AutoMarus Horizon 2020 project
Norwegian Lobster Farm AS received a grant from the European Union and initiated the innovative AUTOMARS project in November 2019 as part of the Horizon 2020 program. Our project officer in the European Commission conveyed that the competition had been outstanding and that only the best, like our project, made it through. We are humble and grateful for the support and belief in our project and company concept.
Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation program ever. Horizon 2020 is the financial instrument implementing the Innovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative aimed at securing Europe’s global competitiveness.
The AUTOMARUS Phase 2 project aims to prototype and pilot a revolutionary process for land-based farming of European lobster (EL, Homarus gammarus) based on RAS (Recirculating Aquaculture System) to later commercialize EL. The goal is to deliver the first fully automated RAS enabled large-scale production facility of EL.
EL is among the most exclusive shellfish products worldwide, but stocks collapsed in the 1940s and have not recovered in the decades since. Landings of EL rarely exceed 5,000 tonnes annually, compared to around 160,000 tonnes for the only true lobster, H. americanus (American lobster, AL), which is considered inferior in quality to EL and commands lower prices. The global demand for lobster far exceeds supplies, but the dramatic increase in capture production of AL in recent years is threatening wild AL stocks while restricting expansion. The shortfall is supplemented to some extent by spiny and rock lobsters (SRL), closer in size to true lobsters but more comparable to langoustine in taste and texture. With the price of EL at €35-50/kg, the European seafood industry is missing out on a clear market opportunity. The EU and NO have implemented measures to safeguard EL stocks, and to protect or restore discrete habitats but this has had little effect. In consequence, aquaculture is the most credible alternative approach to secure a sustainable supply of EL, but current aquaculture methods are commercially unviable as lobsters are highly cannibalistic and cannot be reared in groups, making aquaculture unscalable and inefficient.
Norwegian Lobster Farm AS has developed the first-ever land-based RAS solution for producing high-quality EL at commercial scale, using individual cages to prevent cannibalism, and automation/robotics to lower production costs, ensuring a high degree of profitability. Our unique solution will facilitate superior quality EL in a secure and sustainable process that represents a breakthrough in the aquaculture industry. Our proprietary solution, which we are patenting in Norway prior to a PCT application, comprises an advanced image processing system to monitor lobster development combined with an automated feeding system and robotic lobster handling. This novel system drastically reduces operational costs and avoids human error, in addition to unique scaling possibilities. Our solution will be the first profitable land-based EL farming solution in the world.
The project has received funding from the European Union`s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation program under Grant Agreement No 880911.
Read more https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/880911
Download Poster Automarus
Norwegian Lobster Farm får Eurostarprosjekt
Norwegian Lobster Farm gjennomførte i perioden 2016 – 2018 EU prosjektet DEVAELA. Prosjektet utviklet ny oppdrettsteknologi, automasjons-, kamera og robotløsninger.
EU – EUROSTAR project DEVAELA
The DEVAELA proejct will facilitate a cost-efficient land-based method for farming lobster in RAS that represents a breakthrough in the aquaculture industry. We minimize labour via automated production and significantly reduce operational costs – our data projections show that breakeven is already reached at a 10MT/year production level. The project will conduct on-farm lobster health and welfare surveillance (to ensure the highest quality standards of final product). Continuous tracking of water quality will be benchmarked against nutrition, health, and welfare indicators to secure optimal performance parameters and high economic return. This unique solution, which unites and adapts multiple advanced technologies, has no equivalent on the market today.
Det tredje årsmøtet for ELCE avholdt i Stavanger
Norwegian Lobster Farm gjennomførte i 2012 et prosjekt for å identifisere nye strategier og nye samarbeidskonstellasjoner som kan styrke muligheten for å oppnå kommersiell suksess med oppdrett av hummer. Dette prosjektet har direkte bidratt til å samle alle kjente europeiske aktører innenfor hummeroppdrett i et større nettverk. Nettverksarenaen European Lobster Centre of Excellence (ELCE) ble formelt stiftet i april 2013 i tilknytning til en større hummerkonferanse i Padstow, England. ELCE nettverket har hatt stor tilslutning på kort tid. Det andre årsmøte ble avholdt i New Berwick, Skottland i 2013 hvor nye medlemmer ble rekruttert. Dette illustrerer at denne type initiativ er etterspurt og at aktørene ser gevinsten av en slik sammenslutning.
Det tredje årsmøte ble avholdt i Stavanger og Kvitsøy den 18 – 19 mai hvor tilsammen 26 deltagere fra 7 europeiske land deltok. Vi takker Nordisk Ministerråd og VRI-Rogaland for støtte til å avholde konferansen.
3rd annualt ELCE meeting held in Stavanger
The European Lobster Centre of Excellence (ELCE) was founded in April 2013 in Padstow, England. The ELCE network has 13 members from 6 different European countries. The 2nd annual meeting was held in New Berwick, Skottland in 2014, where new members were recruited.
The 3rd annual meeting was held in Stavanger and Kvitsøy on the 18 and 19 May 2015. The conference gathered altogether 26 delegates from 7 European countries. Acknowledgement to the Nordic Minister Council and VRI-Rogaland for financial support.
Sats Marint! 2014
Sats Marint! 2014 konferansen går av stabelen 12 – 13 februar. For program se her:
Nordic Innovation støtter forskningsprosjekt på Island
Nordic Innovation støtter et forskningsprosjekt som skal bidra til etablering av kommersiell produksjon av porsjonshummer med bruk av geotermiske varmekilder på Island. Prosjektet skal gjennomføres av Norwegian Lobster Farm sammen med samarbeidspartnerne Svinna Engineering i Reykjavik, Havforskningsinstituttet i Bergen, AqVisor i Stavanger og DTU-Aqua i Hirtshals. Prosjektet er en spinn-off fra etableringen av European Lobster Centre of Excellence og har en totalramme på 3,2 mNOK
Kan deling av kunnskap gi konkurransekraft?
Norwegian Lobster Farm AS har nettopp avsluttet et prosjekt delfinansiert av VestMarin. Prosjektet hadde som mål å konsolidere kunnskap og næringsaktører innenfor hummeroppdrett, samt identifisere nye muligheter for å kommersialisere landbasert oppdrett av hummer. I tillegg skulle prosjektet utvikle et effektivt IT system med kraftige og enkle søkemuligheter for innlegging og utveksling av informasjon og data mellom aktørene.
Sluttrapport ligger her:
Sluttrapport_VestMarin_NLF_2013
Nordic RAS conference in Aalborg
Norwegian Lobster Farm presented results from the project «Quantification of respiration and excretion rates in European lobster» under the PechaKucha sesjonen at the NordicRAS conference in Aalborg 9-11 October 2013. The project was partially financed by VRI Rogaland.
For more information:
No 33_Drengstig et al. 2013_Pecha Kucha
NordicRAS workshop program 2013
NordicRAS konferanse i Aalborg
Norwegian Lobster Farm presenterte resultater fra prosjektet «Kvantifisering av respirasjons- og ekskresjonsrater for Europeisk hummer» under PechaKucha sesjonen ved NordicRAS konferansen i Aalborg 9-11 oktober 2013. Prosjektet er delfinansiert av VRI Rogaland.
Mer informasjon finner du her: