THE PARADIGM SHIFT IN SALMON PRODUCTION: CHALLENGES AND POTENTIAL OF LARGE INDUSTRIAL LAND-BASED PLANTS FOR POST SMOLTS AND MARKET SIZE FISH
The Aquaculture industry is becoming a driving force for high yield production and sustainable development of the food industry, with a strong focus being made on compact and resources saving solutions, disease free plants and recovery of energy, nutrients and water.
In the last 7 years the salmon production from aquaculture has turned into a global industry, with salmon seen as a commodity product such as chicken and beef. Prognoses for Norway alone shows an increase in salmon production of more than 8% per year to reach up to 3 Million tons produced in 2030. In the world's salmon industry the smolt-concept is in rapid change, with a global trend to produce larger smolts, e.g. from 250 grams up to 1 kg prior to transfer to traditional cages at sea. Such a large fish proves to be more robust than smaller smolts, show reduced mortality, shorter production time in open cages in the sea, and thus fewer problems with salmon lice for example.
Over the last few years, Several projects to produce market size salmon on land, based on RAS technology, has pointed out loudly the long list of risks and challenges of a still "in its infancy" production concept.
The industry trends to go for larger plants (mega post smolts or market size fish plants aiming for 5000 MT yearly capacity or more), larger fish tanks (20 meter diameter and more), larger RAS units (dealing with re-circulated flow rates over 10 000m3/h), together with lower water and energy consumption.
Design of such facilities needs to focus on fish biosecurity, welfare and health, together with optimal layout design, for all fish movements, operators, and ancillary equipment. The initial concept design and business model needs to be supported by a realistic and flexible bioplan.
Challenges, concerns, but also key drivers and possible solutions will be presented and discussed, illustrated from some recent references in Norway, from among the world largest post smolt factories, and proposal on how should be designed compact industrial salmon Mega factories, capable to produce 5 000 MT from egg to 5 kg fish.