The Nueva Pescanova Group has opened a private aquaculture research centre in O Grove, Pontevedra, said to the first such facility in Spain.
Costing €7.5 million, the 4,000m² centre has a solar photovoltaic park comprising 714 modules with an annual energy production capacity of almost 300,000 kWh, reducing CO2 emissions by the equivalent of planting more than 7,000 trees.
More than 40 researchers will be working on projects such as commercialising the first octopus to be born in aquaculture in summer 2022 and the use of AI and data technologies in the production of shrimp.
Pescanova Biomarine Center Museum
The centre is also home to the Pescanova Biomarine Center Museum, where the public can learn about the need to preserve marine ecosystems for the future of the planet and how aquaculture plays a part.
It will also provide an insight into the history of aquaculture, which began in China in 3,500 BCE and now employs 2.5 million people worldwide. Currently, 50% of the seafood consumed in the world already comes from aquaculture, according to the FAO.
The sector is predicted to continue to grow at a rate of 5% per year, reaching a global volume of US$300 billion in 2030, according to a study ‘The Future of Foods’ produced by investment bankers, Morgan Stanley.
