SalmoNIR is a new technology developed for the sampling and analysis of fat and color on living salmon. Farmers will now be able to scan living fish and save both fish, time and money.
Cargill is making the technology available to all salmon farmers, not just those who have a feed contract.
Visible results immediately
SalmoNIR can measure fat content, chemical pigment, Samofan and omega-3, on a sample of live salmon. The results are immediately available and the device’s target accuracy is in line with costly chemical analyses.
Chemical analysis of salmon is expensive, labor-intensive and assumes that the farmer kills the salmon before removing the samples, and conducts wet chemical analyses of fat and color.
It may take weeks to get the results; it is not difficult to understand why many farmers take as few samples as possible. If you get samples, the results may be inaccurate even though the analytical method itself is good.
“This technology provides a fast and accurate result at the fish farm. Farmers who scan the fish often, for example, when counting lice will get very good control over the quality,” says Ketil Christensen, Sales Operations Manager at Cargill Aqua Nutrition Norway.
Comprehensive testing
The new technology was developed by the Cargill Innovation Center in Dirdal (formerly EWOS Innovation) and has been thoroughly tested in the laboratory as well as in the field.
The test results show that the device’s accuracy is excellent. The equipment can withstand the conditions of a fish farm in both rain and challenging weather conditions.
“We are pleased to introduce this product now. The development has taken time, but the result is excellent. With this technology, the industry will save a lot of money in addition to better quality control of the salmon,” concludes Christensen.
