Yanmar Holdings and Kita-Sanriku Factory have launched a pilot project to develop a land-based sea urchin aquaculture system tackling coastal ocean desertification. Supported by Japan’s SBIR programme, the project includes a JPY 920 million budget and a new facility in Iwate, showcasing UNI-VERSE systems for scalable, high-quality sea urchin production.
Explaining the project, Yanmar said that “isoyake”, or coastal ocean desertification, is a growing environmental issue characterised by the loss of seaweed beds along Japan’s coastal areas.
In response to the threat of ocean desertification, which is partially attributed to overgrazing of seaweed by marine organisms such as sea urchins, Kita-Sanriku Factory has started an initiative called “Sea Urchin Regeneration and Cultivation”. This project aims to transform undernourished sea urchins – previously discarded as having no commercial value – into premium seafood products.
By feeding the sea urchins for a short period of time, the company was able to greatly improve the size, colour and quality, and succeeded in realising a taste comparable to that of the natural product. This advancement also enables year-round shipping, including during the winter months when sea urchins are typically not available.
It is also expected that the land-based aquaculture system will allow seaweed beds to recover, alleviating the problem of Isoyake.
This system was developed over more than seven years in collaboration with Associate Professor Ura and his team at Hokkaido University. The sea urchin feed “Hagukumutane” and the structure of the fish tank and water tank are patented technologies of the Kita-Sanriku Factory.
Yanmar Group brings extensive expertise in land-based aquaculture systems, including fish tanks, automated tank washers and shellfish seed technologies. The company’s advanced fluid analysis and automatic cleaning technologies will help optimise environmental controls in the new aquaculture system.
Together with Kita-Sanriku Factory, Yanmar aims to refine the UNI-VERSE systems technology to enable the efficient and sustainable production of high-quality sea urchins for export.
While international demand for Japanese sea urchins is increasing, securing a high-quality supply has become more difficult due to a rise in the number of “skinny” sea urchins with extremely small gonads, the edible part of sea urchins. The regenerative aquaculture model developed by Kita-Sanriku Factory, in collaboration with the Graduate School of Fisheries Science of Hokkaido University and other research institutions, aims to address this supply gap and promote sustainable practices worldwide.
Kita-Sanriku Factory plans to export UNI-VERSE systems sea urchins to the EU, the US, Dubai, Thailand and other countries around the world.
