Land-based aquaculture is an innovative approach to fish farming in a controlled environment on land. It offers several advantages over traditional open-net pen systems; these include low environmental impact, improved biosecurity, and increased production efficiency. The land-based aquaculture sector in Europe has experienced significant growth mainly due to the increasing demand for sustainable seafood, rising concerns about catfishing, and the need for food security. Land-based aquaculture systems in Europe are based on technologies such as RAS, flow-through systems (FTS), and integrated multi-trophic aquaculture. RAS is the most common technology due to its efficient water usage and ability to control water quality parameters. Land-based aquaculture systems minimize the risks associated with the interaction between farmed and wild fish populations, thereby reducing the spread of disease and the potential for genetic hybridization.
According to European Commission, aquaculture accounts for nearly 20% of fish and shellfish supply in the EU, and it directly employs ~70,000 employees. The sector comprises ~15,000 enterprises, mainly micro-enterprises or small businesses in rural and coastal areas. The main aquaculture-producing European countries in terms of volume are France, Spain, Italy, Greece, and Sweden. In April 2021, Quality Salmon Sotenäs AB and Uponor Infra Oy signed an agreement to develop a new land-based salmon farm worth US$ 2 billion outside the city of Kungshamn, in the municipality of Sotenas on Sweden's west coast. Europe land-based aquaculture systems market is segmented into Scandinavia, UK, Germany, Poland, Austria, Benelux, Switzerland and Rest of Europe. In 2022, Scandinavia held the largest share and is growing with the highest CAGR in the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market.
Aquaculture plays a major role in meeting consumer demand for seafood in the UK. According to the House of Commons, in 2021, the aquaculture sector contributed around 0.03% of the total economic output and around 5% of the broader agriculture, forestry, and fishing sector of the country. Many companies, including Aquahive are focused on using land-based systems without access to traditionally freshly produced local seafood. Some companies in the UK are using new technologies such as RAS to reduce risk and improve the profitability of aquaculture ventures. Hatcheries use technologies and business models to create environmental and social change and systems that reduce pollutants and produce biofuels alongside seafood.
In June 2019, a land-based warmwater shrimp farm was launched in Scotland to supply products from tank to plate within 24 hours. The farm uses energy from an anaerobic digestor on a nearby dairy farm, especially to produce warm, freshwater king prawns with low food miles and minimal environmental impact. Further, in February 2021, Ocean On Land Technology announced that its Aquahive and hatchery products would be used in Norway's red claw crayfish trial. The company's Aquahive system, as well as RAS technology, will be used in the trial. Thus, such instances show the increasing demand for technologies in the aquaculture system in the UK, which is fueling the land-based aquaculture system market growth in the country. Thus, the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market is growing significantly.
The Europe land-based aquaculture systems market is segmented on the basis of type and application. Based on application, the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market is segmented into static water ponds, running water culture, culture in recirculating systems, and others. In 2022, the culture in the recirculating system segment held the largest share in the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market. It is further estimated to record the highest CAGR in the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market. Culture in recirculating systems involves man-made structures such as artificial tanks and basins where water is recycled and reused after mechanical and biological filtration, and suspended matter and metabolite removal. It is an intensive high-density fish culture, contrasting other aquaculture production systems. Instead of the traditional method of growing fish outdoors in open ponds and raceways, in this system, fish are typically reared in indoor or outdoor tanks in a controlled environment. Several advantages of culture in recirculating systems include the extended durability of tanks and equipment; reduction of risks associated with climatic factors, disease, and parasite impacts; ability to support the production of a broad range of species irrespective of temperature requirements; and secure production of non-endemic species
Water-Proved GmbH, Hesy Aquaculture BV, ULTRAAQUA AS, Veolia Environnement SA, FutureFish Aquaculture GmbH, AKVA Group ASA, AquaMaof Aquaculture Technologies Ltd, GroAqua Grp, FTN AquaArt AG, and Xylem are some of the key Europe land-based aquaculture systems market players. Various other companies are also introducing new technologies and offerings, helping the Europe land-based aquaculture systems market players to expand their business in terms of revenue.