Speaking to TheFishSite, Ronnie Soutar, veterinarian and Managing Director of Aqualife, explained that the merger will allow Aqualife to diversify its operations whilst also keeping a focus on its main market - Norway.
The merger will also allow the company to strategically be part of a market that is moving towards multivalent vaccines and machine vaccination.
Also part of a wider company restructure, the merger will ensure the best possible service for existing and new customers in Norway, as well as better support for Aqualife's teams, Mr Soutar continued.
The merge will see Salmovac’s owner, Kathy Taylor, become a member of Aqualife’s management team, in a staged integration process and, from summer 2016, the merged companies will operate under the Aqualife brand.
Gordon Jeffrey, Aqualife’s founder and Chief Executive said: “Our vision for Aqualife is to stand out as leaders and pioneers, not just in fish vaccination but in fish care and welfare generally. While today’s merger consolidates our position as the largest fish vaccination company, it is much more important to us that we are the best, as judged by our customers. Kathy Taylor shares our quality-driven approach and it’s great to welcome her and her team to Aqualife.”
Kathy Taylor said: “Having built Salmovac to a leading position serving Scottish and Irish fish farms, joining Aqualife will allow us to develop even further. Salmovac staff also have experience of working in the Mediterranean and I believe we can now build on that to deliver vaccination and fish care services on a global scale.”
Ronnie Soutar, veterinarian and Managing Director of Aqualife, said: “Aqualife and Salmovac are both customer-focussed companies, so bringing our operations together will allow us to deliver even better service, particularly in terms of fish welfare, consistency, quality-assurance and delivery on promises. We aim to provide the right vaccination service for every farm of every customer, whether that’s hand-vaccination, machine-assisted vaccination or fully-automated vaccination. Having Kathy on board will also allow me to develop our fish health service, which has become a successful new venture for Aqualife.”
