The first fish harvested from an innovative smart farm have made their way to markets around Europe and Asia.
The iFarm project was set up in Martnesvika in Norway in autumn 2020 and is planned to run for five years. Using artificial intelligence and machine learning, Cermaq and BioSort aim to identify each individual fish in a pen and give individual follow-up and health journals.
In phase 1, the main task has been adapting the iFarm equipment in the pen to the fish’s behaviour and ensuring welfare standards. Results so far are positive with the need for delicing reduced by half and positive reports of fish health. “The fish behaviour we have observed in phase 1 tells us that the fish are doing fine with the iFarm equipment in the pen,” said Cermaq’s iFarm project manager, Karl Fredrik Ottem.
“This is further supported by the results from the harvest. The fish have had a good life in the iFarm pens,” he said.
Results from phase 1 have enabled the project team to make improvements to the underwater feeding equipment as well as changes to camera arrangement, lighting and data processing. “Checking the fish in real time with cameras from multiple angles tells us more about each fish, but at the same time it requires a lot from the software and hardware solutions we develop,” commented general manager of BioSort, Geir Stang Hauge.
The project is now moving to phase 2 which will take place in Vesterålen and comprise full-scale testing of the iFarm concept and technology.
