UAE-bred salmon to be on shelves ‘within months’

The facility on Delma Island is set to produce 2,000 metric tonnes of fish including salmon and hammour within months.

Asmak’s model aquaculture farm on display at a Middle Eastern food show at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre last month. The company is planning to open more than 20 fish farms. Silvia Razgova / The NationalShow less

Abu Dhabi // When it was revealed last month that salmon farming in the UAE would soon become a reality, some said it was impossible.

But, inspired by Sheikh Zayed’s historic challenge, the team behind the plans say residents should expect to see UAE-produced salmon on our shelves within months.

“We wanted to take up the challenge of having certain species that are difficult to raise, like salmon,” said Tamer Yousef, marketing manager of Asmak, the Abu Dhabi-based company which is building the fish farm.

Farmed salmon need a steady supply of clean water kept at a relatively low temperature, a tall order in the UAE summer months.

But Asmak says it has the technology for the project, and its projects will boost diversification, cut prices and improve food security.

“The good thing about cultivating salmon is that you’re not only cultivating a very important species that are in high demand but also with great returns financially, so it’s taking us to a new era.”

Asmak started building the 500,000 square metre farm on Dalma Island in Al Gharbia two months ago.

It is expected to produce up to 2,000 metric tonnes of salmon, subaiti, seabream, hammour, tilapia and barramundi in the next six to eight months.

The project’s second phase, which is still awaiting approval, is expected to produce another 2,000 to 3,000 metric tonnes of fish.

“This project has three phases – the first is the 5,000 metric tonne-farm under construction, the second is the very promising project that we have adjacent to this which is related to fish farming,” said Mr Yousef.

“We were inspired by the very early statement of the late Sheikh Zayed, which was ‘Give me cultivation, I will give you civilisation’.”

The company hopes to bring value to the UAE beyond oil.

“Norway is one of the world’s largest producers of oil and now, salmon farming is actually getting them higher returns than oil,” said Mr Yousef.

“So we hope that, as we diversify the income of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, we will also be focusing on something that has real value to the Emirates’ GDP beyond the oil.”

The Dh115 million farm, expected to be complete in two to three months, uses a recirculating aquaculture system.

“Cultivating salmon is a challenge because it means really cold water and cool temperatures,” he said.

“So we’re going to cultivate that inland, in a closed environment, whereby we’re going to control it.”

The system involves cooling the water by 2°C every hour. Water temperatures must be kept at 13°C.

“Many people would say that the cost of cooling the water is going to be enormous but the technology that we’re using means the cost will be tremendously cheaper than flying the salmon from Norway to the UAE. So, by doing this, we’ll be driving the cost of the end product on the shelves of supermarkets 30 to 50 per cent [down] and that will be a challenge for the Norwegian cultivators.”

The project includes a hatchery, a 1,500 square metre nursery for juvenile fish and fish-feeding tanks.

“We have a full facility producing from broodstock the eggs, then the juveniles and the nursery for the juveniles, then the small fish to the fish feeding water tanks,” he said.

Another Dh115 million project, unrelated to the salmon plans and involving 20 farms over 55,000 square metres producing 5,000 metric tonnes of fish, will also be overseen by Asmak and subsidised by the Government.

But not all production will feed into the local population.

“When you look at the total size of the UAE market, it’s probably one fraction of those volumes,” said Mr Yousef. “So this is definitely going to be a very inspiring project for the export markets.”

Experts say the project will succeed only if it is economically viable.

“The biggest issue here is the fact that salmon need cold water and how much money does it cost to cool down the water,” said Dr Jean-Yves Mevel, an aquaculture professor at UAE University.

“Producing other fish makes more sense because they’re warm-water fish. Salmon production might be a small part of it, which will be a premium to address a very limited and niche market.”

Prathapachandra Shetty, the director of Emirates Star Fisheries, said aquaculture practices were helpful as they contributed to the UAE’s food security.

“The costs have to be studied.”

Still, Asmak believes the project will take off.

“Food security is a pressing issue for most governments, especially in the UAE and the Arabian Peninsula,” said Mr Yousef.

“People notice we’re having less fish day by day so it’s a very promising project to make sure that, at any point in time, we have a source of protein.”