RE:OCEAN will produce 10,000 tons of salmon in Sweden in a large-scale, sustainable, land-based farming facility in a marine environment. The project, which is backed by Sweden's three leading grocery retailers Axfood, Coop and ICA, will involve an investment of SEK 2 billion, one of the largest investments in food in the country. The first salmon will be in stores in 2025, and from 2026 is expected to be in full production.
According to the announcement released today by RE:OCEAN, salmon is the most popular fish among Swedes, although less than one percent of the salmon consumed in Sweden comes from the country itself. There is a lack of sustainable production and farming to meet the growing demand, and this new project comes to address this. Katarina Klingspor, Chairman of RE:OCEAN, explains: "This is the first large-scale investment in salmon farming in Sweden, and that is reshaping food production in Sweden. We're delighted that we'll be able to serve tasty, land-grown salmon from Säffle, Sweden as early as 2025, and by 2026 we'll be in full production".
Sustainability and the fact that production takes place in Sweden were the main reasons why the country's three leading grocery retailers decided to invest in the project. "ICA has been investing in sustainable and Swedish food production for a long time, and RE:OCEAN is a very timely investment and a step in the right direction for strengthened Swedish self-sufficiency", explains Anders Svensson, CEO of ICA Sweden. Meanwhile, Marie Nygren, CEO of Coop Sweden, adds: "It is important that we ensure the availability of fish for our consumers. We believe in this more sustainable way of breeding salmon". And in the same vein, Klas Balkow, CEO of Axfood, says: "We want to contribute to a sustainable and circular food production in Sweden. This is a very important initiative to strengthen sustainable fish farming and to offer our customers a larger selection of affordable, good, and sustainable fish in our stores looking forward".
The RE:OCEAN's facility is going to use a Recycling Aquaculture System (RAS). Salmon will be grown in 88 tanks where water is going to be circulated, purified, and reused in its own closed cycle. That increases control throughout the system compared to other technologies and reduces water use in the facility that, besides, produces no emissions. According to the company, the aim is to also use all waste from the salmon for other applications, such as biogas.
"By owning the entire process from hatch to processing and packaging in the same place, we secure access to fresh salmon in Sweden and fundamentally change the way we produce fish. Our ambition is to create the most sustainable salmon available, in terms of human health and the environment. We want to let the oceans rest, so we're building our own ocean", says RE:OCEAN CEO, Morten Malle.
RE:OCEAN aim to change the fishing industry with land-based salmon farming at a large-scale facility in Säffle, Sweden, which will be able to locally produce 10,000 tonnes of sustainable and healthy salmon every year. The company is now in the process of raising additional capital to complete the project and provide 20 percent of Swedish salmon consumption. All permits are in place and the site is prepared for construction.
