15AGRITECHCAT4: Lobster Grower 2 - Assessing the technical, economic and environmental potential for a novel candidate aquaculture industry

This proposal brings together a unique consortium of two micro SMEs, one charity, two HEIs and a government agency; lead by NLH Enterprises Ltd (NLHE), partnered by The National Lobster Hatchery (NLH), the University of Exeter (UoE), West Country Mussels of Fowey (WCMoF), the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS), and Falmouth University (FU) with internationally leading research experience, capacity and facilities in the areas of marine science and engineering that are central to this proposal. The proposed project aims to tackle the challenges to address the global demand on seafood consumption by addressing primary livestock production and food security, through the development of innovative solutions and field demonstration required to establish a commercial solution making available a novel candidate aquaculture species, the European Lobster. This species has recently been identified as the top marine species for aquaculture development by the Norwegian government and Sweden is now focusing on lobster as one of its top priorities for aquaculture development. The successful lobster grower 1 (LG1) project has provided a solution to the technical barriers currently prohibiting commercial aquaculture of the species. Lobster grower 2 (LG2) aims to tackle the technical and ecological uncertainties through further innovative solutions related to the sea based deployments, whilst introducing the innovative Sea Based Container Culture (SBCC) systems generated in LG1. The further objectives of LG2 will be to roadmap the environmental, economic and social considerations in order to unlock commercial investment and exploit a valuable human protein source at minimal unit cost, creating wealth and jobs in vulnerable coastal communities. LG2 seeks to undertake a complete field evaluation of the SBCC systems developed in LG1, whilst de-risking the commercial realisation of the farming system through further development of innovative anchoring systems and monitoring techniques for sea based deployments. LG2 will bring together a multidisciplinary consortium of experts from technical, engineering, research, market and policy backgrounds to take an innovative approach to overcome the technical and economic challenges currently preventing a novel candidate aquaculture species from being commercially exploited.

Lobster Grower 2 (LG2) specifically addresses the lack of technical advances in lobster aquaculture by further progressing developments made in LG1. LG2 aims to i) ensure technical robustness of European lobster farming system allowing survivability and secure stock production, ii) understand potential environmental impact that allows to put effective mitigation actions in place, and iii) provide a detailed economic assessment based on farm operations and leading to the development of an aqua-economical predictive tool. The only other developmental work taking place is being undertaken by members of the European Lobster Centre of Excellence, (ELCE). Projects in Iceland, Sweden, and Norway are currently examining Land based Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) combined with Robotics approaches to culture. The land based RAS approach employs a technology with considerable barriers to market entry (very high start-up and capital costs) and very high operational costs (electricity, feed and staffing). It is therefore anticipated that long term, SBCC will have a competitive edge over land based RAS approaches. This project's approach is therefore radically different to the approach being developed elsewhere in Europe and represents a significantly innovative approach.

Support from the Agri-tech catalyst has been secured for a 36 month project, addressing fundamental food security challenges by examining novel angles to expand aquaculture; to include a species not currently exploited, the European Lobster. This species commands the highest value (by volume) of any species landed in the UK and exhibits a significant supply deficit. Sea based culture, in containers (SBCC) exhibits the potential for a low carbon form of rearing with no feed costs. The project will use containers specifically designed for the species, developed in an early stage project, to assess performance and develop holistic application of SBCC systems. The project will run a pilot scale lobster farm to gather practical, operational, environmental, biological, engineering, economic and social data that can be used to develop an essential tool to encourage and inform future investment. The consortium will be led by the National Lobster Hatchery and consists of two SME's, two HEI's and a Government Agency.
Key technical innovations associated with this project will address the development of suitable anchoring systems, providing safe and robust operation, and cost effective access solutions for harvesting. In order to measure the impact of installations a sophisticated environmental monitoring exercise will be implemented, utilising novel water quality string configurations. The technical and environmental sea trials will be supported through oceanographic studies in the form of point measurements, providing flow and wave characteristics. These studies will provide the scientific evidence to inform possible environmental impacts and technical uncertainties towards new aquaculture ventures.

In the joint policy paper published on the 22nd of July 2013 by the Department for Business Innovation & Skills, the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs and the Department for International Development, it is identified that agricultural science and technology is rapidly becoming one of the world's fastest growing and exciting markets. It is also stated that the UK's food export in 2012 was in the order of £18 billion and that the entire agri-food contributes £96 billion or 7% of gross value to the UK, with an employment value to agriculture and fishing being in the order of £3.8 million. For the UK to hold its position as a strong producer and supplier of agriculture products and services it is essential to pursue the technology revolution within the sector, which has been described within the policy paper to be driven by global changes such as i) a rising population, ii) a rapid development of emerging economies with western lifestyle aspirations and iii) a growing geopolitical instability around shortages of land, water and energy.

Furthermore, as identified in the 'Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture for food security and nutrition' report from 2014 by the 'High Level Panel of Experts on Food Security and Nutrition' (HLPE), overall 158 million tonnes of finfish, crustaceans, molluscs, miscellaneous aquatic animals were produced in 2012, of which 91.3 million tonnes come from inland and marine capture fisheries and 66.6 million tonnes from inland and marine aquaculture. The continual growth in fish production - mostly from aquaculture since the 1990s - and improved production efficiency and distribution channels enabled the supply of fish for food per-capita to more than triple at world level since 1950, from 6 kg/cap/yr in 1950 to 19.2 kg/cap/yr in 2012. The today capture of finfish, crustaceans, molluscs, miscellaneous aquatic animals provide 3.0 billion people with almost 20 percent of their average per capita intake of animal protein, and a further 1.3 billion people with about 15 percent of their per capita intake. Through the economically and environmental sustainable production of farmed European Lobster a significant contribution can be generated to the further provision of capita intake of animal protein and hence positively contributing to food security.

The European lobster is a high value species, not currently exploited in the aquaculture sector: fisheries are limited and demand exceeds supply. In 2004 it was estimated that only 4.3% of demand was being met and the estimated market was around 70,000 and 50,000 tons of live and frozen product respectively. Supply, however, is limited to approximately 3,000 tons per year, thus there is a supply deficit of somewhere in the region of 120,000 tonnes and a clear market opportunity for the species (Kristiansen et al, 2004).
This project aims to progress the UK's aquaculture industry by enhancing the prospect for the culture of a species not currently exploited in the aquaculture industry. There is a critical mass of knowledge in the UK and the physical and chemical properties found in our coastal waters match the biological requirements of this high value candidate species. Further development of aquaculture will therefore provide an economic boost to the UK's agri-tech industry. The yearly global markets for live and frozen lobster is estimated to rise due to the increase in demand with product requirements estimated to be between 50,000 and 70,000 tonnes, whilst current landings of the European Lobster are in the order of 5,000 tonnes (http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2648/en). By taking in consideration a price for the Lobster of £15 per kilogram (as identified in an article by The Telegraph from 28th April 2013) and assuming an increase through European Lobster farming from 5,000 tonnes to 20,000 tonnes the market increase would be from £75million to £300million per year.