Dundee, Scotland-based Ace Aquatec is delivering one of its humane stunning systems to Lesotho-based Sanlei Premium Trout, the first delivery the company has made on the continent of Africa.
Ace Aquatec develops and manufactures fish-stunning systems and has collaborated with aquaculture companies in Chile and partnered with JBT Marel at the start of 2025. The company’s “Universal Humane Stunner” won a 2019 Global Aquaculture Innovation Award and recently garnered additional funding from a successful investment round.
The company said the installation in Africa is coming at a time when the region is seeing huge demand for fish from certified farms.
“Southern Africa’s aquaculture industry is undergoing rapid growth, and Ace Aquatec is uniquely equipped to support producers with the high-welfare technologies global markets now expect,” Ace Aquatec CEO Nathan Pyne-Carter said. “Our collaboration with Sanlei, developing a tailored solution that boosts both welfare standards and processing performance, showcases innovation at its best.”
Sanlei became the first Best Aquaculture Practices-certified producer in Southern Africa in 2024, and Sanlei CEO Dewald Fourie said the company currently farms 1,000 metric tons (MT) per year, with plans to double that by 2030. Ace Aquatec’s stunner allows it to process 10 MT to 15 MT of fish per hour and, according to the company, will provide improved product quality.
“Working with Ace Aquatec has been an overwhelmingly positive experience. Their flexibility and attention to detail with regards to our specific operating conditions and need to accommodate hand netting has meant the design of this gamechanging technology has been as smooth as possible,” Fourie said. “The system being installed by Ace Aquatec will support our growth and strengthen our ambitions to further enhance our welfare and certification standards. We are already considering the system for a second site.”
