Aquapod™ (Source: Ocean Farm Technologies, Inc.)

Sometime ago we posted about heading towards automation self propelled aquaculture cages. Since then, Cliff Goudey, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Offshore Aquaculture Engineering Center, has been working on a project funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which is testing these cages with cobia farming operations in Puerto Rico.

Goudey has equipped an Aquapod™ cage, produced by Maine-based Ocean Farm Technologies, Inc., with a set of propellers, which act as big screws that churn their way through the ocean.

Self Propelled Cage (Source: www.wickedlocal.com)

Working recently at Snapperfarm Inc., the cobia operation in Puerto Rico, Goudey’s cage has proved itself capable of moving on its own.

For footage of the sea trials in action click here to watch a video.

Click here for more information on this topic. ]]> http://finfish.org/blog/robotic-offshore-cages-%e2%80%93-the-future-of-fish-farming/feed/ 0 http://finfish.org/blog/702/ http://finfish.org/blog/702/#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:06:36 +0000 Hayley http://finfish.org/?p=702 Reports generated from aquaculture development projects undertaken by the Aquaculture Development Council (ADC) have been added to the ADC Reports section of this site.

You can view these reports by clicking here, or by clicking on ADC Reports in the drop down menu under ADC.

Envirofinfish.org was implemented due to a lack of available information on the environmental management of aquaculture and will operate in the same way as finfish.org.  You can access this site here or by clicking the envirofinfish.org icon on the sidebar.

Source: Stockxchng

According to the press release on their website, the innovation will revolutionise production and harvest of cod and potentially other marine species such as sea bass and sturgeon.  

By fully controlling the environment in which the cod are raised, including daylight sequences and and tide movements, healthy, parasite and disease free fish are produced with a growth rate three times faster than wild fish.  DIOBAS note they are not seeking to grow and supply fish to the market, instead viewing themselves as technology providers.

The freshwater system can be operated in a variety of sizes, the smallest producing 100 plus tonnes of cod, with the initial crop harvestable within two years.  The fully enclosed system produces virtually nil waste output, as bacterial content is absorbed by organisms present in a connected tank.

Could this be a solution to the worlds declining marine fishstocks?

For further details on the system, please click here.

These Cones are used to inexpensively and simply build a compact system for efficiently holding live fish and aquatic animals. 

The website:  http://www.kboxcones.tk/ has full details of the product and how it works.

Rebecca has written to finfish.org as she is conducting a project on the size and scope of the Austrlalian Barramundi  market.

Rebecca is looking for information on the following:

• Current product available (by product – wild v farmed, fillets v whole fish etc);
• Competitive context (suppliers, imports etc);
• Size of market in each state;
• Current supply chains;
• Current quality systems;
• Marketing strategies.

If you have information on any of the above, or could point Rebecca in the direction of someone who does, please comment on this post.

Plus, stay tuned for the launch of our new partner site envirofinfish.org! You will soon be able to access this from the button in the sidebar.

Explore the site to discover our new information and click here to see the ways you can participate on finfish.org.

Results from a study released by the Fisheries Research Institute (FRI) under the Council of Agriculture, suggest ground bamboo charcoal can be a natural way to boost fish growth and enhance aquaculture production.

Experiments were conducted by feeding Taiwan tilapia with fish food containing ground bamboo charcoal.

It was found that fish fed with the ground bamboo charcoal showed significantly better results in terms of weight gain, growth and length-weight factor than those fed with normal food.

Previous experiments have indicated that wood charcoal and wood vinegar can yield a similar outcome.

The project is involved with research into efficient vaccines against viral fish pathogens.

There are currently no vaccines available that successfully protect from viral infections in fish.  Research on the peptide based vaccination will adapt the technology of its proven success in warm-blooded vertebrates to use in cold-blooded vertebrates.

The objective of the project is to develop a pathogen epitope prediction programme and to design a viral pathogen peptide – vaccine.

The project will develop reagents for use in immunological research in Atlantic salmon.

Another benefit is the reduction of the environmental impact of an outbreak by reducing the spread of disease to wild populations of fish.

If successful, this represents a new approach to developing vaccines against viral agents in fish and may be further developed into a commercial product.

The taints in recirculation systems can be a result of chemicals that are realised by certain bacteria species that inhabit the water and system surfaces.

There is a focus on flavour issues as there is an urgent requirement to supply a consistently high quality product that is comparable to the wild alternative, if these types of systems are going to provide an effective solution to the global fish production gap.

The design is based on preventing compounds being produced in the system at the initial stage rather than treating the water with potentially hazardous agents.

Pisces Engineering Ltd were awarded the SMART award from the Scottish Government for their design and will use this to build a semi-commercial pilot scale system to prove the feasibility and viability of the process.