Irish fish-feed firm named ‘aquatech’ business of the year

The State agency responsible for the development of Ireland’s fisheries and aquaculture industry has named Dublin-based biotechnology company Auranta as its aqua technology business of the year for its products aimed at boosting immunity and gut health among fish species.
The company, which sells its AuraAqua fish feed in several markets globally, has conducted extensive research on its fish feeds and the impact they can have on the health of shrimp and salmon stocks in increasingly challenging environmental circumstances.
Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), which announced Auranta as its aquatech business of the year at a conference last week, said the company’s products differ from many in the market due to the depth and breadth of research it has conducted. Auranta has published 18 peer reviewed papers since it was established in 2013, BIM said.
“Auranta is a fantastic example of the excellence, innovation and talent that exists in Ireland’s growing aquatech sector which is worth €226 million,” said Caroline Bocquel, BIM chief executive.
John Cullen, managing director and co-founder of Auranta, said the award was the latest step on the company’s “journey to become the become the first-choice functional feed ingredient supplier in the global aquaculture industry”.
He said: “Auranta has invested heavily over the last few years to build up our data set in fish and shrimp through the four new peer reviewed scientific papers. We combined this knowledge with the experience gained on the BIM Innovation Studio programme last year and the access to the excellent contacts we have made in the industry to date.”
The other two aquatech business of the year finalists were Celtic Sea Minerals, an animal nutrition company, and Impact-9, which develops marine structural technology for offshore food and biomass production.