Indre Kvarøy, Norway-based Arctic Seafarm has received a government permit for the company’s first land-based salmon farm.
Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett and Kvarøy Arctic CEO Alf-Gøran Knutsen has been named chairman of the board for Arctic Seafarm; Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett is the largest stakeholder in Arctic Seafarm. The land-based salmon farm is located within the Nesna Industrial Park in northern Norway near the island of Kvarøy, the headquarters of the family-owned Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett and Kvarøy Arctic operations.
Arctic Seafarm will produce up to 15,000 metric tons of salmon annually and employ 50 indviduals, Kvarøy Arctic said in a press release. The new land-based facility is designed with a flow-through construction, retrieving cold, clean water from 80 meters below sea level, a depth uninhabited by sea lice. The water is then filtered for sediment and treated with UV light before entering the flow-through system where it maintains a consistent temperature all year long, creating optimal growth conditions for the fish, according to Kvarøy.
“There are limitations to how much we can farm in the ocean,” Knutsen told SeafoodSource last year. “We’ve been approached with projects all over the world and are confident the future of salmon farming is in this combination of ocean and land-based farms. The innovations available give us the flexibility we need to meet the growing demand.”
The recently-formed Kvarøy Smolt will supply the stock that will eventually be harvested by Kvarøy Arctic for sale in the U.S. by 2023.
“We are happy to have Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett AS on board with us,” Arctic Seafarm CEO Carsten Rimer said. “Their knowledge of fish-welfare and sustainable aquaculture will be an important key to our success. I’m confident their experience and involvement in every step of the value chain from smolt deliveries through to distribution will allow this collaboration to prosper.”
Arctic Seafarm will maintain a low climate footprint sourcing energy from solar, hydro technology, and biofuel. Further energy saving measures will be explored including the use of residual waste from salmon production.
Photo courtesy of Kvarøy Arctic
