Thai shrimp farm Sea Farms has become the first Asian company to install Ace Aquatec’s humane stunning system through a partnership with the Shrimp Welfare Project. The collaboration is part of an ongoing program to enhance global access to humane stunning solutions for shrimp producers.
The company said the portable system rapidly stuns shrimp in water in less than a second before slaughter, reducing handling and therefore stress. More than 400 billion shrimp are farmed and killed each year, globally. The Food and Agriculture Organization said farmed aquatic animal production is critical to global food security.
The Ace Aquatec’s A-HSU is a small, self-contained, transportable system comprising an entrance chute; stun tube; de-waterer; water collection tank; pump; power unit, and touch screen control system and is mounted on a small trailer, which allows the unit to be moved easily from factory to pond-side. The unit has been designed to withstand robust biosecurity measures and protocols and can process at a rate up to eight tons per hour.
“Shrimp producers globally have been calling for a versatile, easy-to-deploy system which can simultaneously make the harvesting process more sustainable and efficient, while also improving quality and streamlining logistics,” said Tara McGregor-Woodhams, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer from Ace Aquatec. “Working closely with the industry to further understand their needs, we have created a unique product that can be used both in factories and pond-side, and we expect to see it enhance operations for shrimp farmers, both in Thailand and at further installation sites in the future.”
