GE salmon set for Scottish debut
The CEO of Aquabounty, Dr Ron Stotish, will be giving a presentation in Edinburgh this week about the advantages of growing his company’s genetically engineered (GE) salmon - the first time he has discussed the project on European soil.
His talk will be part of Fish Farming Expert’s RAS seminar at the European Aquaculture Society's annual conference, during which Dr Stotish will be outlining the benefits of growing AquaAdvantage salmon in recirc systems, not least that they can be grown from eyed egg to 5kg in a mere 16-20 months – an impressive 12 months less than the industry norm, which helps the salmon to be grown economically in land-based facilities.
As he explains to Fish Farming Expert: "The precision-bred Atlantic salmon will also require 20-25% less feed than conventional Atlantic salmon. The addition of a growth hormone gene from Chinook salmon confers some unique physiological benefits that enable rapid growth and improved feed conversions, lowering the economic risk for adoption of this production technology."
"This presentation will focus on our experience in producing AquAdvantage Salmon for the past 25 years and what we see are the major benefits for RAS farms, including locating closer to consumers, reducing the carbon footprint of salmon production, and avoiding many of the environmental issues and risks associated with conventional salmon farming," he adds.
He is taking part in the event alongside a number of other eminent RAS experts, at the seminar, which is scheduled to take place in Lammermuir II at the EICC from 14.30 – 17.30 on Thursday 22nd.
Fish Farming Expert hopes to welcome as many delegates as possible to the first such event to be organised under the umbrella of Salmonview – the brand that unites Fish Farming Expert, Salmon Expert and Norsk Fiskeoppdrett/kyst.no.
