17 May 2018
New Zealand King Salmon takes its environmental obligations very seriously. We also aim to be open and transparent about our activities and operations.
With this in mind, we’re publishing our recent application to the Waste Minimisation Fund to make details available publicly.
The new Government has been very clear that it wants Kiwi companies to become even greener and cleaner, which is why we are trying to work with them to more quickly fulfil these ambitions.
We’ve made a submission to the Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund, to co-fund a project to pioneer innovative new technology that is available for others to use, and shared with the world.
As listed on the Ministry for Environment website, a wide variety of commercial businesses, large and small, have received funding for waste minimisation projects in the past. The criteria for funding stipulates that the project provides a positive benefit to the nation as a whole – any learnings or technology developed from this project will be available for others to apply as well.
If we’re a successful applicant, New Zealand King Salmon will fund the majority of the project. We could work on this project by ourselves, but not at the pace that it is clear New Zealanders expect. The Waste Minimisation Fund could help us move more quickly.
We are also working positively with the new Government to progress a plan to relocate our farms to cooler, deeper waters. This will help improve fish survival, create more green jobs, and allow us to grow our business so we can afford to invest in more sustainable tools like waste-capture technology.
Salmon farming is already one of the most efficient forms of animal food production in the world, and we are always trying to do even better for our local communities, our shareholders, our consumers, and all New Zealanders.
We’re very positive about the opportunities that will come from this research, both in converting any mortalities into a safe and useful by-product, but also to achieve a first in New Zealand in terms of capturing the waste from under fish farms.
Meanwhile, we continue to work on strategies to improve our fish survival through better nutrition, breeding for resistance to hot temperatures, immunisation and the relocation of low flow sites to cooler, deeper waters.
We’re a company that is utterly committed to the Top of the South, and developing innovative new ways of dealing with waste shows what strong regional businesses like ours can do.
We see huge potential to share our Kiwi ingenuity not only with other companies in New Zealand, but around the world. New Zealand King Salmon employs some of the best and the brightest in Nelson and Marlborough, and we’re excited to see the results of their work.
> Download our application: NZKS WMF application