Barramundi farmer and marketer Australis Aquaculture has sold its land-based fish farm operation located in Turner Falls, Massachusetts, to Great Fall Aquaculture for an undisclosed amount.
Australis CEO Josh Goldman originally developed the Turner Falls site in 1990 for the production of hybrid striped bass, making the farm one of the world’s largest and longest continually-operating recirculating aquaculture facilities in the industry.
The Turner Falls site, which was a pioneer in developing many current RAS production methods, began farming barramundi in 2004, building up a bank of knowledge and expertise to scale barramundi production in the marine tropics, enabling the company to shift all of its barramundi production to Vietnam where it will focus on marine ocean farming.
“We continue to believe in the importance of recirculating aquaculture technologies and it remains an integral part of our Vietnam farming systems. However, for us, we see our long-term growth in large-scale ocean farming,” said Goldman.
In 2006 the company began operating in Vietnam, and by 2008, 230,000 barramundi fingerlings were in stock, with goals of more than one million fish within nine to 12 months
“Within just a few weeks of Australis being granted approvals to operate in Vietnam we have commenced operations and stocked commercially significant numbers of fish,” Goldman said in a statement at the time.
By 2016, the company acquired Marine Farms Vietnam, making it the largest aquaculture sea leaseholder in the country. At the time, Goldman said Vietnam was “an excellent location to develop our marine production base.”
Subsequent expansion of the business saw the building of new farms and processing facilities, as well as investment into the cultivation of seaweed. By 2017, Australis began distribution of its barramundi on a national scale in the U.S. as part of the company’s “serve good” initiative.
The Turner Falls will be added to Great Falls Aquaculture’s holdings, which include a number of farms across the Northeast U.S. region.
Moving forward, Australis will continue to operate its North American sales, marketing, logistics, and finance operations as it continues to grow its retail and food service business from a new corporate headquarters in Greenfield, Massachusetts. It will retain its full executive, sales, logistics, accounting, and marketing teams. Meanwhile, Great Falls Aquaculture will continue to produce barramundi at the Turner Falls location, serving markets across North America.
-Lynda Kiernan