Sanford New Zealand expand aquaculture operation with $3.6 million salmon barge investment

Sanford, a New Zealand based seafood company, has recently purchased a $5.5 million NZD ($3.6 million USD) salmon feeder to help realise its vision of expanding its aquaculture in South New Zealand.

The barge will be located in Big Glory Bay, Stewart Island, a 1,746 km² island south of New Zealand's south island. The new barge will replace the 1960s built barge Sanford currently operates in the area, this is due to be commissioned and cut into scrap metal.

 

Image credit: Jan Sokoly on Flickr
(CC BY-SA 2.0)

Sanford's salmon operations manager Richard Miller told NZ local media outlet Stuff that the barge was to be named San Hamana, and would have four silos and the ability hold 200 tonnes of fish food.

'The feed is automatically blown through pipes into the fish pens with a computer system. Every pellet of fish feed that goes into the water is monitored by computer systems underwater,' said Mr Miller.

The barge will have accommodation for five staff. At any one time 22 or 23 workers are employed by Sanford at Big Glory Bay. According to the Stuff article, during lockdown Sanford staff formed their own bubble to service the farm. Some stayed for 40 plus days straight with the company supplying food and any other needs.

'We wanted to protect the island and stop the transfer of [our] people across there,' Mr Miller said. 'It was really important from a perception perspective that Sanford was ahead of the game in terms of making sure we were never at risk of bringing the [Covid-19] virus down there.'

Visit the Sanford website, HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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