On 29 November the aquaculture company Ondartxo Arraiak inaugurated its new facilities in Getaria (Basque Country, Spain), where it is developing a pilot feasibility study that aims to test both the technique and profitability of using recirculation aquaculture systems (RAS) for the on-growing production of marine species. The project, which has a total investment in the region of €4 million, has been 45% funded by the Department for the Environment, Spatial Planning, Agriculture and Fisheries of the Government of the Basque Autonomous Community (region) by means of the Structural Funds for Fisheries programme (EFF).

The company Ondartxo, located on the former premises of the company Orrua, was set up in 2004 by the aquaculture company Orrua and the AZTI-Tecnalia technology centre for marine and food research (ww.azti.es), with the aim of developing and validating technological know-how related to inland marine production technologies. Taking turbot, sole and cod as the reference species of the study, Ondartxo aims to develop and enhance the application of RAS technologies for the sustainable production of other marine species popular in the Basque market.

The Spanish aquaculture sector, in the case of sole and turbot, mainly uses RAS technologies within the hatchery and/or pre-fattening operations but rarely or seldom during the on-growing procedures of fish (mainly carried out by means of flow through aquaculture systems). It is hoped that the studies being carried out at Ondartxo, which will examine several different formulations of water circulation systems, will enable the production of the relevant marine commercial species that are of interest to the consumer habits of the region. The tested on-growing systems will not only address the biological requirements of the fish, but also will have to prove the economic profitability of each particular proposal regarding engineering and production operation details.

The first to analyse the feasibility of cod aquaculture

As far as cod aquaculture is concerned, this is a food production activity that is virtually non-existent within the Spanish sector. So, the development of the Ondartxo pilot cod fattening project through recirculation systems and engineering will constitute pioneer work in Spain, and even Europe-wide. In fact, right now, only Norway, Iceland, Ireland and the United Kingdom have marine research centres for cod production, although most of these countries produce cod by means of sea cages located in fjords or marine estuaries.
This specific part of the general innovation project is set to commence within January 2011 and will include the development of multiple R+D+i activities based on the on-growing of cod to understand the factors controlling growth, survival, product quality and the economic profitability of the production system proposed for cod, with special focus on the development of commercial exploitation concepts within the Basque region.

Water recirculation systems

Despite the fact that recirculation aquaculture systems have been developed and improved over the last thirty years, very few companies devoted to aquaculture production have put into effect such engineering systems, due to considerations like investment costs, energy cost, lack of knowledge and/or availability of specific technologies within the market. The project developed by Ondartxo will test the technique and profitability of using inland RAS systems during the whole on-growing process to verify the net economic feasibility of such production systems and their implementation potential within the local aquaculture sector.

The pilot tests being conducted here on the three species, and their outcomes, are expected to enable the creation of new spin-off companies linked to the development of specific RAS tools and technologies to be set up in the Spanish Basque autonomous region. Likewise, a significant attraction of this new food production activity for the region is the opportunity to bring the centre of production closer to the market and to maximise both the (shelf?)-life and traceability of the products. This will make it possible to offer the local consumer additional seafood products of high quality and excellent control, that are affordable in price and available in the fish markets throughout the year. Further, the implementation of the aforementioned production technologies will enable a better use of the coastal space and will propose an eco-friendly production system approach, a key element to reduce the limitations of the aquaculture sector development and expansion, within the European waters.