July 18, 2019

by Lynda Kiernan

Since 1980, global consumption of salmon has more than tripled as demand for protein also climbs. And as wild stock grow more depleted, salmon farming is stepping in to bridge the gap between market demand and production.  

At the same time, Recirculating Aquaculture System (RAS) technology has advanced to where its integration in land-based fish farming operations creates a scalable solution that closely mimics a fish’s natural environment at a lower cost of production. 

Singapore-based 8F Asset Management is an impact investor with a pure-play framework, managing private equity funds that invest in vertically integrated aquaculture production and processing facilities using RAS technology. In 2018 it launched Pure Salmon, a land-based salmon farming company with the goal of becoming a global leader in the production of high-quality salmon. 

In its short life, Pure Salmon has already established a land-based RAS farm in Poland, and in November of last year, announced its plans to invest US$162 million to build an industrial-scale salmon farm in Japan with the capacity for annual production of 10,000 tons. 

The company’s global expansion continues with its announcement of plans to invest $250 million to build a state-of-the-art RAS facility in Lesotho, Africa, in partnership with the Lesotho National Development Corporation (LNDC). 

“I sincerely believe this partnership will yield tremendous results for Lesotho as a whole,” said Mohato Seleke, CEO, LNDC at the signing ceremony for the partnership. “The Pure Salmon product is a high-end consumable and Lesotho boasts the perfect conditions for producing it. It is for this and numerous other reasons that we are engaging in this agreement with Pure Salmon and 8F.”

The new site will sustainably produce salmon free of antibiotics, hormones, pesticides, and microplastics, and, at 20,000 pounds per year, will have double the capacity of Pure Salmon’s Japan site. Scheduled to be completed by 2023, the facility will be powered entirely by renewable energy, will generate 250 jobs, and will provide one million free salmon meals to local schools and orphanages each year for the first decade in operation.  In addition, each community that provides unused land for the farm will be granted ownership shares in the operation. 

Under the terms of the partnership with the LNDC, Pure Salmon and its parent 8F Asset Management will also establish and sponsor an aquaculture education program at the National University of Lesotho that will provide 15 internships at Pure Salmon’s global locations.

“Through our partnership with the LNDC and investment in the Lesotho site, we hope to provide increased opportunities for the local community through the production of sustainable salmon,” said Stephane Farouze, board director of Pure Salmon, and chairman and founder of 8F Asset Management.  Whether that’s providing new jobs, offering training opportunities in the aquaculture industry or contributing to the LNDC’s commitment to diversify the country’s agriculture industry, we look forward to bringing this project to fruition.”

With a presence now on three continents, 8F and Pure Salmon continue their geographical expansion. In February of this year, the company announced that it has selected Tazewell County, Virginia, as the location for its American site, which will be home to another 20,000 tons per-year RAS farming facility. And in Europe, the company has narrowed its next project site to one of two choices – either Boulogne-sur-Mer on the northern coast of France, or Olbia, in the north of Sardinia. 

“We’re delighted to be announcing further details of our plans to build large scale land-based Atlantic salmon farming facilities in the US and Europe,” said Farouze. “8F is proud to be a sustainable investment business and we are looking to change the future of salmon farming with our ambitions growth plans for Pure Salmon around the world.”

– Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to GAI News. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration, please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.com.