The world’s largest salmon farmer is looking at establishing its own salmon feed operation with an annual production capacity of up to 500,000 metric tons.
Marine Harvest ASA on Tuesday announced that it has inked agreements with Felleskjøpet Rogaland Agder (FKRA), Norway’s largest agri-feed producer, and the Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries and Aquaculture Research (Nofima).
The agreement with FKRA involves access to formulation technology as well as competence within purchasing and quality control of raw material and finished feed, while the agreement with Nofima involves access to researchers in the field of fish nutrition and raw material composition.
Although a production site has not yet been located, Marine Harvest has signed a deal with Valsneset Energi og Industriselskap AS, based in Bjugn, Norway, for the use of its property.
Now Marine Harvest is still studying the feasibility of setting up its own fish feed operation, and a decision on whether to proceed will be based on the study’s results.
“Feed costs constitute approximately 50 percent of production costs in salmon farming,” said Marine Harvest CEO Alf-Helge Aarskog. “Feed quality is an important driver for production cost, fish health and food quality. With highly experienced partners with proven track record within feed production and fish nutrition, we have established a solid basis for a detailed assessment of the potential gains from establishing a salmon feed company. We believe the establishment of a new salmon feed company in collaboration with experienced partners and integrated with the world’s largest producer of salmon could open up for a profitable expansion of our value chain and contribute to the improvement of Marine Harvest’s profitability over time.”
