Moving fish farms out to sea

One third of the world’s fish stocks have reached their biological limits from overfishing, according to WWF – yet an increasing global population demands more food every year.

Fish farming has long been acknowledged as a solution to combatting overfishing while upholding growth in food production. Traditional fish farms, however, face problems such as build-up of waste and faeces on the seabed, disease and fish escapes.

Moving fish farms out to sea can help to solve a number of these problems. The open ocean offers more space, deeper waters and stronger currents. Ocean currents are particularly effective for reducing the spread of parasites and pollution of the water column. Greater distance to the shore also minimises interactions with wild fish and resulting negative impacts such as compromised reproductive health.

Ocean Farm 1 is one of the world’s first offshore fish farms. A full-scale pilot facility, it is located some 5km off the coast of Central Norway, at the same latitude as Alaska. It is the largest such structure in the world, measuring over 100m across and extending more than 40m below the ocean surface. The facility can hold approximately 1.5 million Atlantic salmon in total.

The pioneering fish farm also features cameras, oxygen sensors and other digital equipment. By collecting as much data as possible about the farmed fish, operators can optimise feeding, interaction and environmental conditions. The creators have described the facility as the “world’s largest floating laboratory”.