Algorithms-for-aquaculture Aquabyte now part of Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS).
In a press release, industry trade group Stronger SATS writes that Silicon Valley-based technology company Aquabyte has joined to promote the “development of sustainable aquaculture in the U.S.”
Aquabyte Founder and CEO Bryton Shang worked on cancer diagnostic tools with biotech outfit, HistoWiz before moving to salmon farming. The company currently operates in Norway and Chile.
The same machine-learning and computer vision technology used then is being implemented to give salmon farmers access to more exact information such as automatic counting of sea lice, feed optimisation as well as real-time measurements of individual and average measurements of biomass.
Bill DiMento, President of SATS and Vice President of Corporate Sustainability and Government Affairs at High Liner Foods, said he was excited to welcome “a trusted technology-first company” to the outfit: “We look forward to working with Aquabyte as SATS continues to advance our mission of establishing a regulated aquaculture industry here in the U.S.”
Shang added that the USA has the “potential to lead aquaculture policy and practices around the world.”
“Through utilizing the latest technology and innovations, the aquaculture industry can continue to grow in a way that is environmentally sustainable, protecting our oceans and natural resources, while creating more jobs and economic opportunity here in the U.S. We need the proper federal policies and regulations in place to allow that to happen,” he added.
The USA has a seafood trade deficit of USD 14 billion and imports nearly 90 per cent of our seafood, of which more than half is produced through foreign aquaculture.
In May SalmonBusiness reported that President Donald Trump had signed an executive order to “identify and remove unnecessary regulatory barriers restricting American fishermen and aquaculture producers”.
