A prototype for New Zealand’s first sustainable, land-based salmon farm is in the early stages of development, after securing government funding.
The Ministry for Primary Industries’ Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures (SFF Futures) fund is committing NZ$6.7 million over six years to the NZ$16.7 million project, which has been officially launched in Twizel on South Island.
Mt Cook Alpine Salmon chief executive, David Cole, said the company was delighted to be partnering with SFF Futures. “Despite the difficult market conditions over the last few years, our customers love the taste of our unique freshwater King Salmon and demand continues to exceed our supply,” he said.
“This co-funding enables us to expand our production capacity through a new way of farming that has the potential to be a game-changer for the company and the aquaculture sector in New Zealand.”
Mr Cole said the plan is to create a sustainable 1,000 tonne hybrid structure that will use a part flow-through system to emulate the unique conditions of the glacial-fed canals. The facility will be designed to optimise energy use through gravity-fed water and integrating renewable and low-energy solutions.
The location of the farm has yet to be determined, but would be within either the Mackenzie or Waitaki Districts on South Island, bringing new jobs to a remote part of the country.
Other initiatives that will be explored through the SFF Futures partnership include new best practice processing standards for ready-to-eat salmon, and trialling the commercial viability of Sockeye salmon, which is usually seasonal and generally only available as wild-caught.
