Fish are being kept in RAS facilities longer before being stocked in sea pens. Photo: BioMar.

BioMar launches feed range for RAS nurseries

Aquafeed manufacturer BioMar has launched a new product range designed to meet the needs of farmers who are growing fish to a larger size in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) before stocking them in sea pens.

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The Larviva Orbit range comes with optimised recipes, an improved physical pellet quality, and a proven impact on faeces stability and reduction of small solids which all answer the specific needs of RAS facilities, BioMar said in a press release.

Claimed benefits include more efficient removal of solids from the system, improved water quality, decreased oxygen consumption, reduced risk of hydrogen sulphide build-up, reduced load on biofilters and improved fish feeding and performance.

Joana Amaral: "We understand how challenging RAS operations can be." Photo: BioMar.

Fragile fry

Early-stage marine fry can be very fragile to handle and have additional challenges with life at sea, said the feed company. During recent years marine hatcheries, primarily in the Mediterranean area, have experienced the need for increasing land-based fry production. This has resulted in an accelerated shift from traditional flow-through systems to more advanced technologies such as RAS for the nursery and pre-ongrowing phases.

“We understand how challenging RAS operations can be as this farming technology demands skilled manpower, extra attention to the fish, the system and the importance of specially designed feeds to accommodate the requirements and ultimately the success of RAS technology,” said Joana Amaral, BioMar’s product manager for marine fish hatcheries.

“At BioMar we have established a solid expertise within the RAS segment based on extensive research and development, and experience gained from years of fruitful collaboration with RAS farmers around the world. We felt it was the right time to transfer all this expertise to marine nurseries.”

The new feed range will be available from June.