Aquabanq, the U.S. subsidiary of United Kingdom-based Aquaculture Management and Holding Co., is planning to open a new land-based salmon farm on an accelerated schedule.
The location of the recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility has not yet been revealed, but the company announced on 13 March that it expects to be producing 5,000 metric tons (MT) of head-on and gutted Atlantic salmon by 2022.
The company also said it will add five more RAS units by 2025 in order to double its annual production capacity to 10,000 MT by 2025.
“We can easily compete with [open-pen] cage farming operators as our production costs are on a par at this point,” Aquabanq Managing Director AJ Shapiro said. “The fish in closed-containment systems are not exposed to parasites and pollutants like sea lice and plastic, and unlike our competitors, we can guarantee a year-round production.”
Shapiro said his company champions sustainable farming practices, with the company’s production units “based on a flexible, proven closed-loop system with optimized process logistics, low operating costs and a reduced footprint that makes them perfect for large-scale, sustainable onshore fish-farming operations.”
Aquaculture Management and Holding is also expanding in Europe, with the firm expecting to reach 10 million pounds of 5,000 MT of Atlantic salmon and steelhead production capacity by 2021.
