SPAROS is an R&D-focused company specialising in fish nutrition and Otter Ferry Seafish has over 50 years’ experience in the aquaculture of several finfish species, including Atlantic salmon, lumpfish, Ballan wrasse and Atlantic halibut.
The two innovative companies are working together on the WrasseFEED project (Eurostars programme) to develop a new range of fish feeds to address key bottlenecks in Ballan wrasse production.
The use of Ballan wrasse has contributed significantly to reduce the number of delousing treatments, including chemotherapeutants, resulting in more sustainable salmon farming. The cleaner fish have contributed to the creation of new jobs, both in the industry and in public and regulatory agencies and research bodies. This is particularly important in fragile communities in the remote areas of Scotland.
The demand for cleaner fish, especially Ballan wrasse, is constantly increasing. While the global demand for Ballan wrasse is estimated at around 10 million fish per year, the production of wrasse in Scotland does not exceed 600.000 specimens per year. Some of the main production bottlenecks at the hatchery stages can be tackled through customised nutrition, giving improved growth, better survivals and enhanced quality, which are the ultimate goals of WrasseFEED.
Luis Conceição, Co-founder, CEO and R&D Project Manager at SPAROS, said:
“We are leading this collaborative initiative in conjunction with Otter Ferry because the development of the Ballan wrasse diets will improve survival, reduce feed costs and increase quality of juveniles. All these factors will contribute to improve the profitability and sustainability of the Salmon industry.”
Attend the SPAROS presentation at Aquaculture UK on Wednesday, May 4th at 3:30pm to get a first-hand look at WrasseFEED’s latest developments.
