Aquasense International Corporation is in discussions with a number of seafood companies for the exclusive right to distribute the industry’s first ever farm-raised, saltwater red tilapia products in the US market.
Under the distribution agreement, Aquasense’s aquaculture company Aquasense Panamá S de RL (ASP) will supply, initially, around 500 tonnes of ocean farmed tilapia annually.
The product will be distributed to high-end US retailers and gourmet chefs starting as early as next year and by the end of the first project phase, ASP is expected to supply around 6,000 tonnes.
All product will consist of sustainably farm-raised red tilapia, grown in open-ocean and eco-friendly production systems, located in pristine waters off the Pacific coast of the Republic of Panama. The produce will be offered only fresh, whole and filleted.
This new product came about from Aquasense’s mission to chance the paradigm of fish farming, by bringing its fish farming operations to the ultra-clean waters surrounding Panama.
Considered a non-traditional farming method for tilapia, its preliminary research showed that when tilapia are reared in the full salinity of the open-ocean and fed nutritious feeds, the result is a much improved fish product, in terms of taste and texture.
The US imports 85% of its seafood, with 50% being produced by aquaculture operations outside of the country, valued at some US$8bn in 2012, with farm-raised tilapia in the top 10 most consumed varieties.
But, with the demand for seafood growing, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation says an additional 40 million tonnes of seafood will be required by 2030, with the only viable solution being aquaculture.
