The Invermar hatchery where the ReelData technology is being deployed.
Photo: ReelData / Invermar
Canada-based aquaculture technology company ReelData has secured a multi-year commercial deployment of its AI-based biomass measurement system at a freshwater hatchery operated by Chilean salmon producer Invermar, following a trial at the site.
The agreement covers the installation of ReelWeight camera units at Invermar’s Aucha hatchery in Colaco, in Chile’s Los Lagos Region. During the trial phase, the system was tested across 16 tanks to assess its ability to estimate average weight and weight distribution in a land-based production environment, with results compared against the producer’s existing sampling methods.
According to Invermar, the data generated during the trial was sufficient to replace routine manual sample weighing at the facility. The company said the ability to collect frequent biomass measurements without handling fish was a key factor in moving to a longer-term deployment.
Sergio Bustamante, farming manager at Invermar, said the system was installed and made operational in a short timeframe, with limited technical effort required to establish connectivity. He added that the trial demonstrated the system’s suitability for the hatchery’s operating conditions.
Invermar is a vertically integrated salmon producer operating across hatcheries, sea farms and processing facilities, supplying Atlantic and Pacific salmon to international markets. The Aucha hatchery is one of Invermar’s main freshwater RAS facilities producing Atlantic salmon, and was expanded earlier this year with the addition of new production units for coho salmon.
ReelData said the deployment of its technology at the Aucha site will also be used to validate biomass measurements across different species and life stages, including smaller fish at earlier stages of production.
The company said additional units for coho salmon production would later be installed, and the system will also be used at another Invermar freshwater site.
ReelData, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, supplies AI-based monitoring systems for land-based aquaculture operations and has customers in Europe and the Americas.
Over the past 18 months, it has announced a series of collaborations and contracts with land-based aquaculture producers for the use of its intelligent camera system, launched in 2024, including a multi-year contract with land-based salmon farmer Laxey in Iceland, and trials with rainbow trout producer Fifax in Finland, and yellowtail kingfish producer The Kingfish Company at its RAS farm in the Netherlands.
Last year, ReelData signalled its plans to expand into Chile, bringing on board Chilean contractor Aquiles Gallardo to support its presence in the country.
