Three BC aquaculture innovations were awarded a combined $325,000 in funding in Innovate BC’s inaugural Aquaculture Innovation Awards.

Who won what? Poseidon Ocean Systems and ThisFish both took home $150,000, and Industrial Plankton received $25,000 after winning the Fan Favourite award, as voted on by a live audience.

Raghwa Gopal, President + CEO, Innovate BC, commented:

We’re thrilled to work with the BC government in this first-of-its kind event. Innovate BC excels at identifying innovation that provides industry with benefits to fuel and sustain growth. And we believe matching BC innovation with traditional sectors amplifies the benefits felt by the entire BC innovation ecosystem.

Details on the awardees:

• Poseidon Ocean Systems’ Flowpressor Technology Platform reduces diesel fuel consumption by 55% in real-world testing. It is an innovative clean compressor technology specifically designed for aquaculture to produce compressed air to run aeration systems, oxygen generators, and feed systems.

• ThisFish’s Tally traceability software for the aquaculture sector enables significant improvements in time and quality through automation and predictive analytics. It links data from farm to factory through IoT devices and tablet computers and uses machine learning algorithms.

• Industrial Plankton develops and produces algae bioreactors for live feed production in aquaculture hatcheries. Their technology is currently used in 20 countries, primarily in shellfish and shrimp hatcheries.

A list of the top 10 finalists is available at InnovateBC.ca.