Benchmark Genetics is one of the main suppliers of salmon ova for land-based production facilities both RAS and flow-through around the world. This has given them a unique insight into how the sector is developing, as members of their team explain to The Fish Site.
Benchmark Genetics
Land-based salmon production is now really happening and for many producers access to disease-free eggs is one of their first priorities. Weve been in contact with the new companies from a very early stage and want to be a partner in this growing segment, explains Geir Olav Melingen, the divisions commercial director.
Benchmarks faith in the sector, and their hope to remain a key player in it, is reflected by expansions to their team as well as recent investments in their hatchery in Iceland, which is currently being kitted out with 10,000 additional incubators in a new facility in order to cater for projected increases in demand for eggs.
There are land-based salmon production facilities with a combined capacity of more than 2 million tonnes in the pipeline. About 90 percent of these are in RAS.
There are land-based salmon production facilities with a combined capacity of more than 2 million tonnes in the pipeline. About 90 percent of these are in RAS. Even if only a fifth of these projects are realised, it will still be a massive number of eggs needed. And we are trying to be proactive about increasing our capacity, reflects Melingen.
Although Benchmark has several breeding centres, including the recently opened site in Salten, their Iceland facility is the primary source of ova for land-based salmon production due to the unique levels of biosecurity, Icelandic eggs are permitted to be widely exported. Given the range of geographies where new salmon farms are planned, this gives Benchmark a unique advantage, and the company currently exports to over 20 countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. Their upgraded Iceland facility will be capable of producing 200 million eggs a year and Melingen notes that theres scope to increase this to 350 million eggs a year with minor investment.
Of the current 200 million, around 20 million are being sold to land-based salmon producers, but this proportion is likely to rise in line with the projected increase in the land-based sector. Delivery of these eggs is much more regular than in the conventional salmon sector and one of the key demands of land-based producers is the regularity with which they require ova which Benchmark is well placed to cater for, given that they can provide eggs from Iceland in any of the 52 weeks of the year.
The Health and Welfare of Atlantic Salmon course
It is vital that fish farm operatives who are responsible for farmed fish are trained in their health andwelfare. This will help to ensure that fish are free from disease and suffering whilst at the same timepromote good productivity and comply with legislation.
Unlike in conventional net-pen farming, which operate on a single year class policy and are stocked with either S1 or S0 smolts, they want deliveries every 4, 6 or 8 weeks, explains Harry Tziouvas, who recently joined Benchmark as RAS sales manager. Regular inputs allow them to provide a continuous supply, as most will supply local markets with fresh Atlantic salmon.
Benchmark Genetics
Benchmark was the first provider of eggs to Atlantic Sapphires Florida facility and remains the main supplier there, but the company is keen to highlight the wide range of projects that they are providing eggs for.
These include Pure Salmon, which has ambitions to produce 260,000 tonnes a year from a series of RAS facilities, each with 10-20,000 tonne capacity, in markets including Japan, China, the Middle East, the US and Europe.
AquaCon, which aims to produce at least 48,000 tonnes a year in Maryland, is another that they wish to highlight.They have plans to work closely with local universities and local communities, and they have a strong focus on sustainability and animal welfare. They have designed an exciting project in close collaboration with University of Maryland, where I spent some of my time during my PhD, says Melingen.
Benchmark has also developed a close working relationship with Salmon Evolution, which aims to produce 36,000 tonnes of salmon in a unique hybrid flow-through facility in Norway. Personnel from both companies will be spending time in each others facilities, collaborating to ensure the optimal quality of the land-based salmon, in a bid to help reduce issues with off-flavours once Salmon Evolution starts production in earnest.
Danish Salmon, one of the original salmon RAS, is another partner, with whom Benchmark has undertaken much of their RAS-related genetics work, and is a customer that enjoys collaborating with key suppliers.
Land-based systems currently require a comparatively high number of eggs per kilo of salmon produced, in part due to the tendency to harvest smaller fish, reflecting that fine-tuning of these new systems is required on the technical side, especially in RAS. However, the Benchmark team sees this as changing over time, due to the biosecurity of these more contained systems.
Its currently close to 2 kg of salmon produced per egg bought. Today, 2.7-3 kg harvested fish per egg is more what you expect from conventional salmon farming. However, in the long term it is likely that land-based farmers will be able to produce 3 kg of salmon for every egg they buy, Melingen explains.
My understanding is that they order more eggs to act as a buffer should any incidents occur, until they have reached a steady state in other words reaching carrying capacity in their facilities, says Andrew Preston, who was recently hired as the companys global RAS technical manager and has been in the RAS sector for four years. But its my experience that overall health management is much simpler in land-based systems where strict biosecurity practices can diminish the threat of viruses, bacteria and parasites entering the facilities.
The team at Benchmark predicts that land-based salmon production will reach around 350,000 tonnes globally by the end of the decade, with 90 percent of this figure being accounted for by RAS.
This may, however, change over time.
While there are fewer issues with diseases in land-based farms than in the sea, there are likely to be other health challenges that emerge as land-based farming scales up these could include issues with hormones or bacterial diseases, Melingen predicts.
Currently, however, the biosecurity afforded in RAS means that producers are typically looking for salmon with different traits compared to net pen producers.
Marine sites producers are typically looking for fish with a degree of resistance to challenges such as IPN, ISA, AGD, PD, CMS and sea lice, in different combinations. Without so many disease challenges, producers in land-based systems are mainly looking for traits such as growth, maturation [ie fish that dont mature too early, as this results in downgrades] and fillet quality, says Tziouvas.
Maturation is one of the key issues, agrees Melingen, particularly in those farms which only use freshwater and those with warmer water conditions. This is why Benchmarks range includes all-female, and all-female triploid options, and the team point to a number of studies to support their claims for reducing maturation levels through the use of these lines.
From working closely with our customers, we have collected a lot of experience that we share to help them make an optimal choice, based on their set-up, explains Melingen.
However, Melingen adds that while some adaptation is possible, using clever breeding programmes, it is essential above all for farmers to provide the optimum conditions for their fish.
Its much easier to adapt your technology to suit the biology of the salmon than the other way round, he notes.
Technology used in land-based systems, including RAS, has been evolving as the sector has been growing.
The scale is one of the biggest developments, says Preston. Initially companies were looking to produce hundreds of tonnes, now 4,000 tonnes are about the minimum, due to the economies of scale required. These improve up to about 20,000 tonnes, after which they level out.
As for the equipment providers and designers of the facilities?
There are a range of designers out there and each has a different technique for treating the water. Im quite certain that there will be adaptations to all of these systems and that fine-tuning will occur, so all companies have an equal chance to succeed, Melingen argues.
The team at Benchmark predicts that land-based salmon production will reach around 350,000 tonnes globally by the end of the decade, with 90 percent of this figure being accounted for by RAS.
Growth might be slower than expected in 2021-2023, but after that it will be steeper and I wouldnt be surprised if it reached 500,000 tonnes by 2033, reflects Melingen.
But they believe that once operators have become accustomed to their systems then things should speed up.
New systems take a period to break in, to reach a steady state its typically be anywhere from 18 months to five years, says Preston.
Benchmark Genetics
However, they are also aware that the sector still has many challenges to overcome.
What happens to Atlantic Sapphire is very important and will define the willingness of investors. The sector needs a good success story, notes Birgitte Sorheim, marketing director.
Finding and training talented personnel is also essential.
Its important to have experienced people within the RAS sector to ensure its growth. So many companies are getting funding but theres not so much experience out there, which could potentially lead to a major bottleneck, reflects Tziouvas.
And the team at Benchmark aims to help address this.
We dont just supply eggs, but we also provide support for our customers, says Tziouvas. If they dont succeed, then we dont succeed. This is something that we live by.
As for advice to land-based operators?
From a systems perspective its important to ensure that all redundancies are in place, to ensure fish welfare, and to maintain an optimal environment. Its also important to have a robust production plan and stick to that, says Preston.
Establish a close relationship with key suppliers and be willing to collaborate with other producers. Be 100 percent transparent and learn from each other. Weve seen how this has worked well for conventional, net pen salmon farmers and we think that the land-based sector should be doing the same, adds Melingen.
There are plenty of challenges that need to be overcome in the land-based salmon sector, but Benchmarks recent investments suggest that they believe that the challenges are by no means insurmountable. It will be interesting to see how genetics teamed with experience will be able to influence the long-term success.
Rob Fletcher has been writing about aquaculture since 2007, as editor of Fish Farmer, Fish Farming Expert and The Fish Site. He has an MA in history from the University of Edinburgh and an MSc in sustainable aquaculture from the University of St Andrews. He currently lives and works in Scotland.
Read more from the original source:
Land-based salmon are in their DNA - The Fish Site
- DNA Tests and Stranded Bodies: Ukraine's Struggle to Name Its Dead - The New York Times - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Study highlights the role of dynamic DNA structures in memory consolidation - News-Medical.Net - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Two identical-looking athletes with same name get DNA test to see if they are long-lost siblings - UNILAD - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Patitz Awarded NSF Grant for Research on DNA-Based Nanostructure Research - University of Arkansas Newswire - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- DNA on bandana leads to arrest of suspect in 2010 Indiana County robbery case - WTAE Pittsburgh - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- DNA recovered from wine bottle leads to arrest of burglary suspect - WGN TV Chicago - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Junk DNA from Three Perspectives: Some Key Quotes - Discovery Institute - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Flipons: The discovery of Z-DNA and soft-wired genomes - Open Access Government - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- New DNA evidence leads to arrest in 1984 cold case homicide of Everett woman - KING5.com - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA Reveals Kinship Structure of Eurasia's Avars - Archaeology Magazine - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Water bottle, DNA, fingerprints led to arrest of Chicago police officer Luis Huesca's accused killer, police say - CBS Chicago - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Jason Licht: Part of the DNA of this football team is trying to prove everybody wrong - NBC Sports - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- New DNA evidence found in connection with 2014 Georgia murders of Shirley and Russell Dermond - GPB News - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Unraveling the roles of non-coding DNA explains childhood cancer's resistance to chemotherapy - Medical Xpress - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- South Carolina's 'In Our DNA SC' aims for 100k participants in diverse health research - ABC NEWS 4 - May 5th, 2024 [May 5th, 2024]
- Joel Embiid finally discovers he has the DNA of a champion. Down 2-1, can he lead the Sixers past the Knicks? - The Philadelphia Inquirer - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Unraveling DNA's role in pop culturefrom superheroes to crime scenes - The Daily | Case Western Reserve University - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Elucidation of inhibitory effects of bioactive anthraquinones towards formation of DNA advanced glycation end products ... - ScienceDirect.com - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- DNA Testing Proved My Innocence of My Son's Murder - Innocence Project - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Generative A.I. Arrives in the Gene Editing World of CRISPR - The New York Times - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Persistent TFIIH binding to non-excised DNA damage causes cell and developmental failure - Nature.com - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Enhanced CRISPR method enables stable insertion of large genes into the DNA of higher plants - Phys.org - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Scientists inspired the right guardrails for nuclear energy, the internet, and DNA research. Let them do the same for AI - Fortune - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Test your dog's DNA to learn about their heritage and health for only $120 - New York Post - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Earth Life Biodiversity: Vast DNA Tree Of life For Flowering Plants Revealed - Astrobiology - Astrobiology News - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise Share Some Very Stylish DNA - Vogue - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- DNA evidence leads to arrest of 75-year-old Auburn man - Opelika Auburn News - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Putnam NY cold case: DNA test finds skeleton is not Robin Murphy's - The Journal News - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Ancient nomads you've probably never heard of disappeared from Europe 1,000 years ago. Now, DNA analysis ... - The Conversation - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Genetics Studies Have a Diversity Problem That Researchers Struggle To Fix - Kaiser Health News - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Keeping Telomeres in Their Places - The Scientist - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- WWII veteran Ward Thomas identified through genealogy testing - 10TV - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Vast DNA tree of life for plants revealed by global science team using 1.8 billion letters of genetic code - Phys.org - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- Here is a look at one of the labs that helped uncover new DNA evidence in Lake Oconee murder - WSB Atlanta - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- This Guardians prospect has baseball in his DNA - 1330 WFIN - April 27th, 2024 [April 27th, 2024]
- DNA identifies last known remains of victims of notorious Green River Killer, cops say - Miami Herald - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- UNE to study why rare lobsters have strange-colored shells - Spectrum News - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- DNA evidence identifies last known victim of Green River Killer almost 40 years later - NBC Right Now - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- New bill would give California parents more control over whether state can store their kid's DNA - CBS News - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Lucas County Sheriff's Office doing advanced testing on DNA found at site of 2011 Clarke and Straub murders - WTOL - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Last known remains connected to the Green River Killer identified through DNA | WTGS - Fox28 Savannah - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- 5 Best Ancestry DNA Tests 2024 To Help You Learn More About Your Health - GLAMOUR UK - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- 11 Investigates: Lucas County Sheriff's Office doing advanced testing on DNA found at site of 2011 Clarke and Straub murders - WTOL - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Researchers improve blood tests' ability to detect and monitor cancer - MIT News - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- DNA test approved for Duxbury's Lindsay Clancy, who is accused of killing her 3 children - The Patriot Ledger - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- 1,650th victim of 9/11 identified through advanced DNA testing - FOX 17 West Michigan News - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- We Think Cavco Industries (NASDAQ:CVCO) Might Have The DNA Of A Multi-Bagger - Yahoo Finance - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- DNA From the Ocean's 'Twilight Zone' Could Lead to New Lifesaving Drugs, Scientists Say - Smithsonian Magazine - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Last known remains connected to the Green River Killer identified through DNA - KOMO News - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- 9/11 victim identified as John Ballantine Niven of Oyster Bay with help of DNA technology - WABC-TV - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Scott Peterson has every right to DNA test: Attorney from case - NewsNation Now - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- DNA from stone age chewing gum sheds light on diet and disease in Scandinavia's ancient hunter-gatherers - The Conversation - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Barbara Lee responds to Nikki Haley: Racism is in the DNA of this country - The Hill - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- DB Cooper 'will finally be identified' after 53 years due to huge DNA breakthrough - LADbible - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Dog Owners Who Abandon Poops To Be Found Using DNA Tests in Italy - Newsweek - January 23rd, 2024 [January 23rd, 2024]
- Scientists gather bobcat DNA from paw prints - KJZZ - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Discovering Fusions Requires More Than DNA Testing in GI Cancers - OncLive - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Largest-ever ocean DNA study uncovers mysteries of marine life - Earth.com - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- 1st-ever ancient case of Turner syndrome, with just 1 X chromosome instead of 2, found in ancient DNA - Livescience.com - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Minnesota Mother Calls on NYS to Allow DNA Testing Finger Lakes Daily News - Finger Lakes Daily News - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- DNA Didn't Match Marcellus Williams. Missouri May Fast-Track Execution Anyway. - The Intercept - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA From Eurasian Herders Sheds Light on the Origins of Multiple Sclerosis - Smithsonian Magazine - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- DNA's hotel toh kuyabeh mirrors bird flight undulations in tulum - Designboom - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Research into ancient DNA sheds new light on cause of Multiple Sclerosis and other neurodegenerative diseases - University of Oxford - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA reveals reason for high MS and Alzheimer's rates in Europe - University of Cambridge news - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- TIME-seq reduces time and cost of DNA methylation measurement for epigenetic clock construction - Nature.com - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Gilgo Serial Killer Suspect Rex Heuermann Tied to Slaying by DNA From Daughter's Can of Coffee: Prosecutors - The Messenger - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- DNA evidence leads to arrest of Denton sexual assault suspect - The Cross Timbers Gazette - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA reveals reason for high multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer's rates in Europe - EurekAlert - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- New technique identifies earliest cases of genetic disorders from ancient DNA - University of Oxford - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA could be hiding all kinds of health secrets - Deccan Herald - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Ancient DNA reveals reason for high MS and Alzheimer's rates in Europe - ScienceBlog.com - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Supreme Court seeks government's view on DNA profiling of unidentified bodies - IndiaTimes - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Prosecution Ordered to Release Portion of DNA Evidence to Kohberger's Defense Team - bigcountrynewsconnection.com - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Judge orders more DNA disclosure in University of Idaho murder case - KXLY Spokane - January 16th, 2024 [January 16th, 2024]
- Cas9-induced targeted integration of large DNA payloads in primary human T cells via homology-mediated end-joining ... - Nature.com - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- The DNA glycosylase NEIL2 is protective during SARS-CoV-2 infection - Nature.com - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- How an immune response is driven by one letter difference in DNA - Medical Xpress - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Tracy Morgan Discovered He Was Related to Nas After DNA Test - PEOPLE - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]
- Scientists testify about DNA in third week of Aguirre trial - The Spokesman Review - December 14th, 2023 [December 14th, 2023]