New aquaculture alliance between Aqua Pharma and Kytos to develop SEATRU, a precision dosing solution for shrimp farmers

Aquaculture disease management and dynamic dosing expert Aqua Pharma are joining forces with microbial fingerprinting experts Kytos to develop SEATRU –a unique new service platform offering shrimp farmers worldwide effective microbial control through precise dosing recommendations. The initiative was set to start in last June with a two-year research project based in Indonesia with local partner eFishery, the world’s largest aquaculture tech start-up.

“We are delighted to have teamed up with Kytos to further develop SEATRU –a tool which will use the power of Kytos technology to read the aquaculture microbiome of farms, anticipating and reducing disease thanks to individually tailored and precise dosing of eco-friendly health management solutions,” said Markus Wu, Head of Office Indonesia for Solvay and Aqua Pharma at Aqua Pharma Group. “Our priority at Aqua Pharma is to provide disease prevention and control systems to the aquaculture industry with fish and shrimp welfare at the forefront,” he added.

“Shrimp farmers are currently hampered by a lack of reliable data on water quality and animal health, resulting in frequent unpredictable disease outbreaks. SEATRU will allow farmers to adopt a preventative management approach, using best-in-class products like Aqualisan to increase production, sustainability and profitability.”

Holistic view of the health situation

On his part, Ruben Props, co-founder and CEO at Kytos, said the company “specializes in analyzing data of individual microbial cells and leverages that big data to create a holistic view of the health situation of aquaculture systems. Our expertise in microbial fingerprinting technology is a perfect fit with our joint vision of unlocking sustainable aquaculture through precision farming.”

“Together our work on the SEATRU concept is transforming aquaculture by researching and developing advanced technologies in microbial monitoring, animal gut health, disinfectant treatments and artificial intelligence to create stable water conditions and ensure increased performance,” he explained.

To provide peace of mind to the shrimp farmers in Indonesia

In the other hand, Gibran Huzaifah, CEO of eFishery, assured. “Our main objective is to provide shrimp farmers in Indonesia with peace of mind and the tools to produce a stable performance and improved harvests throughout the year. The SEATRU concept brings that stability and potential for growth to farmers.“

“Disease prevention is the number one challenge facing shrimp aquaculture today. With disease able to completely wipe out a pond in five days the sector urgently needs effective preventative methods. Innovative new pond reading technologies combined with eco-friendly products like Aqualisan for shrimp pond management have huge potential to improve the welfare of the shrimp and the profitability of the sector”, he said

“Is useful to remember that according to World Wildlife Fund (WWF) organization, over 55% of the shrimp consumed worldwide is farmed, with a market growth of 8% over the past decade.” 

The annual loss to the shrimp industry as a result of disease is estimated at USD 6 billion per year. The research project is due to run from June 2022 until mid-2024, after which commercial scaling will follow.

Three companies at the forefront of innovation

Backed by parent companies Solvay, the EUR 10 billion global leader in sustainable materials and solutions, and Aquatiq, a Norwegian leader in food safety, Aqua Pharma Group develops and delivers disease prevention and control systems for the aquaculture industry.

“Its concepts and innovations ensure minimal environmental impact and maximum animal welfare and contribute to the successful scaling of sustainably managed fish and shrimp to meet the global growing demand for healthy proteins.”

On his part, Kytos is a microbiome technology company developing microbiome management solutions at the frontier of technological innovation. Originating at the Center for Microbial Ecology and Technology (CMET) at Ghent University (Belgium), it builds on decades of world-leading expertise in the management of microbial communities.

“Kytos transforms its partners into expert microbiome health stewards by empowering them with a unique blend of data science, technology, and microbial ecology insights.”

And, finally, eFishery is using technological advancements, it is constructing an end-to-end value chain for fish and shrimp farming businesses, resulting in an integrated, sustainable ecosystem resilient enough to strengthen global food security for the future. eFishery aims to ensure aquaculture provides the world with its main source of animal protein, one not only rich in nutrients but accessible to everyone.