AquaBounty Uses R&D Expertise and Vertical Integration to Tackle Aquaculture’s Challenges

Fish farming is the fastest growing form of food production in the world and with good reason. World population growth will continue to drive increased demand for protein in the coming decades.?Blue foods such as salmon are not only an excellent source of protein, but a healthy, lean source with many other proven health benefits.?

But even as demand for seafood continues to grow, supply is constrained. Ninety percent of the world’s fisheries are fully fished or?overfished, and rising ocean temperatures negatively impact wild salmon populations and even net-pen?farmed fish.

“Our oceans are being pressured like never before, and we must protect and preserve delicate and stressed ecosystems and fisheries,” said Sylvia Wulf, AquaBounty CEO.

Amid these demand and supply pressures, AquaBounty is using its research and development (R&D) expertise and vertical integration to continuously improve production at its land-based farms and ensure a sustainable source of?healthy seafood.

AquaBounty:?Preparing for Future Demand?

Among land-based aquaculture companies, AquaBounty has made R&D a key focus since the development of its GE salmon over 30 years ago. AquaBounty has continued to invest in its R&D capability, and today, it is expanding its research efforts at its Fortune Bay?facility on Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, where scientists are using the latest biotechnologies to improve fish breeding, health and nutrition, and genetics.

As a vertically integrated company, AquaBounty seeks to continuously improve salmon health and production across the salmon lifecycle, from broodstock to hatch to harvest. Vertical integration allows AquaBounty to leverage decades?of expertise in fish breeding, genetics, and health and nutrition to deliver disruptive solutions that address food insecurity and climate change issues by shifting salmon production out of the ocean to land-based recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) farms.?The company uses the latest RAS technology in its freshwater tanks to nurture the fish in a safe, sustainable way, leveraging its extensive RAS operational experience. Vertical integration is a competitive advantage that allows AquaBounty to raise its GE salmon?with even greater efficiency and sustainability.

“AquaBounty’s vertical integration through each phase of our salmon lifecycle, from the control of egg and broodstock production through grow-out and harvest, allows us a unique degree of insight and control over every aspect?of our operations,” said Wulf.

Expanding Production Now

AquaBounty’s farm in Rollo Bay, PEI, specializes in broodstock husbandry, egg production and hatchery efficiency and is currently undergoing expansion to increase salmon egg production of both GE and non-GE salmon eggs. The expansion will allow AquaBounty?to increase production of its FDA-approved GE Atlantic Salmon, and to sell non-GE salmon eggs to other ocean-pen and land-based salmon producers. By capitalizing on its R&D expertise and integrated production capacity, AquaBounty is helping to ensure land-based?aquaculture is positioned to meet the growing demand for salmon with sustainable practices.

Fulfilling the Promise of Land-Based Aquaculture

AquaBounty has strategically aligned its proficiency in RAS technology with the added advantages of vertical integration and a deep commitment to R&D to continuously improve operational efficiency, employing the most advanced research to enhance fish health?and nutrition. Land-based aquaculture has the potential to provide a sustainable source of lean, healthy protein to meet an ever-growing demand, even as population growth and climate change challenge traditional fisheries and ocean farming. AquaBounty is fulfilling?the promise of land-based aquaculture so the world can expect to enjoy sustainable, healthy seafood for generations to come.