Waltham, Massachusetts-based Aqua Bounty Technologies, a biotechnology company focused on health and productivity applications in the fast-growing aquaculture sector, has received regulatory approval for Shrimp IMS, its lead product, in Ecuador.
Ecuador is the leading producer of shrimp in the Western hemisphere and the second country to approve the product, following Mexico. The global shrimp industry generates $13 billion in annual revenues and is growing at a compound annual rate of 5%.
An initial commercial shipment of Shrimp IMS has been made to Aqua Bounty’s Ecuadorean licensee, Karakoram, a South American pharmaceutical supplier distributing Shrimp IMS in cooperation with Exportachura de Alimentos S.A. (“Expalsa”), Ecuador’s leading aqua feed manufacturer. Aqua Bounty plans to introduce IMS to the six Latin American shrimp producing countries during 2006 with additional product launches in Asian markets planned for 2007.
Shrimp IMS is a feed additive, administered through the full shrimp life cycle, that reduces mortality by enhancing the animal’s natural immune system; the shrimp’s disease-fighting haemocyte production is increased by up to 250%. In field trials conducted over several years in Mexico and Ecuador, it has been confirmed that Shrimp IMS is effective in the presence of a number of common shrimp diseases, including the Taura Syndrome and White Spot viruses, both implicated in the catastrophic $280 million collapse of the Ecuadorian shrimp industry in 1999.
White Spot virus, in particular, has caused over $1 billion of production losses in the Americas since the 1990s. It is the most lethal, widespread viral disease of shrimp. The trials demonstrated survival improvements of 70-80% over untreated populations. In Mexico, during the first year of commercial use, benefits to farmers were calculated at $2.50 per dollar investment on treatment.
“Ecuador has done a remarkable job rebuilding its position in the shrimp market since the loss of production in the late 1990s,” said Elliot Entis, CEO of Aqua Bounty Technologies. “It is again among the top farmed shrimp exporters in the western hemisphere and an important supplier to the U.S. market. With an effective immune stimulant like Shrimp IMS now available through established market channels, biosecurity is likely to rise in priority in both the regulatory and farming communities and help reduce the risk of catastrophic epizootic events in the future.”
