RESEARCH - Research Summary

Research Summary

Private investors and researchers in Canada (QC and NL) and Norway have been investigating the potential for spotted wolffish (Anarhichas minor) aquaculture. In order to rapidly and successfully reach industrial production scale it is recommended that sectors develop joint broodstock and nutrition programs, strategic approaches and financial resources. This proposal facilitates the collaboration of QC, NL and Norwegian researchers with the industry partners in order to address each of these sectors. The broodstock genetics program would include spotted wolffish acquisition and performance for comparison of Canadian and Norwegian stocks. Juvenile and grow-out trials to commercial size would assess the growth performance of Canadian stocks (versus Norwegian) in relation to temperature and salinity environmental conditions; preliminary results suggest that the Canadian stocks may be faster growing. The broodstock and growth data would then be incorporated into the economic analysis to develop ‘best practice’ production technologies and marketing strategies for the spotted wolffish into the North American market. This collaborative approach between industry and research, as well as biological and economic teams, will endeavour to validate and support further investments for realistic costs of production for commercial operations.

Network Investigators

Dr. James Wilson (Economy), Département d’Économie et de Gestion, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, QC
Dr. Nathalie Le François (Aquaculture-Physiology), UQAR/MAPAQ, Centre Aquacole Marin, Grande-Rivière, QC
Dr. Pierre Blier (Physiology-nutrition),UQAR, Rimouski, QC
Dr. France Dufresne (Genetics), UQAR, Rimouski, QC
Dr. Robert Roy (Endocrinology), Institut Maurice Lamontagne, Fisheries and Oceans, Mont-Joli, QC
Dr. Laura Halfyard (Aquaculture-Nutrition), Marine Institute, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL