AVCC-News

2025 AQUACULTURE AWARDS

Entries are open for the 2025 Aquaculture Awards, event which celebrates projects, businesses or individuals making an exceptional contribution to the global aquaculture community.

The categories for this year are:

• Rising Star – this category, which is open to emerging talents just starting their careers in the industry, attempts to recognize the accomplishments of the next generation of aquaculture professionals;
• Collaboration – this category is open to all companies, organisations, associations and academic institutions that have collaborated to develop a solution or improve a situation for customers and the industry, highlighting the significance of effective relationships in achieving a common objective;
• Innovation – looking for innovations that have made a significant contribution to, among other factors, production performance, animal welfare, processing, health and safety, sustainability or product development;
• Sustainability – recognising initiatives or business practices that have a clear commitment to long-term impacts of their business and/or the wider industry;
• Community Initiative – awarding an individual, company or organisation that has improved the industry’s relationships with the communities where it operates, with an emphasis on supporting local services, charities, diversity, equality and inclusion as well as culturally valuable initiatives;
• Farmer of the Year – category awarding the best hands-on finfish or shellfish farmer for their consistent excellence in all areas of their work or an exceptional achievement in one particular aspect of their responsibilities, that has greatly benefited the farm(s) and the company;
• Animal Health & Welfare – awarding initiatives that have improved the health and welfare of farmed fish/shellfish and/or the wildlife they interact with;
• Supplier of the Year – the category is open to any supplier (of aquaculture products or of goods and services to fish and shellfish producers) who has demonstrated commitment to any of the following: quality of products, services, technical advice and input, back-up service and communication, and R&D to improve the aquaculture industry’s financial performance and sustainability;
• Best New Start Up – all international companies that have been in business for less than three years (as of November 2022) are eligible. Companies should have been successful in identifying a market gap to launch a new business and showcase how innovation, product development, market knowledge and effective leadership have contributed to their current level of success;
• Best Producer of the Year – the award honors finfish, shellfish and seaweed producers that have not only accomplished outstanding success in their endeavors but also upheld environmental stewardship, animal welfare, staff management practices and local community engagement;
• Unsung Hero – this category honors the industry stalwarts who have avoided the spotlight but have persistently worked behind the scenes over the years;
• Outstanding Contribution – As voted for by The Industry – the industry is encouraged to highlight the outstanding people or businesses that have redefined the aquaculture sector;
• Judge’s Special Recognition Award – the judging panel will personally choose the winner of this award (a person, a project, or a company from the awards entries) based on their impressive commitment and responsible approach to aquaculture.

The deadline to enter the Aquaculture 2025 Awards is 10 March.

The event will take place on Thursday 19 June 2025 at the Macdonald Drumossie Hotel, Inverness, Scotland.

Find out more at https://aquacultureawards.com/.

Grass Carp Welfare Indicators – Online Course

FAI.ACADEMY, a multi-disciplinary training hub for people working for a better food system, is providing a free online course on grass carp welfare indicators.

The online training is intended for people working in the grass carp aquaculture industry or studying aquaculture and it will introduce the welfare indicators related to health, nutrition, environment, and behaviour.

Find out more and register to take the course at the link below:

https://fai.academy/grass-carp-welfare-online-courses/

Webinar: Technology, Remote Monitoring and Artificial Intelligence

Fish Farmer is organising the webinar Technology, Remote Monitoring and Artificial Intelligence, which will take place on Feb 19, 2025 12:30 PM CET, online.

In collaboration with Krucial (Panel Partner), the webinar will focus on the use of IT to remotely monitor fish behavior, oxygen, water temperature, feed utilization and health and safety issues. The event will also discuss how AI has aided fish farming operations and what technological advancements lie ahead.

Registration is available at the link below:

https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/4117289909432/WN_MSCwVNUVQIGCXnYQtHf4nA#/registration

Good Practice: Kauai Sea Farm, Hawaii, USA

Kauaʻi Sea Farm is a restorative aquaculture operation, a family- owned and operated business, located on the southwest shore of Kauai, Hawaii – the Nōmilu fishpond, an extinct volcanic crater that filled with water. The farm is growing clams, sea cucumbers, and edible seaweed, while also restoring and preserving the historic Nōmilu Fishpond.

Find out more at: https://kauaiseafarm.com/

Workshop – Navigating the Energy: Transition strategic goals for resilient and sustainable aquaculture

The Energy Transition Partnership (ETP) for the EU Fisheries and Aquaculture sector, under the European Commission (DG MARE), is organising the workshop Navigating the Energy Transition: Strategic Goals for Resilient and Sustainable aquaculture, a hybrid segment workshop designed to inform the development of the energy transition roadmap for the EU aquaculture sector. The event will take place on 19 February 2024, 09:00-13:30 CET, online & in Brussels.

Building on earlier ETP sessions, this workshop, which is part of a series of events organized by the ETP, will explore the main challenges in the context of the energy transition and include case studies to promote informed discussions on the sector’s future energy transition.

The event will analyse:

• Sector contributions: Identifying how the inland and offshore aquaculture sector can lead its energy transition until 2050.
• Key challenges: Addressing obstacles that may hinder progress towards milestones and understanding their potential impact.
• Conditions and solutions: Defining the actions and tools required to overcome challenges and ensure steady progress.

Registration is available at the following link: https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/95099873-b997-bf46-9a04-3b77ea1ebe30

EUMOFA – Online Shop Retail Prices

The European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture Products (EUMOFA) EUMOFA team has added Greece to the online shops retail prices tool, available at the following address: https://eumofa.eu/online-retail-prices

Data for Romania is also available at the same link.

EUMOFA collects retail prices of fish products from online shops that are representative of the national markets being monitored. In order to ensure comparability, special attention was given to selecting products that are as much as possible common across Member States. Prices are collected daily and aggregated on a weekly basis.

EUMOFA Monthly Highlights: Fisheries and Aquaculture in Türkiye

The latest edition of the EUMOFA Monthly Highlights features a case study on Fisheries and Aquaculture in Türkiye.

The document is available at the following link: https://eumofa.eu/documents/20124/149085/MH+10+2024+FINAL.pdf/9076a12e-52ae-451d-908a-b35edafe1400?t=1734705980809

AquaFarm 2025

The 8th edition of AquaFarm, an international conference & trade show on aquaculture, shellfish farming, algaculture and fishing industry will take place on 12-13 February 2025, in Pordenone, Italy.

High-level international conference sessions including leading experts and an international trade exhibition featuring the industry’s main leading companies are being held as part of the event.

The topics covered include:

• Decarbonization and energy self-generation and consumption in aquaculture;
• Functional feeds for aquaculture;
• New technologies in aquaculture (precision aquaculture, artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology).

Find out more regarding AquaFarm 2025 and register at the following link:

https://www.aquafarm.show/en/

The 2nd Annual European Blue Economy Conference: How can the Blue Economy support a more sustainable and competitive Europe?

The 2nd Annual European Blue Economy Conference: How can the Blue Economy support a more sustainable and competitive Europe? will take place on 04 February 2025 in Brussels, Belgium.

The key themes of the conference are:

• Marine Renewable Energy;
• European Maritime Transport Industry;
• Ports;
• Sustainable Coastal Tourism;
• Fisheries and Aquaculture.

Policymakers from the EU, its Member States, local governments, academics, non-governmental organizations, and representatives from the energy, maritime, shipping, and technology sectors will come together at the event to discuss the latest policies, initiatives and innovations that guarantee the EU Blue Economy can support a more competitive and sustainable Europe.

Registration and further details are available at the link below:

https://techforclimateaction.com/european-blue-economy/

Training Course: Shellfish and Seaweed Production in Research Infrastructures

AQUAEXCEL3.0 project, funded from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, is organizing the training course Shellfish and Seaweed Production in Research Infrastructures, which offers a thorough exploration of seaweed and shellfish production within research-focused infrastructure.

The course, which is split into two sections, combines online lectures with curated background literature. Essential topics are covered in the first section, such as techniques for producing shellfish from hatchery to grow-out stages and the production methods for seaweed from hatchery to land-based farming and extending to offshore cultivation. A recorded online lecture, along with procedural guides and selected readings, make up the second section.

The Live version (Part 1) of the course will take place online, on January 29th during 9:00 – 13:00 (CET). Following the execution of the live version, the non-live version (Part 2) will be made available to all registered applications.

Researchers, PhD and MSc students, technicians and industry professionals who want to learn about the important factors involved in the production of seaweed and shellfish are the target audience for this course.

In order to register, access the following link: https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=sI6uudSy0EOinUfXJkPhgypypYo3CiFOgj4r6LNYWh9UQ1owVTRXOTZMTjNENjI2REJJM1ZUUk5FVy4u&origin=lprLink&route=shorturl

The deadline for registration is 27 January 2025, 9:00hrs CET.