At Gjermundnes in the Romsdalsfjord, bypassers may experience a unique sight at the farming location of Hauge Aqua. Next to the traditional net pens, there is a technical installation that could easily be mistaken for a spacecraft. But if you investigate closer, it is not astronauts and space equipment from NASA that are floating on the fjord, but an advanced, closed cage system, packed with live fish.
From a dream to a prototype
The floating installation is marked with the name “Ovum”, translated from Latin means “Egg”. The founder of the company Hauge Aqua, Cato Lyngøy, conceived the idea ten years ago in a dream, and since then, the idea has developed into the prototype that now floats in the Romsdalsfjorden. The technology contributes to a very low environmental impact, where problems such as escape, sea lice, and emissions are not an issue. It is the company Prophylaxia that operates the licenses for Hauge Aqua, and it was two happy fellows, Bjørn-Vegard Løvik, general manager of Akvakulturpartner AS, and Øyvind Våge, general manager of Prophylaxia AS, who received Benchmark’s representatives at the facility on a fine day in January.
A nursery of well-being for the salmon
Here they saw beautiful and healthy fish, which are currently approx. 1 kg on average. It has put all growth protocols to shame with an EGI of an incredible 175! The smolt, delivered from Eik Settefisk, was 150 g when moved into the “Egg” on the 9th of October last year. They originated from ova produced by Benchmark Genetics Salten and delivered to Eik on week 41, 2021.
Bjørn-Vegard Løvik does not doubt that the fantastic environmental conditions are the primary reason for the tremendous results.
“Here, we change the water one and a half times per hour, which we collect from 17 m deep. We keep the oxygen saturation level around 95%, and the fish are fed with feed from Cargill. This means that we can maintain high water quality, controlled feeding, and no handling or treatment of the fish”, he says with great satisfaction.
The potential of genetics is fully realized
The ova supplied by Benchmark has enormous genetic potential for growth and disease resistance. It comes from broodstock that has been selected for particularly advantageous traits for salmon farming over 13 generations. However, to measure the effect of genetics, especially for characteristics such as growth, the fish mustn’t be influenced by other factors that disturb the picture. A typical disruptive factor is salmon lice treatments, which are both physically demanding for the fish’s health, and contribute to extended periods of starvation and reduced appetite.
That’s why Thommy Holmvåg, regional manager for sales in the North at Benchmark Genetics, found it very inspiring to see how genetics could demonstrate its power in this closed system.
“This was a great experience! We have also seen excellent results in closed facilities on land. Still, much of the future farming in Norway will take place in closed systems in the sea, and it is clear to me that Hauge Aqua has taken a quantum leap with the Ovum.”- says the regional manager enthusiastically.
Other genetic traits for farming in closed systems?
With a close-to-perfect farming environment, there may be opportunities to focus the genetic selection on fewer disease traits than Benchmark does today for farming in open-net pens. Bjørn-Vegard envisions that it should be possible to concentrate on the characteristics of high growth and resistance to the diseases IPN and CMS. Genetics for strong gills with higher resistance to AGD may also be relevant. This little parasite is the only problem they have so far experienced in a shorter period during production in the Ovum. These are traits Benchmark already has in its product range, which the company is continuously researching to further improve performance.
The Ovum can become home to both commercial fish and broodstock
The salmon swimming inside the installation will be released into open cages at the same location over the next couple of weeks, and a new group of smolts will move in.
“We have chosen a production strategy for large smolt in our prototype, but we certainly see potential in keeping the fish in the system until harvest size. When we have several Ovum in place at the site, this is a strategy we must consider.”, – he says.
It is not only commercial fish that can be relevant for farming in a closed system. Although Benchmark produces large parts of its broodstock on land, there is still a need to keep broodstock at sea to have sufficient selection intensity and as a backup for unforeseen incidents on land. The broodstock stays one year longer than commercial fish in the sea and is particularly exposed to challenges such as sea lice and disease. Rudi Ripman Seim, the production manager in Norway and global fish health manager at Benchmark, thought the solution looked promising for broodstock production.
“A closed system such as the Ovum can provide higher biosecurity than production in open cages. Although the technical risk may be somewhat more significant with a closed system, there is no doubt that fish welfare is excellent and the biological risk far lower.”, – says Rudi.
Competitive against farming on land
The Ovum has higher investment costs than traditional cages. Still, according to Bjørn-Vegard, it will be competitive in terms of cost per kilo and cheaper than producing salmon in a land-based facility. Firstly, the investment costs are competitive compared to land-based production. Energy consumption is more favorable, which is especially important now with high electricity prices. The facility is far more flexible, and it is also movable.
These advantages mean that Bjørn-Vegard and Øyvind Våge strongly believe that the Ovum can be just as attractive a solution as land-based production in Norway. They are excited about taking part in testing both technologies.
“We are wearing long-term “protein glasses,” and it is sustainable to invest in new technology that can take this wonderful industry forward. We want to be a part of the development of closed farming in the sea and land-based farming as part of future growth within aquaculture.”,- concludes Bjørn-Vegard Løvik.
