Aquaculture_Workshop_-_All_Slides.pdf

BBSRC & NERC Sustainable Aquaculture
Industry Workshop
Chair: Anton Edwards
Excellent Products
Excellent Science
How can BBSRC and NERC support new research and
innovative approaches to solving industry’s challenges?

Programme
10.00 Welcome
10.10 Introduction to BBSRC and NERC Faith Smith and Jodie Clarke, BBSRC & NERC
10.20 Overview of Sector:
Industrial Perspective Lee Cocker, Domestic Aquaculture Manager, Seafish
John Webster, Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation
Academic Perspective Professor Kenny Black, PI in Marine Ecology,
The Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS)
Q&A
11.10 Tea and coffee
11.20 Breakout Session 1: Scoping industry challenges for a collaborative research and
research translation programme
12.55 Lunch
13.40 Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre Heather Jones, CE of SAIC
13.50 Industry/Academia collaboration in Aquaculture Louise Buttle, EWOS
14.05 BBSRC/NERC Funding Models Faith Smith, BBSRC
14.15 Breakout Session 2: Understanding barriers to collaboration and brainstorming
possible funding mechanisms
15.15 Chair’s summary and next steps
15.30 Meeting close

• Develop plans for multi-million pound investment
in research and research translation for sustainable
aquaculture.
• Engage industry in determining the scope of an
industrially relevant pre-competitive funding
programme and its strategic direction.
• Introduce options for the proposed programme
delivery model and industry contribution.
Aims

The Story so Far:
Joint
BB/NERC
Industry
Initiative
Sept 2015
New
collaborations
& big industry
problems
KTN Aqua Event
and NERC
taskforce
Aquaculture
Strategy
-
Initial
scoping of
interest
2013
Joint
BBSRC/NERC
community
workshop
March 2014
Foster
collaborations
&
Include
policy/ other
funders
-
Report is
available
Pump-
priming call
Oct 2014
Based on
collaboration
from workshop
-
120 academics
20 projects
£5M
Foster industry
involvement
Mar 2015
Pull together
industry, policy
& funding
stakeholders
-
Today

Ethos
• The Research Councils need your help
• Please participate actively
• BBSRC & NERC staff welcome your questions
• Please respect the timetable

Introduction to BBSRC and NERC
Faith Smith
Senior Business Interaction Manager, BBSRC
Jodie Clarke
Knowledge and Innovation Manager, NERC

The Story so Far:
Joint
BB/NERC
Industry
Initiative
Community Building
Sept 2015
New
collaborations
& big industry
problems
KTN Aqua Event
and NERC
taskforce
Aquaculture
Strategy
-
Initial
scoping of
interest
2013
Joint BB/NERC
community
workshop
March 2014
Foster
collaborations
&
Include
policy/ other
funders
-
A workshop
report is
available
Pump-
priming call
Oct 2014
Based on
collaboration
from workshop
-
120 academics
20 projects
£5M
Foster industry
involvement
Mar 2015
Pull together
industry, policy
& funding
stakeholders

Introduction to BBSRC and NERC
Dr Faith Smith, BBSRC and Jodie Clarke, NERC
www.bbsrc.ac.uk www.nerc.ac.uk

• The Research Councils – BBSRC and NERC
• Our remit in aquaculture
• Previous activities in aquaculture
• Development of an industry-focussed initiative
What we’ll cover

UK research funding
HM Treasury
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
(BIS)
BBSRC ESRC
NERC
MRC
EPSRC
STFC
AHRC BBSRC ~£450 M/PA
NERC ~£330M/PA
~£3 billion budget
Government
Spending Review

The public funding cycle
Government
Spending Review
Money for
science & innovation
Research Councils makes
case
for continued funding
Various
impacts
Stakeholder
inputs
TAX PAYER

12
Three major strategic priorities
Industrial biotechnology
and bioenergy
Bioscience for
health
Agriculture and food
security
Image credits 1.Thinkstock 2.TMO Renewables 3.Stephanie Schuller, IFR

13
Three crucial enabling themes
Exploiting new ways
of working
Partnerships
Enabling Innovation
Image credits 1.BBSRC 2.EMBL EBI 3.Thinkstock

NERC is the UK’s leading
public funder of
environmental science
We invest £330m each year
in cutting-edge research,
postgraduate training and
innovation in UK universities
and research centres

Meeting societies needs
Our vision is to place environmental science
at the heart of responsible management of
our planet
• Benefiting from Natural Resources
• Resilience to Environmental Hazards
• Managing Environmental Change

NERC and BBSRC’s remits in aquaculture
• BBSRC: animal health and disease of livestock species and animal
production which includes aquaculture
• NERC: marine, freshwater, atmospheric and polar sciences, and
Earth observation

BBSRC & NERC drivers for a sustainable aquaculture research and
innovation initiative include (in no particular order):
• Identified as a significant gap in its science portfolio
• Particularly relevant to strategic priority themes (e.g. Food Security)
• Small community and, therefore, a need for capacity building
• Need to strengthen the community for future activities (incl.
underpinning phase II)
• Addressing basic science gaps that aren’t receiving funding but
which will be required to drive translational research

BB and NERC
scoping
Initial
scoping of
interest
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Joint
BB/NERC
community
workshop
Capacity
building
call
2013 March 2014 Oct 2014
Foster
collaborations
Include policy/
other funders
Based on
collaborations
from workshop
Timeline of Activity
Mar 2015 Autumn 2015

Priority challenges:
1. Assessing the long-term environmental capacity for increased aquaculture
production
2. New technologies for monitoring and predicting weather and climate-related
hazards and risks to the expanding aquaculture sector as it moves into
environments more exposed to wind and waves
3. Determining interactions between wild and farmed fish
4. Mechanisms of infection and spread, including environmental interaction
5. Tools and technologies for assessment and diagnostics
6. Biology of health and resistance (including gut health and genetic resistance)
7. Immunology of infection and protection, and vaccinology
Sustainable Aquaculture capacity-building research call (phase I)
Launched September 2014 £5.8m (£5m from BBSRC & NERC)

BB and NERC
scoping
Initial
scoping of
interest
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Joint
BB/NERC
community
workshop
Pump
prime
call
Foster industry
involvement
2013 Mar 2015
March 2014 Oct 2014
Foster
collaborations
Include policy/
other funders
Based on
collaborations
from workshop
Pull together
industry/ policy/
funding
stakeholders
Autumn 2015

• Research and innovation initiative addressing broad business needs that will
benefit the aquaculture sector as a whole
• This programme will cross the boundary between fundamental research and
pre-industrial research
• Research translation is defined as the integration or adaptation of existing
research outputs to enable the development of technologies and solutions
for the benefit of practitioners and decision-makers
• Require industry input to scope the programme’s key challenges and delivery
mechanism
Phase II “an industry-relevant, pre-competitive
funding programme”

BB and NERC
scoping
Initial
scoping of
interest
Joint
BB/NERC
Industry
Initiative
COMMUNITY BUILDING
Joint
BB/NERC
community
workshop
Pump
prime
call
Foster industry
involvement
2013 Mar 2015
March 2014 Oct 2014 Autumn 2015
Foster
collaborations
Include policy/
other funders
Based on
collaborations
from workshop
Pull together
industry/ policy/
funding
stakeholders
New
collaborations/
big industry
problems

BBSRC
Faith Smith
Senior Business Interaction Manager
01793 442802
Faith.Smith@bbsrc.ac.uk
NERC
Jodie Clarke
Knowledge and Innovation Manager
01793 418004
Jodark@nerc.ac.uk
Contacts

supporting the seafood industry for a sustainable, profitable future
UK Aquaculture
Today and Tomorrow
Mr Lee M Cocker
Aquaculture Manager
BBSRC-NERC Aquaculture - 26/03/15

Overview
• Seafish / Aquaculture Review
• What is Aquaculture
• Aquaculture Production
• Global
• European
• UK
• Challenges to UK Aquaculture Growth
• UK Aquaculture Research
• Past
• Future

Sea Fish Industry Authority aka ‘Seafish’
• Seafish is a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) set up by
the Fisheries Act 1981 to improve efficiency and raise
standards across the seafood industry
• We are funded by a levy on the first sale of seafood products
in the UK, including imported seafood
• Our purpose is to secure a sustainable and profitable future
for the UK seafood industry. Our remit includes everything -
and everyone - from fishermen and processers through to
importers, retailers and food service providers

Seafish Aquaculture Review
• Historical focus on marine fish and shellfish
• More recently emphasis has been on domestic shellfish
• Q: “Are we focussing on the ‘right’ area?”
• External review of Seafish role in aquaculture
undertaken by Maritek Worldwide Ltd
• Summary:
• Maintain bivalve/import work (e.g. M Pyke & I Bartolo)
• Create new domestic aquaculture strategy role…me!

What is Aquaculture?
FAO definition:
“The farming of aquatic organisms: fish, molluscs, crustaceans,
aquatic plants, reptiles and amphibians. Farming implies some
form of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production,
such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, etc.
Farming also implies individual or corporate ownership of the
stock being cultivated”.

Why is Aquaculture Important?
• Global population continues
to rise
• Seafood consumption
continues to rise
• Fairly stable catches from
capture fisheries
• Aquaculture needed to fill
supply gap
• Efficient way of producing
protein

Aquaculture Contribution - WORLD
A Global Industry…the Global Picture
• In 2012 → total 158m MT world fish production;
66.6m MT from aquaculture
• Multiple species in a myriad of systems
• Aquaculture represented 42%
of world food fish production in 2012
• Past 30 years - global growth at ~8% annually
• A recent World Bank report estimates that in 2030, 62% of the
seafood we eat will be farm-raised
Freshwater Fish
Molluscs
Crustaceans
Diadramous Fish
Marine Fish
Misc.

Aquaculture Contribution - WORLD
• China / SE Asia dominate world aquaculture production with
88% in 2012
World aquaculture production by continent:
Land areas proportionate to production volumes
…but take if we China out of the equation

Aquaculture Contribution - EUROPE
EUROPEAN Picture...in terms of global aquaculture production 2012
• Europe → 4.3% (2.9m MT)
• EU28 → 1.9% (1.26m MT)
• EU28 aquaculture industry is large (valued at ~£2.5bn)
• Generally there has been little (0.5%) or no EU volume growth
• ‘Stagnation’ – e.g. spp. relevant to N European aquaculture

Aquaculture Contribution - EUROPE
• EU seafood → 25% EU capture + 65% imports + 10% EU aquaculture
• Growing gap between EU seafood consumption & capture
supplies - aquaculture is now seen as a strategic necessity
• New EU Impetus: Under CFP Reform and Blue
Growth agenda - seeking to increase aquaculture
production
• e.g. EMFF is the fund for the EU's
maritime and fisheries policies for 2014-2020
• Higher % of € to aquaculture than EFF
• UK’s allocation = ~€240 million
• Expected ‘live’ in the UK QIV 2015

Aquaculture - UK
• EU has stimulated UK policy...
“Aquaculture is one of the UK’s key strategic food production sectors...UK
committed to continue supporting industry-led sustainable growth”
(UK MANP, 2014)
“Realistic prospects for development of the industry in ALL parts of the
UK” (EMFF, 2013)
• Aquaculture in the UK is a devolved responsibility
• Scotland, Wales and NI have aquaculture strategies/increased production
targets (up to 2020) in place
• England’s strategy & targets remain unclear

UK Aquaculture Production 2012
• The UK remains a leading aquaculture producer within the EU
(1st by value, 3rd by production)
• UK finfish and shellfish industry produced over 205,000 MT; valued
at ~£0.59bn at first sale
• Employed 3,231 people
• Finfish: e.g. England and Wales produce 35 different spp./varieties
For the table, restocking wild populations and angling waters, and ornamental trade
• UK aquaculture is dominated by -
• Shellfish: mussels, Pacific oysters
• Finfish: Atlantic salmon, trout
• Scottish Atlantic salmon continues to dominate UK aquaculture
harvest tonnage and value

National Aquaculture 2012
Production Value

UK Trout Production
• 2012 trout production in all
home nations was below
previous peaks
• England and Scotland remain
the main producers of rainbow
trout
• Long-term declines apparent in
Wales / NI
• Scotland reports production of
sea trout

UK Shellfish Production
• Mussel production is 31%
lower than the 2008 peak
in production
• Pacific oyster production
11% lower than the 2009
peak in production

UK Aquaculture – Challenges to Growth
Issues & constraints:
• Feed e.g. reducing FM / FO levels; GM feed sources; nutritional
requirements of fish & shellfish
• Husbandry Methods & Technology e.g. breeding programmes; seed
supply; effluent treatment; IMTA; offshore facilities
• Disease e.g. sea lice; bio-toxin / viral contamination & detection in shellfish
• Environmental concerns e.g. reducing overall impacts; biodiversity
impacts; escapes; water quality; impact of climate change
• Planning, policy and regulations e.g. administrative burdens; farming
area expansion; zonation; co-location
• Trade & marketing e.g. comparison with other food sources; consumer
attitudes; certification; developing country seafood competition; new spp.
promotion

Past UK Aquaculture Research
• SARF database - 841 Projects between 1994 and 2013
• Provides good indication which areas received most attention
• Highlights areas which
require more focus

Future Aquaculture Research
All future aquaculture research should improve
understanding and aid development of commercially
relevant solutions to increase UK aquaculture capacity and
expansion, in the short, medium and long-term…without
detriment to the environment or other activities

Finally…
We must support, strengthen and enhance the current UK
aquaculture industry, building upon what is in place, in order to
boost confidence and expand our existing seafood production
This will encourage the future uptake of new production
technologies enabling the UK to realise its aquaculture potential
Through the Domestic Aquaculture Strategy, Seafish will strive
to identify viable, sustainable and effective opportunities to
effectively support the UK aquaculture industry

Thank you
Lee.Cocker@seafish.co.uk


Salmon farming in Scotland:
an overview
Dr John Webster
Technical Director
SSPO

Salmon Farming in Scotland
 Major economic success story.
 Largest producer of farmed Atlantic salmon in the EU
and third largest in the world.
 Salmon is Scotland’s and UK’s largest single food
export.
 c.6% share of global market
 Exported to over 60 countries
 Highly sophisticated, high end technology and
solutions

Importance of salmon in UK
market
• Total UK Fish Market value c.£1.65b
• Salmon sales c.£588m
• Salmon: 36% share of fish category
– Cod: 11%
– Haddock: 9%
– Trout 2%
• Salmon value growth (10.6%) and volume growth
(4.6%) is driving the category

Quality and Reputation
 1992: Label Rouge awarded by French Government
 2004: PGI granted
 65+% of Scottish production accredited under RSPCA /
Freedom Food welfare standards
 Scottish salmon acclaimed as “the best in the world” (Seafood
International poll of seafood buyers)
 Oily fish, rich in nutritionally important omega-3 long chain
essential fatty acids.
 > 95% of Scottish production accredited under CoGP

Industry structure
Freshwater 2013
 27 companies
 102 active sites
44 pen sites
58 tanks/raceway sites
 285 staff
 Producing 40,457,000
salmon smolts
Seawater 2013
 21 companies
 257 active sites
253 pen sites
4 tank sites
 1,086 staff
 Producing 163,234
tonnes of fresh salmon
Source: Marine Scotland
Source: Marine Scotland

Growth & development
0
20000
40000
60000
80000
100000
120000
140000
160000
180000
1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013
tonnes
WFE
year
SCOTTISH FARMED SALMON PRODUCTION 1981-2013
.
.

2020 and beyond...
SNMP 2020
• Production: c. 164k tonnes → 210k tonnes
• Turnover (prodn only): £550m → £771m
• Employment (prodn only): 1,118 → 1,447
• Turnover (Scottish supply chain): >£800m → c.£1.1b
• Employment (Scottish supply chain): >4,000 → >7,000
• GVA (Scottish supply chain): £265m → £345m
• 2020 Full benefit to Scotland: est £2b; > 10,000 F&PT
jobs
• 2020 Full benefit to UK: est £2.5b; >11,000 F&PT jobs

Significant issues and research
• Sea lice (mainly L.salmonis)
• Gill health - AGD, PGD, HABs, jellyfish, etc
• Fungal and parasite challenges in freshwater
• Known (e.g. SAV) and emerging viral diseases
• Sustainable feed / long chain n-3 PUFAs

Sea lice
• Important technical and political challenge
• Naturally occurring copepod ectoparasites of
salmon and sea trout.
• Potential welfare issue if poorly managed.
• Presence on farmed salmon often cited as a
reason for objections to new salmon farms and
modifications to existing farms.

Scottish industry sea lice strategy
1990 - 2015
• Sea lice biology
• Vaccines
• Semiochemicals
• Immunostimulants
• Veterinary medicines
• Light lures
• Ultrasound
• Selective breeding
• Engineering solutions
• National Treatment
Strategy and CoGP
• Area management /
analysis of management
information /
information exchange
• Cleanerfish

Prioritising research
Two formal prioritisation exercises carried out in the
past 18 months
– Business plan for the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation
Centre (HJ)
– MGSAAquaculture Science and Research Strategy (MJ)
These are additional to
– SSPO’s annual research review
– SARF’s research prioritisation

Underpinning research
• The Scottish salmon farming industry has
supported high quality, problem solving
research for over twenty five years.
• We ask that BBRSC/NERC support existing
research initiatives that focus on the
sustainable growth and development of
aquaculture by funding high quality
underpinning science.

BBSRC and NERC Sustainable Aquaculture Industry Workshop
Thursday 26th March 2015, 09:30 – 15:30
Kenny Black
Overview of Sector

Brief
An overview of the aquaculture sector from an academic perspective
Experience in scoping the BBSRC/NERC sustainable aquaculture pump-
priming call
Research and research translation priorities for the biological and
environmental science communities in the short, medium and long term

1 billion people in developing countries rely on fish as their primary animal
protein source
In Asia, fish provide over 26% of animal protein
© National Geographic

Globally Aquaculture has overtaken fisheries as a food provider
FAO

Much of the increase in aquatic food production has come from
freshwater but this resource is increasingly stretched and
unpredictable

What will we feed the fish of the future?
Fish meal, oil
(Stop feeding fish to livestock!)
Mesopelagic fish (200-1000m)
Global biomass about 1000 Mt
Transgenic plants/yeasts
engineered to accumulate Ω3
PUFAs
Krill fishery of about 150kt from biomass
estimates between 50 – 500 Mt
Vegetable meals
Torrissen, et al.2011. Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar): The "Super-Chicken" of the Sea?
Reviews in Fisheries Science. 19. 257-278.

Is there enough room?
The space used for marine aquaculture production is of the order of 10,000 km2, or
about 0.04 % of the globally available continental shelf
A 25-fold growth of production would require the use of ~ 1 % of the continental shelf
But much of the shelf is very exposed, so more robust technology is being developed

www.AquaSpace-H2020.eu
The central goal of the AquaSpace project is to provide increased space of high water
quality for aquaculture by adopting the Ecosystem Approach to Aquaculture (EAA)
using Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) to deliver food security and increased
employment opportunities through economic growth
The three pillars of EAA are ecological
sustainability, social equity, and
harmonisation of multiple uses
SFS-11a, 22 partners, €3M, 2015-2018
MSP is strategic, forward-looking planning for
regulating, managing and protecting the marine
environment, including through allocation of
space, that addresses the multiple, cumulative,
and potentially conflicting uses of the sea

H2020
SFS-10a-2014 (€7M) Scientific basis and tools for preventing and mitigating parasitic
diseases of European farmed fish: (ParaFishControl, Ariadna Sitjà, ES)
BG-10-2014 (€5M) Consolidating the economic sustainability and competitiveness of
European fisheries and aquaculture sectors to reap the potential of seafood markets
(Primefish, Gudmundur Stefansson, IS & SUCCESS, Bertrand Le Gallic, FR)
SFS-10b-2015 (€4M)Scientific basis and tools for preventing and mitigating farmed
mollusc diseases
SFS-11b-2015 (€7M) Consolidating the environmental sustainability of European
aquaculture (Carrying Capacity)
BG-02-2015 (€5M) Forecasting and anticipating effects of climate change on fisheries
and aquaculture

Scottish Government 2020 Strategy
Support the industry and other stakeholders to increase sustainable production
by 2020 (from a 2011/2012 baseline) of:
Marine finfish to 210,000 tonnes (159,269 t in 2011)
Shellfish, especially mussels, to 13,000 tonnes (6525 t in 2012)

NERC Aquaculture Ad-Hoc Meeting
7th May 2014, Edinburgh
Mike Webb NERC
Murray Gardner NERC
Mags Crumlish Stirling University
Jason Holt NOC, Liverpool
Mark James MASTS
Chris Todd University of St Andrews
Neil Auchterlonie CEFAS
Keith Davidson SAMS
Rob Raynard Marine Scotland Science
Peter Miller Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Shelagh Malham University of Bangor
Karen Alexander SAMS
Kenny Black SAMS

7 BBSRC/NERC Priorities
1. Mechanisms of disease (including parasite) infection and spread,
including host- pathogen and environmental interactions
2. Biology of health and disease resistance (including gut health and
genetic resistance, effects of intensification)
3. Immunology of infection and protection, including vaccinology
4. Tools, methods and technologies for diagnostics, experimental
resources, and environmental systems
5. New technologies for monitoring and predicting weather and climate-
related hazards and risks to the expanding aquaculture sector as it
moves into environments more exposed to wind and waves.
6. Determining interactions between wild and farmed fish
7. Assessing the long-term environmental capacity for increased
aquaculture production

FINFISH Priorities
1. The effective control of sea lice on salmon farms
Between farm transmission mechanisms
Within Farm management practices
Health and welfare of cleaner fish
Non-chemical treatment of sea lice
Selective Breeding (focusing on resistance to sea lice)
2. Understanding and managing interactions with wild salmonids particularly
with respect to sea lice is also highlighted as being of the highest priority and
reflected in the following research requirements:
Greater understanding of sea lice dynamics
The dispersal patterns of sea trout and salmon and subsequent distribution in
relation to the Scottish Coast
The effects of sea lice at a population level on wild salmonids
3. Replacing, marine-sourced components of aquaculture feeds with sustainable,
alternative ingredients that will not adversely affect stock health, welfare or
product quality

SHELLFISH Priorities
Food safety and hygiene is the highest research priority for the shellfish sector,
specifically:
Norovirus detection and management
Detection, quantification and management of algal biotoxins in shellfish production
GENERIC Priorities
Identifying additional areas to increase production capacity in support of the 2020
production target aspirations is also of the highest priority:
Integration of aquaculture into marine spatial plans which identify areas for increased
capacity
Improved estimates of assimilative and biological carrying capacity for fish and
shellfish farms in inshore and offshore marine ecosystems

Health related priorities obviously relate to lice control, but also use of
wrasse and lumpsuckers, development of rapid tests for the key viral
diseases, AGD, mucosal immunity, oral vaccination, gill health issues,
availability of medicines (possible ban on formalin making it difficult to
control fungus and protozoa infections).
(Comments from Randolph Richards, IoA, Stirling)

NERC- BBSRC Capacity building projects
1. Risks and Opportunities for Sustainable Aquaculture (ROSA)
Professor Julian Icarus Allen, Plymouth Marine Laboratory
2. Toxic algae and sea-loch sediments: A novel investigation to understand the
influence of climate change on harmful algal blooms and aquaculture
Professor William Austin, University of St Andrews
3. Predicting benthic chemistry around marine fish farms
Professor Kenneth Black, Scottish Association for Marine Science
4. Hypoxanthine metabolism in salmon: roles in osmoregulation and the innate
immune response
Dr Gordon Cramb, University of St Andrews
5. Minimising the risk of harm to aquaculture and human health from advective
harmful algal blooms through early warning
Professor Keith Davidson, Scottish Association for Marine Science

6. Development of a proteomic platform to facilitate the generation of new and
improved vaccines for use in aquaculture
Dr Helen Dooley, University of Aberdeen
7. WGS-aqua: Capacity building for the widespread adoption of whole genome
sequencing (WGS) for the molecular epidemiology of aquaculture pathogens
Professor Edward Feil, University of Bath
8. Verifying the reproductive potential of triploid farm Atlantic salmon
Matthew James Gage, University of East Anglia
9. Investigation of Host Genetic Resistance to Oyster Herpes Virus using a High
Density SNP Array
Dr Ross Houston, University of Edinburgh
10. Epigenetic management of stress and disease resistance in Atlantic salmon
Professor Carlos Garcia de Leaniz, Swansea University

11. Gut health and immune function: the emerging role of gut microbiota in
sustainable aquaculture
Professor Samuel Martin, University of Aberdeen
12. ShellEye: Satellite-based water quality bulletins for shellfish farms to support
management decisions
Dr Peter Miller, Plymouth Marine Laboratory
13. Quantification and Viability of "Indicator" E. coli by Lab on a Chip Isothermal
Nucleic Acid Amplification for Biosecurity in Sustainable Aquaculture
Dr Matthew Mowlem, National Oceanography Centre
14. Development of a mucosal adjuvant for fish vaccination
Professor Chris Secombes, University of Aberdeen
15. Use of contact structures for the control of infectious diseases in the British
aquaculture industry
Dr Kieran Sharkey, University of Liverpool

16. Assessments of fish gut microbiota during development, and in response to environmental
and dietary change
Professor Soraya Shirazi-Beechey, University of Liverpool
17. The role of chromatin extracellular traps in host defence of fish against pathogens
Dr Valerie Jane Smith, University of St Andrews
18. Genomic approaches to identification and preservation of wild tilapia genetic resources for
aquaculture
Professor George Francis Turner, Bangor University
19. Development of optimal molecular markers of domestication in Atlantic salmon for
assessing introgression in wild populations
Professor Eric Verspoor, University of the Highlands and Islands
20. The diagnostic window for detection of viruses infecting salmon in erythrocytes
Dr Manfred Weidmann, University of Stirling
21. The impact of climate change on infection of salmonid fish with Saprolegnia
Professor Pieter van West, University of Aberdeen

Bioscience
KTN Aqua
Event
To identify
research
areas/
academic
and industry
Joint
NERC/BB
initiative
COMMUNITY BUILDING STAGE
Joint
BB/NERC
community
workshop
Pump prime call Foster industry involvement
Aquaculture Initiative
Sept 2013 Mar 2015
March 2014 Oct 2014 Sept 2015
To foster
collaborations
Include policy/
other funders
Based on
collaborations
from workshop
Pull together
industry/ policy/
funding
stakeholders
New
collaborations/
big industry
problems

Conclusions
The main issue for our biggest aquaculture species, salmon, is sea lice and this must
be tackled with a cross-disciplinary programme of research involving biological and
environmental science, focussing on both the farms and wild populations
Other important issues include sustainable nutrition, marine spatial planning and
carrying capacity
The shellfish sector requires continued efforts to ensure high water quality and
excellent product and consumer health
Aquaculture is getting the attention it merits from research funders. Meetings such
as this will help ensure that we join this up to ensure the best possible outcomes for
the sector
Loch Fyne Oysters Ltd

SAIC presentation to the
BBSRC & NERC ‘WORKING TOGETHER’ WORKSHOP
The Scottish Aquaculture Innovation
Centre: Industry Success Through
Research Partnerships
Heather Jones
heather@scottishaquaculture.com
Twitter: @scottishaqua

Scottish Aquaculture IC Vision
• Catalyst for industry and economic growth
• Aim to transform the relationship between the
industry and research communities
• Solutions and innovations that we support will
tackle urgent industry issues, introduce more
sustainable practices, mitigate the risks for
producers, and prepare the industry for the
future.

• Transform the relationship between industry and
research in aquaculture (curiosity-driven science
‘what if?’; solution-focused science ‘how can we?’
and ‘why not?’)
• Support industry-led innovation through research
• Success of our translational research will be
measured through aquaculture’s contribution to
Scotland’s economy and reputation
SAIC Objectives

Attractive opportunities and pressing problems
4 Priority Innovation Areas
1. Improved sea lice control: major obstacle to the sustainable growth of salmon
farming
1. Alternative sustainable feeds: for finfish; optimising raw material utilisation,
further improving sustainability
1. Rapid detection methods for viral pathogens and disease: improving ability to
tackle known threats and emerging disease
1. Development of secure, health certified Scottish mollusc spat production
systems: dealing with a major barrier to the sustainable growth of the Scottish
shellfish production sector

EU Standards: Technology Readiness Levels
What kind of research do we fund?

Industry priorities & business-led
Solution focused with applied results
With the potential of direct commercial value
Project duration: 3 months to 3 years
Project value: £80k to £multi-million
Must involve a Scottish research partner
What kind of projects do we fund?

Academic Engagement
1. 13 Scottish universities and research institutions
2. Interested in research excellence, drawing on expertise
wherever it is – UK, Europe, globally
3. Want to appeal to PhDs and post-Docs at the start of
their careers as well as long established academics
4. SAIC helping to design and deliver Masters
programmes in Sustainable Aquaculture

• Sign up to our Connect+Collaborate service
at http://eepurl.com/8yBWv
• Call on 01786 278 321
• Email coricw@scottishaquaculture.com
heather@scottishaquaculture.com
Get in touch

BBSRC/NERC Funding Models
Dr Faith Smith, BBSRC
www.bbsrc.ac.uk www.nerc.ac.uk

Research Councils
(with industry contributions)
Research & Technology Clubs;
Industrial Partnering Award; LINK;
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships
Research Councils: strategic
research programmes
Aquaculture
UK drought & water scarcity
Soil Security
Insect Pollinator Initiative
….and others
Research Councils: strategic
research programmes
Aquaculture
UK drought & water scarcity
Soil Security
Insect Pollinator Initiative
….and others
Research Councils
Responsive mode/
Discovery science
Research Councils
Responsive mode/
Discovery science
Funding landscape – Agri-Food
AHDB activities
Defra research
programmes
Defra research
programmes RDP productivity
scheme
European
Innovation
Partnerships
RDP productivity
scheme
European
Innovation
Partnerships
Centres for Agri-Tech Innovation
underpinning translational research (Govt/industry co-funded)
Centres for Agri-Tech Innovation
underpinning translational research (Govt/industry co-funded)
Farm
practice/
innovation
Farm
practice/
innovation
Private company R&D
Private company R&D
Levy Body funded R&D
Levy Body funded R&D
Innovate UK
Sustainable Agri-Food Innovation Platform
Thematic (Govt/industry co-funded)
Innovate UK
Sustainable Agri-Food Innovation Platform
Thematic (Govt/industry co-funded)
Agri-Tech Catalyst
Responsive (Govt/industry co-funded)
Agri-Tech Catalyst
Responsive (Govt/industry co-funded)
Basic & strategic science Research translation Competitive R&D Industry application
Policy design and
delivery
Policy design and
delivery
Scottish Gov (basic and policy-focused research)
Scottish Gov (basic and policy-focused research)
Research
Councils
Research
Councils
Government
Government Industry
Industry
Key:
Research Councils
Follow-on Fund, Enterprise
Fellowship
Research Councils
Follow-on Fund, Enterprise
Fellowship

Clubs: An Established Model
CIRC: BBSRC, Scottish Government, 14 company members
• £7M, 5 years, 17 projects, 10 PhD studentships
• To help improve both productivity and quality of oilseed rape, wheat and barley for food
ARC: BBSRC, Scottish Government, 13 company members
• Total funding pot of £9.5M, 15 projects, 5 PhD studentships
• To improve farmed animal resistance to pest and disease organisms
DRINC: BBSRC, MRC, EPSRC, ESRC, currently 13 company members
• £15M through first phase, a further £10M through second phase. 31 projects, 30 PhDs
• To aimed at helping the food industry develop products that deliver enhanced health
benefits for consumers

A consortium of companies work together with the research councils to fund basic research
and research translation in strategic areas:
• Support high quality, innovative, pre-competitive research to underpin UK industry and
future competitiveness
 Integrating research outcomes from different fields, developing greater
understanding of existing research outcomes, applying research outcomes from
alternative fields
• Strengthen the research community in key areas which underpin the long-term needs of
industry through multidisciplinary research and capacity-building
• Facilitate greater knowledge exchange between the research base and industry through
effective networking and collaborative research – leading to high impact outputs
Overarching Club Aims

Common Pot Funding:
• Industry members collectively contribute 10% through club subscriptions (sliding scale)
• BBSRC, NERC & Other Funders contribute 90%
Example Funding Scenario:
Number of Employees Annual Subscription Value
< 20 £3k
21-100 £5k
101 – 500 £10k
>500 £20k
 Industry contribution over five years: £1M
 Research Council / Other Funders: £9M
Club Funding Details

 Influence research areas of economic value (through a significant quantity of
government funding)
 Participate in research funding decisions
 Up to date knowledge on the progress of research and early access to results
 Opportunity to work with academics, post-docs and post-grads
 Opportunity to identify the best potential industry recruits
 Information and advice related to research council activities e.g. training and KE
schemes
 Public promotion through the Club
Benefits to Company Members

• A different subscription structure – cash and in-kind
• Two different types of calls – Research and Research Translation
• Research: which will provide new data and knowledge
• Research Translation: which will support innovative
approaches to translating existing research data and
knowledge into new tools, technologies and other
outcomes that create tangible economic or societal
benefits
SARIC – a new Club model

• Horticulture and Potato Initiative
• Sector SME-heavy
• £7M funding from BBSRC
• Consortia building workshops to enable new collaborations.
• Companies cover 10% of costs (up to 5% in-kind), BBSRC covers 90%.
• NERC funded Knowledge Exchange Fellowships in horticulture.
• Programme coordinators
Directed Initiative - HAPI

An entirely different model - Networks
To facilitate the development of internationally competitive cross-
disciplinary communities capable of undertaking innovative research and
attracting further investment from UK and international sources.
To provide the resources to support proof of concept funding for a range of
research projects identified by the Networks, ultimately leading to more
competitive, collaborative, cross-disciplinary and integrative research
proposals to BBSRC and elsewhere.
To encourage the interaction between the academic research base and
businesses/industry, promoting the translation of research.
To enable the supported Networks to provide the leadership to develop, in
collaboration with business, challenges to be addressed by other funding
sources.

An entirely different model - Networks
• Up to January 2015, the 13 BBSRC NIBB have engaged with:
• Approximately 2700 memberships across 13 Networks
• 311 different companies (ranging from SME to large multi-national)
• Average of 24% industrial membership
• Approximately 1300 members based at academic institutions
(including PhD students) based at approximately 100 different UK
Public sector research organisations

An appropriate funding model for the Aquaculture
Industry
1. What are the barriers to your business collaborating with academia?
2. What are the benefits of your business collaborating with academia?
3. Which funding mechanisms could enable your business to work with
academia
• Ideas relevant to the pre-competitive research space.
• Use examples if relevant
• Development of new funding model for aquaculture

Aquaculture_Workshop_-_All_Slides.pdf

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