Oslo, Norway-based CageEye is broadening its reach in the aquaculture technology space with its recent acquisition of fish farming equipment developer NorseAqua.
A provider of behavioral analysis and feeding control systems for aquaculture, CageEye has set out to seize new opportunities both inside and outside of Norway via its purchase of Bindal, Norway-based NorseAqua, according to a 20 November press release. Together, CageEye and NorseAqua aim to “realize their common goal of helping farmers optimize their business in a sustainable way,” the companies stated in the release.
“We both offer solutions to the market that change the way farmers work. Either in the way they deal with sea lice or in how they make feeding decisions. But always with the same goal in mind: increasing farmer’s production,” NorseAqua General Manager Sveinung Kristiansen added.
NorseAqua, which was founded in 2014 by entrepreneur Lars Berg-Hansen, is one of the first companies to “introduce cleaner fish to the Norwegian market” by way of its sustainable sea lice combatting techniques. In the years since its inception, the company has expanded its business, now servicing 3,000 salmon cages in Norway, Iceland, Shetland, Scotland, the Faroe Islands, and Canada, and introducing around 4,500 products into the aquaculture field.
NorseAqua Founder Lars Berg-Hansen believes his company’s merger with CageEye is an ideal match.
“I believe CageEye and NorseAqua are a great fit. Both companies are intrinsically motivated to help farmers fight some of the biggest challenges in current fish production today,” Berg-Hansen said.
Using “hydroacoustics and machine learning to translate fish behavior into knowledge,” CageEye is able to help fish farmers determine feeding regimens that target maximum growth while also reducing feed waste and ensuring animal health and welfare, the company explained. In the coming years, the firm is eyeing business expansion into both new geographic regions and seafood species – a process that has already begun. Earlier this year, CageEye announced that it would be commencing operations in Chile. The NorseAqua acquisition is expected to continue this expansion trend, CageEye CEO Bendik S. Søvegjarto said.
“By adding NorseAqua to our company we increase our development power, broaden our network and extend our support net. I am confident it will help us reaching our goals and ultimately provide our future population with 8 billion extra and sustainably produced meals per year in 2025,” Søvegjarto said.
Photo courtesy of CageEye/NorseAqua
