New funding for innovation in aquaculture

Odd Grydeland

During a ceremony at the Vancouver Island Deep Bay field station on Vancouver Island today, Parliamentary Secretary Randy Kamp, on behalf of the Honourable Keith Ashfield, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) announced the financial support for innovation and sustainability for eight projects within the B.C. aquaculture industry; 

1. Target Marine Hatcheries; CAD$ 49,900 (1CAD$ =~ €0.73) for the purchase of animal handling and transportation equipment for the commercialization of farmed sturgeon caviar for domestic and international sales
2. Sablefish Canada; CAD$ 200,000 to build a marine hatchery water conditioning module
3. West Coast Fish Culture; CAD$ 155,000 to develop technology for commercial fish-waste recycling into oil and organic soil supplements
4. Island Sea Farms; CAD$ 205,000 to build and commercialize a commercial-scale modular mussel hatchery
5. Little Wing Oysters; CAD$ 55,000 to develop a floating seed sorter and handling system for oysters
6. Island Scallops; CAD$ 25,000 to design, construct and test the efficiency of new larger scallop nets that would potentially increase the production at individual farms by some ~50 per cent
7. The Coastal Shellfish Corporation- two projects;
   1. CAD$ 185,000;
      1. To acquire and install a live-holding system for the harvest and transport of farmed scallops
      2. To install mechanical equipment to handle scallop farming gear and improve productivity
   2. CAD$ 101,000; To purchase an innovative spiral anchoring system, with the intent of decreasing scallop farming production costs

According to DFO, the overall goal of the Aquaculture Innovation and Market Access Program (AIMAP) is to catalyze aquaculture industry investment from the private sector, as well as other sectors, that will:

•  Improve the competitiveness of the Canadian aquaculture industry by encouraging an aquaculture sector that continuously develops and adopts innovative technologies and management techniques to enhance its global competitiveness and environmental performance; and
• Position Canadian aquaculture products as having high value in the market place based on their environmental performance, traceability and other considerations.

These goals contribute to the DFO strategic outcomes of sustainable fisheries and aquaculture and healthy and productive aquatic ecosystems.  Contribution funding under AIMAP is intended to enable recipients to plan, manage and complete projects that will achieve these strategic outcomes.

The AIMAP is a nationally competitive process with calls for proposals issued on an annual basis, and based on priorities established in consultation with provinces, territories and sector stakeholders.  The program will focus on short duration projects (1 year ideal – completion date March 31, 2012; 2 years maximum – completion date March 31, 2013) with demonstrable industry-wide benefits implemented by the end of the project. 

Under this program a maximum of $4.5 million in DFO contribution funds is expected to be available annually to support innovation initiatives, and a maximum of $0.2 million in DFO contribution funds is expected to be available annually to support market access initiatives.