JULY/AUGUST 2019
VOLUME 10 ISSUE 4
CAGE CULTURE
FARMED SHRIMP
INNOVATIONS
SEE PAGES
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Canada’s fledgling shrimp sector gets a boost
Engineering the future of cage culture Credit: Mowi Canada West
Complacency is not an option for salmon aquaculture, but instead of disruptive innovations the industry is advancing with ‘measured and responsible’ adaptations to existing technology BY LYNN FANTOM
nnovations in cage systems are spawning hope for a sustainable future in net pen farming. From core cage designs that combat threatening weather to ancillary systems that fight parasites and predators, both veteran European manufacturers and inspired Canadian start-ups are tackling the challenges.
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But, as committed as the industry is to solve its most intractable problems, its approach has been one that David Kiemele, managing director of Cermaq Canada, characterizes as “measured and responsible.” Aquaculture is not a business rabid for “disruptive technologies.” The stakes are too high. continued on page 8
OFFSHORE FARMING
Catalina Sea Ranch: A case study in persistence The path to success had difficult twists and turns for the first mover in US offshore aquaculture, but its triumph paves the way for other industry players BY LIZA MAYER
old mine or money pit? One can’t blame CEO Phil Cruver if the thought crossed his mind during the early years he was trying to get Catalina Sea Ranch (CSR) off the ground. The odds were stacked against it. For instance, the mussel farm was ready to market its first harvest in June 2017 but the lack of FDAcertified biotoxin testing labs in California prevented that harvest from reaching the market.
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‘This is really the only chance that we have and putting a dent sustainably in the $15-billion seafood trade deficit in the US,’ says Lindsay Cruver, head of R & D and the CEO’s daughter continued on page 26
Consumer demand for sustainably farmed food and their negative perception of imported shrimp are behind the developments in shrimp farming in Canada (Credit: Good4Ushrimp) BY MATT JONES
he recent arrival of two new shrimp growing operations in Ontario, Canada could mark the beginnings of a farmed shrimp industry for the province, if not for the country. Shrimp farming is a major industry worldwide, but in Canada, production on a commercial scale is yet to be seen. Consumer demand for sustainably farmed food and their negative perception of imported shrimp are behind this development. Early this year, an investigation by state-owned broadcaster CBC has found that Canadian grocery stores are selling imported shrimp containing antibiotic-resistant bacteria. “We see headlines of imported products as carrying some sort of residue of medication or antibiotic-resistant bacteria and things like that,” says RJ Taylor, marketing director of the Ontario Aquaculture Association. “When we’re talking about the trend towards shrimp, you definitely see that on the consumer side.”
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