Atlantic salmon producer, Cooke Aquaculture USA, organized beach clean-ups in Washington County, Maine, to commemorate Earth Day 2024. About 10 volunteers took five truckloads of debris that had washed up on the shore in Machiasport, while other volunteers gathered debris from the shore in nearby Jonesport.  Steven Hedlund, director of public affairs for Cooke Aquaculture USA, said Cooke’s fish health specialists, Jessica Lindsay and Susana DeFrank, led the crews in Machiasport and Jonesport respectively. “Back-to-back storms on Jan. 10 and Jan. 13 brought significant flooding and damage ..read more

What do you want to be when you grow up? This question is on the minds of aquaculture leaders, researchers, and educators in the northeastern United States as they create promising pathways to aquaculture careers, seeding awareness early and cultivating it as kids develop. With more dollars going toward pre-college programs, there’s also a new focus to keep talent on home surf to reap a return on investment. This surge in innovative programming comes at a time when the U.S. is rethinking its national aquaculture development. In February, the White House National Science and Technology Cou ..read more

Farm Aid, a mental health initiative that aims to help farmers with stress, financial issues, and legal and business-related questions, is asking farmers to call the Farmer Hotline at 1-800-FARM-AID (1-800-327-6243). Its hotline operators are familiar with agriculture and resources for farmers nationwide and work with callers to find the best resources for their situation.  Farm Aid’s mission is to build a vibrant, family farm-centred agricultural system in America. Its board members include artists like, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews and Margo Price, who host ..read more

The United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) has developed an alternative treatment for Streptococcus iniae in hybrid striped bass. That pathogen is recognized as a significant cause of mortalities in various farmed fish species. Dr. Michael Deshotel, a research microbiologist with USDA-ARS, says the treatment was developed with an eye on reducing the overuse of antibiotics. “Anytime antibiotics are used, whether in humans or livestock, it’s always associated with the risk of development of resistance,” says Deshotel. “In the United States, antibiotic ..read more

Nova Scotia premier Tim Houston sparked controversy recently when he offered his opinion on Cooke Aquaculture’s proposed expansion in the Liverpool Bay, which will be the subject of an upcoming hearing by Nova Scotia’s independent Aquaculture Review Board (ARB). “There’s certainly a lot of people in Liverpool that are concerned about this,” Houston told media during a February scrum. “I respect their concerns and have heard their concerns… While I think there’s incredible opportunities for aquaculture in this province, it’s my personal opinion that Liverpool Bay is not an appropriate place for ..read more

Chilean company, Bioled, has initiated a research project with the University of Maryland, U.S.A. to study how irradiance interferes with the growth and control of early maturity in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) farming in full-cycle RAS systems. This is part of its international expansion plan and in analyzing the characteristics of land-based farming systems. “We are very pleased and proud to conduct this research with the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET) at the University of Maryland, located in the city of Baltimore. We are confident that this project, co-funded by t ..read more

Hatch Blue Holding Ltd. is accepting applications for its Ocean Foundry platform, an incubator designed to support aquaculture entrepreneurs and researchers. Hatch has run the Hawai’i-based program since 2019. “Operating within the industrial Hawai’i Ocean and Science Technology (HOST) park, and in partnership with the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawai’i Authority (NEHLA), the Hatch office now forms as the Ocean Foundry campus (incubator) for the development of world-class aquaculture innovation and technologies,” reads on the Hatch Blue website. The incubator’s campus purports to host, stimu ..read more

The Coalition of First Nations for Finfish Stewardship, B.C. Salmon Farmers Association (BCSFA) and B.C. Centre for Aquatic Health Sciences launched a 500-page text on salmon farming in British Columbia on April 5. This publication, Modern Salmon Farming in British Columbia: A Review, was requested by the First Nations group to provide additional transparency and details of salmon farming operations to answer questions from their communities.  “As First Nations with salmon farming in their territories move forward on the sector’s transition with government, some of our communities have no ..read more

Every workday is different for Eliza Harrison. But it’s typically split between being hands-on in the field and paperwork in the office all dedicated to the advancement of seaweed development. On a Monday at work, Harrison, together with her small California team works to load a 25-foot boat, launch it off the ramp, and sail it out. The trio did a regulatory monitoring survey where Harrison flew a remotely operated vehicle to explore the ocean. Working together to manage a drone’s tether, Harrison and her colleagues take surveys. Later that day, she worked on a presentation for a stakeholder o ..read more

In 2022, Cermaq Canada saw an unusual spike in Pacific herring incidental catch mortality associated with their farms on the west coast of Vancouver Island.  Despite this incident occurring over two years ago, anti-salmon farming activists have repeatedly drawn attention to this abnormality, including in an article published in Aquaculture North America in early March 2024. These mortalities were reported to both the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and the Ahousaht First Nation, in whose waters these farms are located, when they occurred in 2022. Anti-salmon farming activists beg ..read more