Prawn stunner launched at SENA show

Aquaculture technology specialist Ace Aquatec has developed a humane stunner for farmed prawns, to allow farmers to carry out cruelty-free slaughter. The portable Humane Stunner Universal (A-HSU) for prawns was launched in Boston at SENA, the Seafood Expo North America trade show, which opened on Sunday. Ace Aquatec’s prawn stunner has been trialled successfully on…

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SalMar closes slaughterhouse with loss of 110 jobs

SalMar is to close a large coastal slaughterhouse at Rørvik in central Norway with the loss of more than 100 jobs. The company said the decision is largely based on economic grounds, with the centre requiring an investment of NOK 250 million (£20m) to bring it up to standard. Rumours about a possible closure have…

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Wellboat company Frøy in buoyant mood

The head of the big Norwegian wellboat and aquaculture support company Frøy has said the business is in good heart, with turnover and operating profit for Q4 both up year on year. Frøy reported a fourth quarter turnover of NOK 579m (£46m) up from NOK 561m (£44m) a year earlier which was also a good…

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Drynan to head AquaGen Scotland

Keith Drynan has been appointed as the new Managing Director at AquaGen Scotland, the aquaculture breeding company. He will take up the position on 1 May. Prior to joining AquaGen, Drynan held several senior leadership positions in the industry, including at BioMar, Troutlodge and Landcatch Natural Selection. AquaGen is a market based and research-oriented breeding…

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Faroes government moots tax hike for salmon farmers

The new Faroe Islands government is proposing a big rise in its salmon ground rent tax, doubling the rate to 20% at the top end. The surprise news was disclosed last night by Bakkafrost, the country’s largest salmon farmer which said the proposal has gone out to the industry for consultation before it is voted…

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Bakkafrost’s Johnstone scoops aquaculture award

Two aquaculture trainees from Bakkafrost Scotland and Scottish Sea Farms are among the winners at Lantra Scotland’s ALBAS (Awards for Land-based and Aquaculture Skills). The awards were held last night at the Dunblane Hydro. Among the winners were Craig Johnstone from Tarbert in Argyll who won the Aquaculture Learner of the Year category, while Lori…

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Board changes at Nordic Aqua Partners

Nordic Aqua Partners, which is developing a land-based salmon farm in Ningbo, China, has named Ragnar Joensen as CEO and appointed three new directors to the company’s board. Joensen was previously Executive Chairman with the company. The three new faces on the board are Therese Log Bergjord, CEO at aquafeed business Skretting, which is a…

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Fish farm protest staged at Grimsby football match

Anti-salmon farm campaigners used Grimsby Town FC’s League Two match against Newport County earlier this week to stage a large protest against plans for a new land-based fish farm in the town. The club is in the quarter finals of the FA Cup for the first time since before the Second World War after beating…

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Board of Appeals upholds planning permit for Kingfish in Maine

The Kingfish Company has completed another stage in its plan to build a production plant in Maine, in the north eastern USA. The company is looking to farm yellowtail kingfish in Jonesport, Maine at a RAS (recirculating aquaculture systems) facility. It has now announced that the Jonesport Board of Appeals has upheld the Planning Board’s…

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Salmon price continues to spiral up

Fresh salmon prices have hit a new record for the third week in succession, according to Statistics Norway. Just when many people thought they might be due for a downward correction, they shot up by 6.2% to NOK 119.48 a kilo (£9.45) in week 9. Some buyers are describing the current market situation as being…

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