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Australis Aquaculture

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Australis Aquaculture, LLC is a leading producer of sustainable seafood, specializing in barramundi, marketed under The Better Fish® brand. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Turners Falls, Massachusetts,[1] where it operates one of the world’s largest indoor fish farms. Australis also owns and operates a hybrid on-land and off shore ocean-based barramundi farm in Vietnam.[2] Australis is widely considered responsible for popularizing barramundi to North America.[3]

History

Australis CEO Josh Goldman first began experimenting with closed-containment aquaculture in the 1980s, when he was a student at Hampshire College.[4] After graduating, he founded one of the first commercial aquaponics farms, and went on to spend the next fifteen years in commercialize closed containment-farming technology as an entrepreneur and consultant. In the early 2000s, Goldman spent three years prospecting for new types of fish to farm and was introduced to barramundi by an Australian entrepreneur.[5]

In 2004 Australis Aquaculture established its first barramundi farm in Turner Falls, Massachusetts.

In 2006, Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch awarded Australis Aquaculture’s land-based recirculating farm in Massachusetts the "Best Choice" ranking.

In 2007, the company expanded its production into Van Phong Bay, in central Vietnam.[6]

In 2009, Australis Aquaculture was named a Seafood Champion from the Seafood Choices Alliance.

In 2013, Australis Aquaculture receives Global G.A.P. Certification for Sustainable Farming in Vietnam.[7]

In 2014, Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch awarded Australis Aquaculture’s Vietnam farm the “Best Choice” ranking.

Species Selection

Goldman tested over 30 species of fish in order to determine which was optimal for aquaculture. He chose barramundi because of its low environmental impact and ability to breed in captivity, in addition to what he believed to be an appealing taste.[8]

Environmental Impact

Part of the barramundi’s sustainability comes from the fact that it can be raised on a predominantly vegetarian diet without sacrificing the healthfulness of the product. According to The Atlantic, “they have the rare ability to transform vegetarian feed into sought-after omega-3 fatty acids. Salmon require as much as three pounds of fish-based feed to put on a pound of meat. Goldman’s barramundi need only a half pound, the bulk of which is made from scraps from a herring processing plant.”[9]

Operations & Technology

Australis uses Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) technology in their land-locked Turner Falls facility to raise barramundi.[10] Australis’ Vietnam operation uses a combination of on-shore closed containment tanks with off-shore cages in the open ocean.[11]

Marketing & Distribution Strategy

Although Australis was able to raise barramundi successfully, one of the largest challenges the company faced was popularizing a relatively unknown fish in the American market.[12] Goldman said: “We were reaching out and building relationship with top chefs who were passionate about sustainability, dietitians who were trying to get people to eat more fish (but often worried about contaminants), and environmentalists whose mission was to protect the oceans.”[13]

Australis harvests and processes their fish, selling under “The Better Fish” brand. The company’s Vietnam facility produces primary flash frozen fillets which are sold to foodservice distributors and prominent retailers. Examples of such operators include well-known restaurant French Laundry, which first carried Australis barramundi in 2008.[14]

Further reading

  • Paul Greenberg Four Fish (2010) Penguin Books, hardcover: ISBN 1-594-20256-7, 2011 paperback: ISBN 978-0-14-311946-3

References

  1. ^ http://content.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2081796,00.html
  2. ^ http://www.seafoodsource.com/news/aquaculture/26504-case-study-the-fish-have-landed
  3. ^ http://www.seafoodchoices.com/whatwedo/Champions2009AustralisAquacultureprofile.php
  4. ^ Hampshire College TV (2012-02-10), Hampshire College • Presidential Lecture Series 2012 • Josh Goldman 81F, retrieved 2016-01-25
  5. ^ "Online Extra: Barramundi: The Next Big Fin?". BloombergView. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  6. ^ Aquaculture, Australis. "Australis Barramundi Ranked A "Best Choice" For Sustainability". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  7. ^ "Australis Aquaculture Receives GLOBALG.A.P. Certification for Sustainable Farming in Vietnam". www.globalgap.org. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  8. ^ "Australis Aquaculture swimming in business". The Recorder. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  9. ^ Estabrook, Barry. "The Anti-Salmon: A Fish We Can Finally Farm Without Guilt". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  10. ^ DesMarais, Christina. "5 ways companies are cleaning up fish farming". GreenBiz. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  11. ^ "Australis' Vietnam barramundi gets Monterey Bay's 'Best Choice' ranking". Undercurrent News. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  12. ^ Jenner, Andrew. "Recirculating aquaculture systems: The future of fish farming?". Christian Science Monitor. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  13. ^ "Bring on the barramundi". FutureFood 2050. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  14. ^ "Hook, Line, and Sinker: You'll Fall for Australis Barramundi". Marketwire. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
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