Capex, control, location, and waste: land-based CEOs share their insights

Land-based aquaculture projects are ramping up around the world, but how do leaders of RAS and hybrid flow-through farms view the advantages and challenges facing this type of production?

At last week's Blue Food Innovation Summit, attendees heard from a wide range of industry leaders from the land-based sector, from start-ups to scale-ups, who shared insights on their own projects, as well as the outlook for the industry in general.

Ohad Maiman (Aquafounders Capital) hosted a panel composed of what he described as "leaders from RAS, hybrid flow-through, and one of the leading suppliers to the aquaculture industry", namely Vincent Erenst, CEO of The Kingfish Company), Trond Håkon Schaug-Pettersen, CEO of Salmon Evolution, and Ståle Økland, CCO of AKVA Group.

Also providing insights into their companies in separate sessions were Jens Thordarson, CEO of Iceland's GeoSalmo, and Megan Sorby, CEO of Florida-based start-up Pine Island Redfish.

As previously reported by WeAreAquaculture, both The Kingfish Company and Salmon Evolution are in the midst of global expansion efforts. The Netherlands-based yellowtail producer is developing a facility in Maine, while the Norwegian salmon farmer currently in advanced negotiations over a North American site as well as developing a project in South Korea - after turning a profit for the first time.

"I'm often asked to pick a favourite between RAS, flow-through, net pens, almost as if it's a religious matter. I think the answer is more complicated than that," said Ohad Maiman, introducing the discussion. "If you think of the global seafood demand... there's room for all of them."

Maiman asked his fellow industry leaders to reflect on the benefits and challenges of their respective land-based systems.

The Kingfish Company CEO Vincent Erenst said that land-based farming has a significant advantage over sea-based farming in terms of environmental control. "If you cannot control what comes in the farm, you may get disease, which is one of the Achilles heels of aquaculture," he said.

"I think control helps you enable your fish to perform a lot better... If we compare our performance with net-pen farming of yellowtail in Japan... the fish do a lot better. The potential of the fish comes to the fore."

However, Erenst pointed out, Capex per kilo remains a challenge for land-based farming. The more sophisticated the system, the more expensive the Capex, however the Opex costs are similar to traditional farms, while the risk of disease is significantly reduced, he added.

On hybrid flow-through systems, Salmon Evolution's Trond Hakon Schaug-Pettersen said "it depends on where you are located", adding that Salmon Evolution's location at Indre Harøy in northern Norway, next to clean high-quality water at close-to-optimal temperature, gives a significant advantage.

"You don't have the same complexity and margin of error as you have in a RAS facility, where if things go wrong they happen much faster. You have a bit more leeway in a hybrid system," he argued.

On disadvantages, Schaug-Pettersen commented that the need for water limits location choices, although he noted that Norway and North America are both good locations.

"A hybrid system is Capex-heavy," he said, but comparing licence costs and other factors, "we are almost on parity". "The relative cost of land-based has significantly improved... this should only increase going forward," he argued.

The importance of location for hybrid flow-through was also stressed in a separate session highlighting regional innovation the previous day, by Jens Thordarson, CEO of GeoSalmo.

GeoSalmo is currently constructing a land-based salmon farm in Iceland utilising hybrid flow-through technology, and aiming for up to 100,000 tonnes of production capacity.

"Location is everything. Technology is something everyone has access to, but location will always have an edge. We have access to pristine seawater sources that are filtered through lava rocks in the ground, that give stable temperatures all year round," Thordarson said.

He added that land-based farming in Iceland could be revolutionary for the country, calling it "one of the most exciting things happening in global seafood today".

Meanwhile, AKVA's Ståle Økland pointed out that the location of land-based facilities is also crucially important in terms of proximity to market.

"Water quality is essential, but we also see that there's an argument for good RAS facilities, producing close to the consumer," Økland said.

"If you want to scale the technology and produce in many different parts of the world, the water quality is not as good everywhere as it is in Norway... I would also say that land-based is not only about big grow-out facilties. we are also seeing a trend now towards more post-smolt facilities," Økland added.

In a separate innovation showcase the same day, summit attendees heard from another land-based project that is still in its early stages - but with great potential.

Megan Sorby, founder of Pine Island Redfish in Florida, introduced her project farming red drum in Florida, describing the species as the "next great candidate in RAS", as a high-value fish with a high demand - and with a location strategically close to its consumer market.

However, she said, when locating land-based aquaculture, producers also need to take environmental impact into serious consideration. Sorby pointed out that one of the greatest challenges in scaling RAS is how to handle the waste, or "fish poop".

"RAS can no longer be simply a grow-seafood-anywhere solution. We must integrate our seafood production in harmony with our environment," she said.

That's what Pine Island Redfish is doing, Sorby explained, where waste sludge is used to cultivate sea vegetables and regenerate native mangrove ecosystems.

The woman-led company has a team of industry veterans on its advisory board, with Ohad Maiman as Chair, and aims for the first batch of fish to be commercially available in December 2025, Sorby confirmed.

See the full details of discussions and insights from the Blue Food Innovation Summit through our liveblog transcript here.