquaponics.

‘We’re showing it to farmers all over the world…and they start with a few products and then they buy more, and that is one of the best references you can get.’

The C-Dome uses high powered cavitation to kill water

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Below: The C-Dome Opposite: Nina Hanssen with the C-Dome

borne organisms, based on technology that Hanssen says has been around for years. It has previously been deployed by koi carp farmers to clean algae from ponds, and also to eradicate biofouling from the hulls of boats.

Hanssen, a Norwegian, spotted its potential in aquaculture: ‘I read the Norwegian news and I could see the problem with sea lice and I heard about this for yachts and so on. And I thought, wait a minute, if it does that it has to be able to do this as well.

‘And it turned out it was already doing this with koi carp farmers but nobody knew about it.

It’s like aquaculture’s best kept secret.’

The C-Dome, placed inside a net pen, will not get rid of adult lice but it will stop them reproducing, said Hanssen.

‘It will eliminate all the eggs in the egg strings on a fully grown female lice; it will eliminate the contents of the egg string, you’ll still see the string hanging there but the eggs will be dead. It will also have an effect on the larger stages, on the lice’s ability to hold on to the salmon.’

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Break out the bubbles

In one ongoing trial, with a single C-Dome in a pen, the farmer said there is no biofouling and no marine growth at all compared to the rest of the pens he has.

‘And he also says if he gets lice on that site, this pen is always the last one to get lice, and it’s a lot less,’ said Hanssen.

There is a V-Dome, too, still under development, which can be mounted on the frame instead of being put in the middle of the cage.

The AFS technology operates on a frequency of 40 kHz at no less than 110 decibels, creating much stronger pulses than other systems.

But safety is paramount and Hanssen said they recommend deploying C-Domes in cages of fish above 5cm.

And while it would be possible to develop a version that could attack adult sea lice, they wouldn’t want to do anything that could damage the fish in any way.

‘With bigger cavitation bubbles, you also need to look at the welfare of the fish. That’s why we also say don’t use this with fish less than 5cm. We know it’s safe from 2.5cm but we give a limit of 5cm and that also goes for the cleaner fish.

‘We say that a huge benefit of this is that it is completely environmentally friendly. It’s nature itself. You don’t add anything that can damage anything 3km further upstream, which is one of the bigger problems, at least here in Norway and also in Canada. This doesn’t have a negative impact whatsoever.’

Recent research by Sintef in Norway looked at the effects of ultrasonic cavitation on organisms as an additional tool to disinfect discharge water from well boats, and to prevent the distribution of lice.

‘In Norway, each farmed fish is transferred to and from a well boat at least four to six times for distribution to and from production sites, and for treatment against lice or disease,’ the researchers noted.

‘The water used in well boats for either fish transport or delousing has to be disinfected in order to prevent pathogen and parasite transmission to recipient waters.’

Sintef used less powerful cavitation methods than the C-Dome, with a frequency of 26 kHz, and found a reduction in survival was registered even for the shortest exposure time (five seconds) for both naupliar and copepodid stages of the salmon louse.

Survival reached zero after exposure times of 20 and 60 seconds for the nauplii and copepodid stages, respectively.

A reduction of 70 per cent was observed for bacteria at all exposure times (five to 300 seconds), while a reduction of 95 per cent was

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part of the solution, definitely in “It’sconnecti on with lice skirts ”

observed after 300 seconds for algal cells.

The researchers concluded: ‘Cavitation treatment is destructive for the planktonic stages of salmon lice, and may contribute to reduce discharge of pathogens and parasites from well boats when adapted for this purpose and combined with existing water disinfection methods.’

Hanssen welcomed the research and said that apart from being an additional tool to combat sea lice, there are ‘so many options’ with cavitation technology.

‘We don’t think this is the only tool. If you use nothing else, every salmon pen would have to have one installed and that’s not realistic.

‘But it’s part of the solution, definitely in connection with lice skirts.

Skirts can keep a lot of lice out but if you do get it in your pen, they can’t get out again. If you have this equipment, it stops the reproduction and it won’t get worse.

‘It also keeps the nets and the skirts clean. We’ve had farmers who deployed this equipment, say, in July and by March the following year they still hadn’t needed to clean the nets.

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Sea lice –Innovation

“

We wanted to do these extended tests before we really go out there

”

Right: With and without the C-Dome

‘The more biofouling you have in the nets, the more possibilities you have for all kinds of organisms to hide and, at the same time, if you use machines to clean the nets then you release everything you want to get rid of into the pen and might extend the problem further.’

The company is still young, said Hanssen – ‘we’re patient and we have time, and that’s why we wanted to do these extended tests and have them completed before we really go out there and get the bigger farmers, just to make sure.

‘The bigger farms have so much administration and so much other stuff to worry about, it’s been easier to work with smaller farms, though some of them are fairly big as well. For us, that’s been the

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right way to go.

‘When we do come to the point where we’re talking hundreds and hundreds [of units], we have to look at how we can upscale. This is not mass produced equipment; it’s basically still made in the Netherlands and it’s going to stay like that.’

Asked how long she thinks it will be before the C-Dome takes off with a major salmon farmer, Hanssen said: ‘I think that’s getting closer every day…it’s very, very exciting.’ FF

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Untitled-3 43

05/02/2018 12:27:35

Sea lice – Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum

Juvenile detention

Study investigates raising young fish in enclosed sea pens

A

NEW study aimed at controlling sea lice infections in salmon pens by using closed containment at sea was due to be launched at the start of the year.

The Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum (SARF), which is co-funding the £70,000 project with Marine Scotland and the Crown Estate, called for proposals last year to address the technical and economic viability of closed containment sea pen nursery systems.

SARF, which will be working with Stirling’s Institute of Aquaculture (IoA) on the initiative, has recently looked into using seawater in land based RAS (recirculating aquaculture systems) for fish around 1kg, in order to reduce the marine on-growing period.

It found that such land based seawater RAS ‘comes at a cost and as a result may be restrictive in its ability to produce high volumes of larger fish required for expanding production’.

Therefore, it is now seeking an alternative to land based RAS units by considering a closed containment sea pen nursery system, producing larger juvenile fish, ready to be stocked into open sea pens for a final sub-12 month grow-out phase.

The research organisation said it anticipates investigation of closed sea pen use for only part of the marine farming cycle. Fully contained enclosed pen production of fish up to market size is not an objective of this research proposal.

Many salmon farming companies have invested in freshwater RAS and some of these have the reported ability to produce large, or very large, smolt, said SARF. Utilising closed containment pens in the sea for part of the marine on-growing phase for such smolt could allow for volumes to be accommodated more economically.

In addition, closed containment sea pen use might offer, for example: 1. Reduced energy/cost required for pumping seawater compared with land based RAS; 2. Bio-secure water input in terms of infective planktonic stages of sea lice, by

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way of abstraction from deeper water or through other forms of intervention – filtration, disinfection; 3. Inherent natural water temperature control: seasonal temperature control can be a cost factor in land based RAS; 4. Utilisation of (some existing) sheltered, near-shore locations since untreated wastes will not be released directly to the environment, and exchange will be provided by pumping rather than relying on natural water flows; 5. Consequent access, shore connection and servicing ability advantage over ‘normal’ sea pen sites to maximise security and production efficiency, where cage systems could incorporate weather related shielding/mitigation design free of its impacts on water exchange.

To further examine the viability of closed sea pens, SARF said it requires ‘theoretical but well evidenced research’. All SARF applied research projects must ‘contribute to further activities that might, in due course, lead to measurable positive impacts on Scottish aquaculture production’.

‘Scottish aquaculture products are now traded around the world, and salmon farming is currently the highest value single food product export from Scotland, bringing positive benefits in terms of economic activity and social cohesion in some of our most remote coastal areas,’ said SARF when it released its request for proposals last year.

‘Atlantic salmon farming is contributing greatly to seafood security for Scotland and more widely for the UK. The opportunities for large marine grown rainbow trout are also compelling.

‘The overarching goal of this research is to ascertain whether partial closed containment marine production, in conjunction with larger smolts/juveniles from freshwater, could lead to a situation where open pen marine final on-growing can be undertaken on sites with an ability to have a six to eight-week fallow period every calendar year.’

SARF said recently published research supported the industry’s experience of the positive effect on lice infestation of fallowing sites for a period that exceeds the infective cycle of the parasite.

Current open sea pen farming practice means fallowing is carried out after each production cycle, essentially once every second year.

Explaining the reasons behind the new project, SARF said an economically viable production strategy that can minimise the exposure of farmed fish to sea lice during the seawater production phase ‘should remain an ambition for producers, particularly in areas already heavily reliant on veterinary intervention’.

‘There is a need to consider practical approaches to shortening the final marine open pen grow-out stage of salmonid production to less than 12 months, with a view to allowing longer or more effective fallowing of sites…in effect, reducing open pen use to circa 10 months per generation stocked, grown and harvested.’

SARF believes this would allow ‘the period of greatest fish weight

Opposite page: Practical approaches to shortening the final open pen grow-out stage.

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Juvenile detention

must contribute “toProject positive impacts on Scottish aquaculture production

”

production to be on open pen sites with the necessary flushing and exchange to accommodate it, but able to fallow more frequently’.

‘This could maximise the gains from non-pharmacological sea lice controls, while helping retain their efficacy if and when required. Reduced reliance will also allow more confident exploitation of modelled biomass limits.’

John Bostock, from the IoA, said the Institute and SARF will be working with a number of commercial companies on the concepts and cost models involved in the project. The first steering meeting was held in January and the project is expected to last nine months. FF

Netwax E4 Greenline from NetKem Netwax E4 Greenline offers excellent protection against fouling on pen nets Netwax E4 Greenline is developed for antifouling treatment of pen nets under “green” licences.

The special active ingredient is approved by IMO and listed by OMRI for use in ecological agriculture.

“Green” licences

The Norwegian government has issued special licences for aquaculture with emphasis on reducing strain on the environment.

IMO

Institute for Marketechology, Switzerland.

Approves products used in ecological agriculture.

OMRI

Organic Materials Review Institute, USA. Lists products for use in organic food production.

Slalåmveien 1, NO-1410 Kolbotn, Norway - Ph.: +47 66 80 82 15 - post@netkem.no

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05/02/2018 16:14:43

Sea lice – EcoCage

Closing argument Trials a ‘milestone’ in post-smolt production

A

NORWEGIAN company that has developed a floating closed cage to help combat sea lice reported encouraging results from a fish farm trial.

Ecomerden said the farmer Sulefisk experienced no lice and higher survival rates with salmon grown to 800g in the ‘EcoCage’ and then transferred into sea pens, compared to smolt reared conventionally.

Ecomerden said: ‘The smolt from the hatchery went out into the Ecomerden [EcoCage] at 130g, and were grown to approximately 800g without seeing any sexually mature female lice and without any kind of lice treatments. For the last phase before slaughter they went on a site with open cages.

‘Pancreas disease (PD) and amoebic gill disease (AGD) were detected at the open cage site, but the fish from Ecomerden continued to grow with high survival, dramatically greater than the fish in open cages.’

In fact, despite PD and AGD, the mortality of post-smolt from the closed cage was only in the order of five to 10 fish each day which, compared with an average site (about 20 per cent), is reduced to below five per cent throughout the sea phase, said Ecomerden.

‘Forty per cent of post-smolts from Ecomerden grew to 4.9kg over 53 weeks with 3.3 per cent mortality throughout the sea phase, including the Ecomerden phase.

‘There are numerical values over an entire generation, and this is a milestone for closed cages versus open cages,’ said the company.

Ecomerden is a self-contained closed cage construction where the floating collar is a rigid steel frame designed to withstand strong conditions.

All necessary equipment is built into and protected by the floating collar – including the circulation pumps, which provide a steady rotational flow and oxygen distribution in the enclosure with low lifting height and correspondingly low power consumption.

The heavy duty flexible ‘wall’ is specially designed and constructed by the Serge Ferrari

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“

factory for Ecomerden. The wall is extremely strong and long lasting, with a smooth surface and coated with a non-toxic antifouling substance which will be easy to keep clean.

In addition to the Ferrari wall, there is a fish net suspended a good distance from the wall. This net follows the geometry of the wall during operation, resulting in a constant volume within the EcoCage.

The company has been working on the closed cage system since 2010, with the goal of preventing lice attacking smolts during their first stage in seawater.

By producing bigger and stronger smolts, it is hoped they will be more resistant against disease.

Ecomerden believes closed cages for fish farming, where there is no natural water flow, can provide better control of the fish’s environment, and thus allow for better growth, health and welfare.

Results of full-scale projects on closed plants in recent years show that the salmon lice problem is eliminated, and mortality is reduced by 10 per cent, the company said.

The EcoCage can be delivered in two standard sizes – 6,000m3 and 12,000m3. Or it can be customised to requirements. The standard 6,000m3 version has the capacity to produce up to one million salmon a year.

Ecomerden’s Jan Erik Kyrkjebø said that two years of testing had shown 99 per cent survival of salmon from 100g to 1kg.

‘There is no proof that the RAS facility is a better biological or more reliable solution than the production of post-smolts in Ecomerden. We can also clean seawater in and out,’ he said.

The company has also designed a closed slaughter/broodfish cage. FF

The fish continued to grow with high survival, dramatically greater than the fish in open cages

”

Above: The EcoCage produced stronger fish said Ecomerden.

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05/02/2018 12:28:35

Sea lice – Comment

case Open and shut

Move to closed containment would be ‘disaster’ for Scotland’s west coast

BY DR MARTIN JAFFA

I

N October last year, Salmon & Trout Conservation Scotland (S&TCS) issued a press release following the broadcast of a BBC radio Coasting the Earth programme about fish farms of the future.

Among other issues, this looked at closed containment, and the programme makers visited the Niri trial tank located near Campbeltown.

S&TCS responded to the programme (in which they are featured) by saying that they have been calling for years for salmon farming to be moved to closed containment. This would create a physical barrier between wild and farmed fish, preventing sea lice from eating wild salmon and sea trout alive.

S&TCS say that the cost of these closed contained systems is coming down and it will soon make economic sense to produce salmon this way, and supermarkets will be able to market

works well for small “fishItbut can be extremely difficult to manage when farming large fish for the market

”

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Lice - Martin Jaffa.indd 50

genuinely sustainable farmed salmon.

Critics of the salmon farming industry, such as S&TCS, often talk about closed containment as a viable solution for producing the salmon we eat. They think that if they talk about it enough, then it will be accepted as feasible technology.

On its website, S&TCS say ‘there are already numerous examples of Atlantic salmon farms producing fish for a premium if comparatively limited niche market’.

However, far from there being numerous examples of salmon farming in closed containment, the few examples that do exist have been beset by problems.

The Niri tank in Scotland, for example, lost all its fish and was apparently empty at the time when the BBC came to visit.

Closed recirculating aquaculture works well for small fish but can be extremely difficult

to manage when farming large fish for the market.

The Kuterra closed containment farm in Canada is up for sale. It benefited from large grants to offset the high construction costs and yet still struggled to make a sustained profit.

There are still a few farmers who think that closed containment will be a success, but the main proponents of this form of production are critics of pen based farming such as S&TCS. It’s easy for them to talk, but hard for others to achieve.

Pen based farming has been extremely successful. It has brought jobs to Scotland’s west coast and boosted the local economy. Without salmon farming, there would be a mass exodus to the towns and cities to find decently paid jobs.

The critics believe that local tourism can sustain the local economy, but seasonal low paid work is not a replacement for well paid farming jobs.

If closed containment as a direct replacement for net pen production ever became a reality, it would not benefit west coast communities. If anything, it would be a disaster.

Currently, critics encourage mass objections to any new farm applications. If farms were taken out of the sea and placed on land, these objections would certainly continue.

And it is likely that objections to net pens at sea would be magnified many times by the prospect of warehouse type structures along

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Open and shut

the whole of the west coast shoreline.

The Nimbys would not want their view to be ruined by the presence of industrial production units. Instead, they would demand that shore based farms be moved elsewhere.

In fact, farming companies would probably agree to the relocation of these land based farms. After all, if the farm is to be based in an industrial unit, then there is no need for it to be anywhere near Scotland’s west coast.

It would make more sense to build closed containment farms around the ports of Peterhead and Fraserburgh (or even Hull or Grims-

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by) where the fish is processed. Why transport the fish long distances when there is the ability to grow it much nearer the markets?

So any move to closed containment would inevitability destroy the west coast communities that have been built up over the last 40 years.

Of course, critics from the angling lobby would prefer to see the farms disappear from the west coast. They want the area for themselves so they can indulge their passion of catching and killing wild fish.

They have already said that if farming is removed from the west coast, then stocks of wild salmon and sea trout will recover, and local rivers will be awash with regenerated stocks of wild fish.

However, it is quite clear that salmon farming is not responsible for the decline of wild fish stocks in west coast rivers, and moving farmed salmon production to closed containment with the potential to relocate anywhere else will not herald a return of wild migratory fish to local rivers.

If the critics of salmon farming are so keen on closed containment, then why do they not invest in a working farm to demonstrate it will work as they say?

This was the plan for Fish From, a Scottish based venture led by anglers, but which has so far failed to materialise. If anglers are unwilling to put their hands in their pockets to lead the way, then why should salmon farmers? FF

Above and opposite: The Niri trial tank. Left: The Kuterra land raised Atlantic salmon farm in Canada.

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05/02/2018 16:20:32

Sea lice – Hydrolicer

Gentle giant

Low mortality rate with latest model of mechanical delouser

A

MONG the armoury of mechanical sea lice treatments available to salmon farmers is the Hydrolicer which, as its name suggests, uses water to remove parasites.

With up to eight lines, it can be fitted to a barge or vessel and has the capacity to delouse up to 50 tonnes per hour per line.

Invented by Norwegians Frank Øren and Odd Einar Grøntvedt, it was

Above: Midt Norsk Havbruk’s farm manager Harald Holm (right) and Paul Kriesels of Neptune Marine.

Left: State of the art Hydrolicer operating in Norway. Opposite: Model of the Neptune barge.

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developed in cooperation with Cflow Fish Handling and Marine Harvest and is built at Cflow’s manufacturing facility in Alesund, Norway.

Since the initial prototype was launched for testing by Marine Harvest in 2015, the Hydrolicer has undergone several upgrades and now comes with a brand new fish pump and drum filter.

This version is the gold standard, said Alan McFadyen, who runs Hydrolicer Scotland from his base in Skye.

The newest unit incorporates a PG-Hydroflow fish pump and was recently delivered to Norwegian salmon farmers Bjørøya and Midt Norsk Havbruk, installed on a purpose designed barge built by Neptune Marine at one of their Dutch shipyards.

‘We have been busy developing this version and have more than 30 lines of the new model on order,’ said McFadyen, talking to Fish Farmer from Norway, where he was demonstrating the new Hydrolicer to clients.

‘We have a product that is very efficient in lice removal while being gentle on the fish and, due to not using any chemicals, is environmentally friendly.

‘Since the beginning of Hydrolicer there has always been a lot of development, but 2017 was a very busy year, culminating with the successful trials and release of our new fish pump, a new drum filter and an upgrade to the main Hydrolicer unit.’

McFadyen said the first commercial model, released in the spring of 2016, has sold 80 lines worldwide and is still in use at many farms.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:22:25

Gentle giant

“theI’mbestsureandit’sI

think it’s only a matter of time before more people see that

”

‘We are happy with what we have done in this short period in terms of bringing our product to the market and letting the farming companies use our system and see the results for themselves.

‘However, there were some limiting factors with this system so we have put a lot of focus and resources into improving these items.

‘The main and most exciting development has been of our own new

fish pump, called PG-Hydroflow.

During delousing it is necessary to handle all sizes of fish on a production farm and with this new pump we have achieved that.

‘Our pump has no moving parts or restrictions and uses only ambient seawater to provide the driving force through the system.’

Although not specifically designed or required to work with broodstock, the PG-Hydroflow and Hydrolicer equipment has recently deloused three pens of broodstock with an average weight of 13.5kg with great results, said McFadyen.

‘The PG-Hydroflow fish pump has been developed alongside our partners PG Flow Solutions and Cflow Fish Handling and we are very proud of what we have achieved.

‘We have also developed our own drum filter to improve on what was available on the market. Our new filter is constructed entirely of stainless steel, with a hydraulic drive motor and

Hydrolicer delivers more than delousing

Hydrolicer - Seawater delicing system with capacity of 40-50 t/line

PG Hydroflow - A new live-fish pump developed for fish over 6 kg

Hydrofilter - Drumfilter in stainless steel hygienic design, robust solutions and good technical quality www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

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Hydrolicer Production AS

SCOTLAND • alan@hydrolicer.com • +44 (0)75533 87553 NORWAY • post@hydrolicer.no • +47 924 34 554

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Sea lice – Hydrolicer

Right: 3D model of the new Hydrolicer barge.

Below: Overview of a four-line system in action.

available in open or closed versions.

‘It has high capacity throughput, 80 micron filtration as standard and an auto-cleaning system as an option.’

The Hydrolicer process involves the salmon entering a closed seawater column, staying in the fully flooded pipework and passing two Hydrolicer stations at a constant speed, where under pressure, followed by over pressure, gently dislodges the lice.

The next stage is to pass the fish pumps and then a water separator, after which the salmon are channelled back to a new pen, and the transport water with sea lice in is filtered to recover the lice. The fish are out of the pen for only 20 seconds.

Fish counters are included in the system so fish can be counted during the process.

McFadyen said fish welfare has always been a top priority when developing the Hydrolicer and with the new model they believe they have further improved on this.

Delousing on two sites belonging to Bjørøya just before Christmas using the PG-Hydroflow fish pumps saw an average weight of 5.5kg, 89 per cent lice removal and an incredibly low mortality figure of 0.03 per cent.

Average throughput is 50 tonnes per hour per line so a four-line system, for example, can achieve 200 tonnes per hour, thus reducing the crowding time for the fish and reduce stress,

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W www.neptunemarine.com www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:23:02

Gentle giant

which has a significant effect on mortality.

‘A major benefit of Hydrolicing is that it is very gentle on the fish and they will go back on feed the next day with a good appetite, so there is very little recovery time required,’ said McFadyen.

Training is a vital part of any Hydrolicer sale, and customers ‘can have as much handover training as they want’.

‘We also have an operational company in Norway, actively operating Hydrolicer systems on a daily basis for the farming companies.

‘The operators are very experienced and know what they are looking for in the results – if the fish are not looking so healthy, or have an underlying health issue, you may have to adjust the settings to take care of the fish.

‘You have to watch what you’re doing with the stock so you don’t damage them. That’s where the experienced eye of the operator is worth its weight in gold.’

McFadyen, who has worked in the Scottish industry for a number of years, set up Hydrolicer Scotland just over a year ago. He was previously involved in other mechanical lice treatments but is convinced of the advantages of the Hydrolicer.

‘I’m sure it’s the best and I think it’s only a matter of time before more people see that.’

Hydrolicer units have been sold all over the world, to Norway, Ireland, the Faroes and Canada, and there are currently five systems in operation in Scotland.

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Salmon Company, which has been using one of the units, said: ‘We have invested in a number of sustainable measures to manage sea lice, including the introduction of the Hydrolicer, where we have seen encouraging results.’

A number of potential customers from Scotland and Norway have recently visited the new Hydrolicer system and fish pumps in operation in Norway and McFadyen hopes to have some more orders soon.

As for the future, he said: ‘We will continue to strive for the most optimum functioning equipment in delousing and improving all aspects so it is the best for the fish. We are looking forward to a busy year in 2018.’ FF

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05/02/2018 16:23:23

Sea lice –Tarpaulins

Tailored treatments Big rise in demand keeps Inverness team busy after buy-out

I

T is almost a year since Marcus Sanctuary and Gary Cunningham completed a management buy-out of Tom Morrow Tarpaulins and now they want to ‘spread the word that things have changed within the company’.

The new owners, who both joined the Inverness based firm more than 20 years ago, are focused on bringing Tom Morrow back to its former glory as the ‘go to’ place for the aquaculture industry – here and abroad.

They say they have gone from strength to strength in the past year, developing new products and services and reinvigorating the business.

‘To be a part of a company from a young age and then to have this chance to run the same company is a great opportunity for me,’ said Sanctuary. ‘And to do this with Gary is great.

‘We are two very different people which, in my opinion, works well for our partnership. We have always had a good understanding of each other when it came to working on and improving our products.’

The firm supplies a large range of products for the aquaculture sector, from lice skirts to a new shrink wrap service.

Cunningham said: ‘Fish Farming is a massive global industry and, unlike 15 years ago, there is a lot more competition out there. We want people to know that we are not only a product manufacturing company. We understand that every producer, site and manager has their own method of working.

‘We provide a full customer package, from consultation, product design, research and development, through product manufacture to repair and client after care service.

‘Over the years we’ve taken pride in the fact that we make the strongest and most durable products out there.

‘Being based in the north of Scotland, we have a good understanding of the sometimes extreme environment that many of our products are being used in.

‘Therefore, our products are manufactured to meet these stresses and provide the end user with a tarp that is quick to deploy, strong and safe to handle, while being extremely durable to reduce down time and loss.’

The Tom Morrow team spend a lot of time researching premium quality materials and believe that with strength comes safety.

‘Our treatment and prevention tarps last and will not fail in the hands of the end user,’ said Cunningham. ‘Everything our tarps are manufactured from is sourced locally and the fabrics we use are extremely strong, tightly woven and made exclusively for us. We also work very closely with our suppliers and

Left: Attention to detail.

Above: Marcus Sanctuary (top) and Gary Cunningham. Opposite: Cunningham in the factory.

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customers, allowing us to adapt to the ever changing requirements of the fish farming industry.’

On top of the delousing tarpaulins, lice screens and fresh water treatment bags it produces, Tom Morrow also supplies wrasse hide curtains, wrasse lanterns, lice filters, and poly tunnels.

‘This is great for our staff as they learn many different skills, which gives them a better understanding of farming,’ said Cunningham.

Sanctuary said that since taking over the company it’s been ‘an absolute whirlwind…there just aren’t enough hours in the day’.

‘But we definitely would not have done it without the team we have here. Not only have our staff been amazing, but friends and family have been a massive support for us both too. As we have spent many hours away from them.

‘We are getting to know a lot of our customers now and working with them on tailoring products to their requirements, but it’s not just about designing the right product. We think building trust with them is very important.

‘I’ve been lucky enough to meet some of the top managers in the companies, and they were kind enough and honest enough to give me advice in my new venture,’ Sanctuary added. ‘I can only do the same straight back and make sure I’m always

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:24:20

Tailored treatments

We think “building

trust with our customers is very important honest and make sure they all receive a great service.

‘We are now hoping to get out of the workshop more and work with our customers more and meet new customers.’

They will soon have the chance to do this when they exhibit at the aquaculture exhibition in Av-

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Tom Morrow.indd 57

iemore in May, their first trade show as new owners.

‘With the willingness of ourselves and our staff to always learn, improve, adapt and evolve, we will still be here to provide quality products and service for many years to come,’ said Sanctuary.

‘We are a great company, and with the willingness of ourselves and our staff to always learn, improve, adapt and evolve, we will still be here to provide quality products and service for many years to come,’ said Sanctuary. FF

”

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05/02/2018 16:24:45

From the archive – November/December 1991

Scottish farmers take long view on louse control Survey shows industry keen to find alternatives to chemicals only if problems can be solved

W

ORRIES about losses of Scottish salmon during grow-out have been steadily rising since 1982. The loss trend looks set to continue, with the bulk of the mortality being attributed to furunculosis and sea louse infestations.

In the war against sea lice, chemicals remain the most realistic choice of weapon, although wrasse – as shown in the articles by Jim Treasurer (Fish Farmer, July and September) – are an increasingly attractive alternative.

Earlier this year, Andrew Revill, as a student at Humberside Polytechnic, took an industry wide view of the situation by approaching 200 fish farmers in Shetland, Orkney, Western Isles, the Highlands and Strathclyde regions of Scotland.

The survey formed part of his BSc degree.

From the original total, 120 farmers replied, of whom 44 were on freshwater sites where they encountered no lice problems.

Two land-based, pump-ashore companies who responded also reported that they never had to treat for sea lice, even though they were using sea water.

One advanced the interesting theory that the high velocity of water in the tanks prevented sea lice from attaching themselves to the fish.

Only 11 per cent of the remaining salmon farmers, operating in brackish or sea water, never had to treat for sea lice however. In fact, 58 per cent of those having to treat reported that sea lice infestations were becoming more prevalent.

This finding also showed up in brackish waters, traditionally considered more protected against sea lice attack. Nearly 63 per cent of the 35 grow-out farms operating in brackish waters noted that infestations were more prevalent than in the past.

The survey found that 98 per cent of the farmers treating for sea lice used Dichlorvos, while the remaining two per cent were using wrasse alone. Of the farmers using Dichlorvos, 36 per cent were also experimenting with other treatments, the most popular of which was the use of wrasse, although squashed onions and lower stocking densities also featured. Five sites flushed lice-infested sites with freshwater as well as using Dichlorvos.

Questionnaire results showed that the average number of Dichlorvos treatments in a year was between four and five. Only 27 per cent of the farmers approached had no reservations about the pesticide, ‘provided it was used correctly by trained staff’. The rest expressed varying degrees of concern.

The majority (79 per cent) of salmon farmers who had experienced wrasse trials said they were impressed with the results. However, when questioned, most said they did not consider wrasse alone to be a viable alternative to Dichlorvos.

They had encountered several problems with wrasse, one of which was the requirement for small cage mesh, of around 12mm, to prevent escape or gilling. Such mesh was subject to increased fouling, and needed more frequent cleaning and changing of nets, which was labour intensive and time consuming.

There were concerns about what the wrasse would eat in relatively lice-free periods. Some farmers feared that they would eat the salmon feed, and not return to feeding on lice later.

Some wrasse appeared intimidated by the larger salmon and tended not to

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Above: The November/ December 1991 cover.

Below: Scottish salmon farmers’ views on the work done so far using wrasse to control sea lice

clean them, while others had become aggressive towards the salmon when very hungry, inflicting damage to scales and eyes.

Difficulties in obtaining a supply of wrasse had been experienced, and there was some concern about the effect on the ecosystem of removing large numbers of them from the wild.

Recapturing wrasse in one cage for transfer to another had been problematic, with high mortality rates due to handling. The wrasse were also found to add complications to net changing and fish grading, and were often trapped in the dead sock, making removal of dead fish awkward. Winter lethargy and the carrying of the bacterium Aeromones salmonioida – the causative agent of furunculosis – were other potential problems.

Keeping a record of the number of wrasse in a cage was difficult, especially as they seemed susceptible to bird predation. This information was important in order to maintain the best wrasse-tosalmon ratio for optimum cleaning.

Although wrasse evidently have some drawbacks at present, many salmon farmers are clearly reticent about relying totally on Dichlorvos, especially as this may be withdrawn from use in 1992. The product licence for Aquagard (the proprietary name for Dichlorvos) is due for renewal in June.

The Sea Fish Industry Authority have been developing a breeding programme for wrasse, which appears successful so far, and could reduce the need for fishing for stocks while meeting any growing demand.

The interest in wrasse technology shown by Scottish salmon farmers indicates that if more of the problems mentioned above can be solved, there could be a massive demand for these small fish. FF

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:25:34

DON’T MISS THE UK’S LARGEST AQUACULTURE EXHIBITION AND CONFERENCE

Untitled-3 59

05/02/2018 12:29:35

Innovation – Technology

BY COLIN LEY

Hatch back firms €200,000 boost for eight aquaculture start-ups

E

IGHT new aquaculture start-ups will relocate to Bergen for three months this year with €25,000 each to invest in developing their ideas to pitch-level quality.

They will be guided by Hatch, which claims to be the world’s first accelerator programme to focus specifically on technology developments for fish farming.

The programme is geared to assist early stage start-ups which already have innovative and scalable solutions, provided they are relevant to today’s aquaculture problems.

The ultimate aim is to help each business advance to a point where funding and commercial partners will be attracted to support the new technology on offer.

‘We’ve been talking to around 50 business applicants in recent months, from whom we’ll select eight to become part of an immersive mentoring programme,’ said Hatch CEO, Dr Carsten Krome.

‘We already have two selections which are pretty much agreed and will decide on the remaining six shortly after applications close in mid-February.’

Having initially drawn interest in the programme from more than 100 companies, Krome is upbeat about aquaculture’s technology future, despite voicing frustration at the way some fish farming innovators have approached the challenge of securing start-up funding and support in the past.

A fish nutritionist with a PhD from Stirling University, he’s spent the last two and a half years working in the venture capital sector, largely assessing potential new business ideas in aquaculture.

‘Frankly, I’ve seen a lot of good aquaculture ideas being badly presented, certainly in comparison to other business sectors,’ he said. ‘That’s what we’re now trying to change.

‘In the world of venture capital, if you’re dealing with an internet start-up, for example, you pretty much know the pitch for support will be well presented and supported by all the necessary technical and financial data.

‘In relation to potential aquaculture start-ups, I’ve often had to deal with incomplete presentations, including the financial model being either totally unrealistic or missing altogether.

‘It’s disappointing to see otherwise good ideas being lost, from a funding perspective, because of a lack of knowledge on presentation, but that is what has been happening.”’

The Bergen relocation demand, placed on Hatch’s first eight start-ups, is geared to enable the businesses concerned to establish and maintain close and practical links with the city’s fish farming companies.

‘It’s obviously important that the developments which our successful eight candidates are pursuing are relevant to the industry,’ said Krome.

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Above: Dr Carsten Krome Opposite page: Bergen, Norway

‘Spending three months in Bergen, therefore, which is home to all the major fish farming corporates, will create opportunities for our innovators to understand exactly what the industry needs and advance their developments from a fully informed knowledge platform.

‘Bergen is also an excellent first base from which to trial new developments. Having said that, we are also committed to extending the accelerator offer on a global basis, making the mentoring and technology facility as widely available as possible in due course.

‘Moving forward, we see considerable synergy opportunities for start-ups, including adapting established European technologies to industry requirement in South East Asia, while also taking technologies from around the world and applying them effectively to the fish farming sector in Europe.’

While full details of Hatch’s first eight start-ups won’t be available until the final list is decided, the development areas which will be covered during this year’s programme will almost certainly include fish nutrition, health, industry based IT solutions and new production systems.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:27:06

Hatch back firms

‘In general, we’ve been working through applications from aquaculture supply and support start-ups, rather than dealing with direct farming proposals,’ said Krome.

‘Farm projects could be considered, of course, but would probably involve new species development- for example, where rearing protocols would need to be created and tested.

‘In developing the accelerator idea to this point, our philosophy all along has been to only work with companies which we believe we can help.

‘It’s very much a two-way process with the startups we’ve been talking to, also needing to be sure that we can help them in their development.’

The standard Hatch requirement is that an applicant start-up will consist of a team of at least two people, will be focused 100 per cent on their technology development and will have an initial proof-of-concept.

Against that background, Hatch’s promise is to assess the overall potential of the start-up concerned, focus on the quality of the company team, the potential of the technology, the business model and strategy, as well as the size and accessibility of the target market.

‘Talking to 50 aquaculture start-ups with all these factors already in place has been an encouraging experience,’ said Krome. ‘As such, I believe the development future for fish farming is extremely exciting.’ FF

“

Our philosophy all along has been to only work with companies which we believe we can help

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Technical planning, certification, maintenance, documentation and operational planning is fully integrated in the Aquacom system that consist of the following modules; offshore, onshore, vessels and planner.

The modules can be operated as independent modules or put together as one tool for the complete value chain from hatchery to processing plant.

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www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

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05/02/2018 16:28:11

Processing News

MP visits upgraded salmon plant

Processors urged to join ‘health’ check

THE Scottish Salmon Company (SSC) welcomed local MP Brendan O’Hara to its newly developed Cairndow processing and filleting facility, near the mouth of Loch Fyne, last month O’HARA, the SNP MP for Argyll and Bute, joined Craig Anderson, SSC chief executive, to tour the factory and meet the team.

About half of the SSC’s annual production of 25,000 tonnes is produced in Argyll and Bute alone, and Cairndow’s processing capabilities have been developed to include filleting facilities.

The Cairndow site currently has around 80 staff, and the company employs 160 people full-time across 20 sites in the region.

In addition to the developments at Cairndow, the SSC has invested in a local harvest station and well boat.

O’Hara said: ‘I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the Scottish Salmon Company’s state of the art salm-

Businesss growth

“

We want to put Argyll and Bute on the map for Scottish salmon production

”

Above: (From left) Brendan O’Hara MP, Cairndow processing manager Andrew Aitken and general manager David Bradley

on processing facility at Cairndow and meeting the team.’

The company brought its salmon to a Taste of Argyll and Bute event at the

House of Commons on January 30, sponsored

by O’Hara.

Anderson said: ‘It was a pleasure to welcome Brendan to our Cairndow processing

facility. Argyll and Bute is an important area of business for us, with about half of our Scottish salmon being produced in the region.

‘The investment in introducing filleting facilities at Cairndow marks a commitment to developing a platform for sustainable business growth and highlights our commitment to supporting local jobs, suppliers and services and is part of our ambition to develop our capabilities in the region.

‘We want to put Argyll and Bute on the map for Scottish salmon production.’

China’s new line in automatic processing MAREL has announced the successful installation of China’s first automatic processing line for salmon, with the operation carried out at the Hi-Chain Foods’ salmon processing facility near Shanghai.

The plant is equipped to produce up to 30 tonnes of salmon products per day and includes filleting, trimming, pinbone removal, skinning, portioning and slicing equipment.

Shanghai Hi-Chain Foods also processes tuna, king crab and other seafood.

Marel says that in recent years Chinese salmon processors have increasingly sought out hi-tech processing equipment in order to improve performance and food safety, to raise yield and to reduce costs.

This project began after M Li, general manager of Hi-Chain, attended the 2016 Salmon ShowHow to find out more about what Marel could offer in terms of advanced salmon processing technology.

The ShowHow, held in Copenhagen each year, invites salmon processors to experience the Icelandic based company’s equipment and software first hand.

Li told the company he was particularly interested in Marel’s filleting lines, which he saw for the first time at the ShowHow, and he left the event convinced that Marel could help Hi-Chain produce superior quality salmon products for its customers.

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Processing News.indd 62

‘A deal was made and the equipment was installed in August 2017,’ said Marel. ‘During the start-up phase, Marel provided training to Hi-Chain employees.

‘Training is an integral part of Marel’s service, especially when a facility is taking such a big step in terms of automation, and both Hi-Chain and Marel made every effort to ensure that both the factory and employees were prepared for the installation.’

Marel said the installation marked a shift in the nature of many of the jobs at the factory, and its local service engineer in China, along with its service engineers from Denmark, were in close contact with Hi-Chain from the start, to answer questions and assist with troubleshooting.

A ‘HEALTH’ check is being carried out on the state of the UK seafood processing industry in the wake of Brexit.

And companies are being urged to cooperate by letting the government and the industry authority Seafish know about their financial position.

Seafish said such an examination of processing businesses is of particular importance as Britain leaves the European Union in just over 12 months’ time.

Already, worries have been expressed about the labour situation, especially in Scotland, which is heavily dependent on EU workers.

Many are reported to be leaving for what they see as more secure employment prospects in countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands.

Seafish will contact all major seafood processors to invite them to participate. The survey will continue throughout February.

The survey is one of several projects looking to shed light on the processing sector.

Currently, employee information surveys are helping to understand the potential impact of Brexit on the processing workforce.

www.fishfarmer-magazine.com

05/02/2018 16:29:29

Processing News

Family firm wins fish and chip contest A MODEST family run Yorkshire business has won this year’s National Fish and Chip Awards.

Competing against formidable opposition, Millers Fish & Chip shop in the village of Haxby (population 8,400), on the outskirts of York, was presented with the top prize at a ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London.

Millers is run by father-and-son team David and Nick Miller, and the business has been in the family for four generations.

It sells the traditional fish and chip shop fare, but also caters for all dietary requirements, with separate gluten free and halal menus.

Nick Miller said afterwards: ‘I can’t believe we are the UK’s best fish and chip shop. Words can’t describe how this feels.

‘We entered the competition for the first time last year, and were so proud to get to the final, but to go all the way this time and scoop the ‘Oscar’ of the fish and chip world is truly amazing.’

The winning pair explained how they mix tradition with innovation, saying: ‘We operate a separate frying area to cater for allergen free diets and offer a range of gluten free, halal and vegetarian products, all cooked using only the finest, locally sourced, sustainable ingredients.’

Above: Winners Nick and David Miller The Burton Road Chippy in Lincoln was voted second, while Harbourside Fish & Chips of Plymouth came in third.

The Scottish regional winner was Cromars Classic Fish & Chips, based in Union Street, St Andrews.

YOUNG’S Seafood regimes. In addition to The awards, organised by Seafish, are now in their 30th year. Marcus Colehas delivered share growth, we’ve man, Seafish CEO, said: ‘Millers Fish & Chips demonstrated an unparalleled impressive full year also made positive level of expertise to be crowned the winner of our Fish and Chip Shop of results, with turnoprogress in the food the Year Award - one of the highest honours a fish and chip business can ver up by almost six service channel, receive. per cent, thanks to a following our contract ‘Having been judged on every element of running a successful fish and strong performance win with a major fast chip business, I can safely say that their expertise, skill and dedication is and the capture of food retail company. outstanding. some important new ‘Our exports ‘With the combination of David’s experience and Nick’s modern approach, contracts. programme is also they are a team to be reckoned with and one of the industry’s greatest Grimsby based delivering, with acceldouble acts.’

Young’s reported erated export orders turnover of £523.3 to the USA. Bringing million, an increase restaurant quality fish of 5.7 per cent year into new categories, operations director. on year, and a gross we closed the year He will join Young’s profit (EBITDA or as the clear number on March 12, replacearnings before one brand in frozen ing Steve Lidgett who interest, tax, depreci- seafood.’ is retiring from the ation and amortisaIt is less than a year company at the end tion) of £20.3 million since Young’s decided of April. for the financial year to expand into the Bill Showalter, chief to September 30, export market. Using executive of Young’s, 2017. This was couits 200-year-old British said: ‘Duncan’s pled with a strong heritage as part of the extensive operational operational cash marketing campaign, experience will be management. its branded frozen extremely valuable Young’s CEO Bill products, inas we look to execute Showalter said: cluding the our long-term growth ‘Contract wins and popular strategy.’ the growth of our Gastro McIntyre said: ‘I’m market leading range, are YOUNG’S has appoint- responsible for the very much looking forbrand have conalready ed Duncan McIntyre as manufacturing process ward to playing a role tinued our EBITDA being sold and distribution of group operations diin driving the business improvement trend in thoufinished goods, turning forward.’ rector. He has worked and delivered annual sands of over a total of 300,000 in the food and conAlso joining Young’s turnover growth. stores, sumer facing industries tonnes per annum of Seafood, as chief ‘Our fourth quarter frozen fish, vegetables financial officer, is Tim for 26 years. saw double digit and meals.

Prior to joining Busby. sales growth, with Before that he Young’s Seafood, he He succeeds significant growth worked for nine years Malcolm Lofts, who was a supply chain in both frozen and at Weetabix Food director at Nomad retired from the role chilled temperature Above: Bill Showalter Company as group Foods, where he was in December.

Young’s 2017 sales and profits jump

New executives welcomed

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Processing News.indd 63

including Walmart, across the US. Last month Showalter signalled that he is planning to launch into Europe and China. Speaking to the Press Association, he said: ‘We see China as a big opportunity.

As we speak, we are exploring discussions with partners in that market and we would look to deploy a similar model to the one that we are using in the United States.

Continental Europe is probably next on our list.’

It was just over a year ago that Young’s decided to expand overseas by appointing an international sales director.

Meanwhile, speculation continues to mount about the future ownership of the company.

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Aquaculture Equipment Ltd

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Nathan Moreland, Aquatic Hygiene Ph: +44 1463 718735 Mob: +44 7818 483043 e-mail: Nathan@aquatic.as

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Opinion – Inside track

We are not alone

BY NICK JOY

T

HERE may be those among you who think I am going to talk about aliens and life in the outer reaches of our galaxy. If you are I am afraid that you are going to be sorely disappointed - I am still, as usual, addicted to aquaculture.

On a recent Saturday night, I was privileged to meet some of the graduates from the Rural Leadership programme. This scheme encourages farmers, people working in farming or in the supply chain to come together and learn about leadership and how to innovate together.

I shall not name names for fear of missing someone out but the people were highly impressive, young and very thoughtful.

They included a dairy farmer with 600 cows, a representative from Sainsbury’s, the operations manager of several farms owned by Mr Dyson, and the guy in charge of Young Farmers (England and Wales).

None of them had encountered anyone from aquaculture and they were extremely curious about how we operated.

They had graduated together and kept in close contact, using each other’s experience, but also the trust built up, in order to discuss their ideas, plans and business issues.

They travel every year to a different venue to try to learn about that sphere of farming or food production to see how this might give insights into their own businesses. The concept is brilliant but also their commitment to each other and to the original concept is truly wonderful.

Due to the fact that I was not the designated driver and that I have a terrible weakness when offered a glass of wine (or three), I cannot remember all of the conversations. Nonetheless, there is one that stands out despite my worst attempts to rub it out.

The young man representing Young Farmers, with 25,000 members, was talking about the never ending stream of criticism of farming - how PR and the press absorbed large amounts of his work time, particularly discussing the vegan movement and its view of the world.

Please note I do not describe it as a tide of veganism, because it has risen to the heady heights that the organic movement did when everybody said that was going to take over the world.

He was surprised to find that I understood the difficulties facing a form of food production, attacked by the misinformed or the peddlers of disinformation, regulated by those who don’t understand and a press only interested in negative stories.

By the time the evening ended we had agreed that one of the biggest issues facing rural business is that each different industry spends its time lobbying against the other.

Cohesion is sorely needed when dealing with a government that sees rural affairs as an expensive nuisance.

From forestry to stalking, from fish farming to angling, we need to get together and realise that we have greater similarities than we have differences.

Each industry’s political clout is so miniscule compared to most industries that we can be played off against each other. We don’t understand each other’s businesses and so we see threat where there is opportunity.

In the early days of aquaculture, overtures were made to the National Farmers Union in order for our industry to join but the NFU demurred.

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Nick Joy.indd 66

We need to “become part

of a vibrant and successful group of rural industries

”

It was not surprising, our industry was tiny and the revenue would have been far outweighed by the problems.

Nowadays, that can hardly be the case. We are a huge revenue stream, bigger than beef and sheep combined. If we want greater clout with government, be it Westminster or Holyrood, then we need to belong to a larger group than we do now.

This does not mean that we need to suborn our needs to the needs of others but that we need to have more weight on our side of the argument.

As a small spacecraft called Voyager II goes further and further outside our solar system into interstellar space, hoping to find that we are not alone, our industry must discover this in our small dot in the universe.

We need to become part of a vibrant and successful group of rural industries with the combined weight to achieve the regulation and recognition we merit. FF

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05/02/2018 16:30:39

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Asian Pacific Aquaculture 2018 April 24-26

APA

Taipei - Taiwan

All info: www.was.org Conference management: worldaqua@was.org Trade show & Sponsorship: mario@marevent.com OBC - Marevent.indd 68

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