Towards innovative tuna farming – Tuna, with its distinctive flavour and culinary versatility, dominates tables around the world, enjoying unparalleled success. Considered the most popular aquatic food in the European Union, its global consumption reaches the impressive figure of 7.5 million tonnes per year, translating into a market value of EUR 36 billion. However, tuna’s culinary success conceals a major environmental challenge: the entire consumption is based exclusively on wild capture, with captive breeding not yet having reached a stage of commercial development. This practice puts high quality species such as Atlantic bluefin tuna (ABT) at risk, highlighting the urgent need to find sustainable solutions.
Against this backdrop, Next Tuna, an innovative German start-up founded in 2020, is at the forefront of the search for sustainable aquaculture solutions. With the help of the BlueInvest programme, the company has made significant progress, advocating the importance of cooperation for innovation.
The reproduction of Atlantic bluefin tuna presents three main challenges: optimising feeding during the delicate larval stage, ensuring reliable spawning in captivity and building specific infrastructure. The year 2023 marked a significant milestone with the successful rearing of ABT through a terrestrial recirculated water system (RAS) at the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, a milestone that opens up new perspectives for aquaculture.
Next Tuna, in collaboration with Seafarming Systems, has developed a revolutionary floating RAS system concept, planned to be operational in Spain as an operational fish farm by the end of the year. Not only does this innovation aim to revolutionise tuna aquaculture, but it also intends to offer a solution applicable to different fish species, promoting precision farming methodologies together with prominent partners such as the Fraunhofer Society.
Beyond innovation
The path embarked upon by Next Tuna transcends the simple pursuit of commercial success and is crucial for the conservation of ABT and marine biodiversity. The startup’s goal is to transfer research advances on Atlantic bluefin tuna reproduction to commercialisation, revitalising the European tuna industry and offering a healthy and sustainable product to consumers.
BlueInvest’s support and collaboration with entities such as the IEO, Seafarming Systems, Wageningen Livestock Research and Skretting underline the importance of synergies for innovation, the conservation of endangered species and the promotion of a responsible blue economy.
BlueInvest
BlueInvest, an EU initiative, plays a key role in promoting innovation and investment in sustainable technologies for the blue economy. By offering exclusive coaching and financial assistance to start-ups, SMEs and scale-ups, BlueInvest acts as a catalyst for growth and innovation, demonstrating the EU’s commitment to a more sustainable and responsible future for our planet.
Towards innovative tuna farming
