Innovasea debuts new aquaculture feed device

Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.-based Innovasea – a company developing tech solutions for aquaculture and fish tracking – has debuted its new “FlowFeeder” waterborne aquaculture feeding solution.

According to the company, the new device allows operators to “gently deliver feed” to fish below the surface, minimizing the damage that can be caused by more common air-blown feeding systems.

“FlowFeeder provides a better way to feed fish because it gets more pellets directly into the pen underwater,” Innovasea Senior Vice President Langley Gace said. “Rather than blowing feed pellets onto the surface above the fish pen where they can drift away, FlowFeeder delivers the feed at the depths where fish prefer to congregate. That means less waste and better feed conversion ratios – one of the keys to profitability at any fish farm.”

The delivery system of the FlowFeeder, the company said, mixes feed pellets with water on the feed vessel and then carries the mixture to aquaculture pens from a single, centralized point – allowing one device to feed multiple pens.

“Air-blown systems are messy and leave behind a lot of dust and oily feed residue in the pipes,” Gace said. “That requires regular cleanings that drive up operational and maintenance costs and increase downtime on the feed vessel.”

The company said the new waterborne delivery system also requires less power than air-blown systems and can reduce energy costs by “up to 50 percent,” allowing farms using generators to reduce their carbon footprint. The feed dispenser can also be placed at a specific feeding depth for the species being raised, and the underwater feed system allows farm operators to feed fish even when there are heavy waves.

According to the company, the new feeding system can be used with existing surface pens, but it can also be used with its portfolio of other aquaculture technologies, such as its submersible fish pens.

Innovasea has developed multiple open-ocean solutions for aquaculture, and has also been active in assisting companies looking to secure permits for operating open-ocean aquaculture. In early March, the company announced it helped Benguela Blue Aqua Farming to secure permits for submersible net pens eight kilometers off the coast of Namibia.

Photo courtesy of Innovasea