Training on carp farming at the TOME Aquaculture Centre.
Photo: Aivars Bērziņš / European Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.
The TOME Aquaculture Centre is contributing to the development of Latvia’s aquaculture sector by providing training, skills development, and advisory services to aquaculture companies and entrepreneurs, the European Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries has announced in a news release.
The Centre, located in the town of Ķegums in central Latvia, was established by the Latvian Institute of Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment (BIOR), with construction completed at the end of 2023, and operations commencing in May 2024. The EU provided funding for this through the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).
BIOR is a leading centre of aquaculture research in Latvia, and contributes expertise to the TOME Aquaculture Centre on the husbandry of species such as Baltic salmon, sea trout smolts, and pikeperch. The Centre also specialises in European catfish breeding research, saltwater RAS, and sustainability. The goal, according to Aivars Bērziņš, Chair of the BIOR Scientific Board, is to facilitate knowledge transfer and cross-sector collaboration to improve farming practices in the industry.
To that end, TOME regularly organizes knowledge transfer events for European aquaculture professionals, including international seminars, industry working groups, and biannual lectures. According to BIOR, more than 100 participants from more than 40 aquaculture farms from Latvia and other EU Member States have participated in these events. TOME also collaborates with universities such as the Latvia University of Life Sciences & Technologies and the University of Latvia, providing lectures and excursions for students.
The Centre has also provided professional development to several Latvian aquaculture companies through industry seminars on topics such as fish health, biosecurity, and welfare, in addition to a 3-day training course led by Czech aquaculture experts on advanced carp breeding techniques, and workshops delivered by Finnish professionals on RAS and salmonid farming.
"The innovation infrastructure and expert team at TOME provide excellent facilities, expertise, and consultations for the aquaculture sector to promote knowledge transfer and cooperation for all partners and stakeholders," Bērziņš said.
"This is an important place to develop and promote cooperation between the aquaculture sector and the scientific community, delivering the best available advice for sector development and innovations," he added.
