Posts Tagged ‘Aquaculture’
A more palatable way to raise prawns
It starts by feeding them their own excrement
Most of the €5bn or so worth of warm-water prawns that make their way to European plates are imported from South-east Asia, to the detriment of the climate globally and the environment locally. That could change if the work being carried out by two Danish scientists on Bornholm shows they can be raised in tanks on land, close to the markets where they are consumed.
Per Meyer Jepsen and Simon David Herzog, both of Roskilde Universitet, have received €335,000 in funding from Brussels and Copenhagen, to work with partners on Bornholm to determine whether an approach known as biofloc makes it possible to raise them in land-based, closed-loop systems.
In short, applying biofloc to raise prawns entails using bacteria to convert their excrement back into food. This not only reduces feed costs, but it cuts discharge waste almost entirely, nearly eliminating one of the biggest environmental impacts prawn-farming has.
“Our goal is to test different ways of using biofloc technology for warm-water prawn production,” says Mr Jepsen. “With fish stocks dwindling, we must find alternatives that don’t further deplete marine ecosystems.”
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Nexø Vodbinderi, a Bornholm firm that has transitioned from net-making to aquaculture, is taking part in the project. Klaus Hjort Hansen, the manager of the firm, reckons it could result in locally-branded products for export. “We want to develop better, more sustainable ways to produce food. If we can do it here, we can create jobs and help sustain the local community.”
For Messrs Jepsen and Herzog, the project will only be a complete success if it yields a product Bornholm wants to claim as its own.
“From the start, it was crucial to anchor this project locally,” says Mr Jepsen. “We want these shrimp to be associated with the island’s reputation for quality. That’s why we’ll be working with a chef to evaluate the taste.”
The project is still in its early stages, but it aims to scale up to full commercial production at Nexø Vodbinderi. Mr Jepsen sees no reason why it can’t inspire similar ventures elsewhere.
If the project is successful in combining local expertise with cutting-edge techniques, it would set a precedent for sustainable seafood production, in the process turning the scientists behind it into prawn stars.