Aquaculture for all

Bosnian rainbow trout innovation scoops international award

Trout Health Technology & equipment +2 more

A peracetic acid dispenser for trout farms designed by Bosnian trout producer Tropic Ribarstvo has won the inaugural Alltech Coppens Inventor programme.

Zoran Tepic, managing director of Tropic Ribarstvo and his team have invented a device for safely applying the acid - which is used to treat conditions such as gill disease in intensive rainbow trout production - to fish tanks and raceways. The dispenser offers farmers a measured and safe way to effectively make such applications while also minimising stress on the fish.

Winner of the Alltech Coppens inaugural Inventor program, Zoran Tepic, managing director of Tropic Ribarstvo, is pictured receiving his award during global aqua conference, Aqua InDepth from John Sweetman, international projects manager at Alltech; and president and CEO of Alltech, Dr Mark Lyons

“There was a wide range of exciting and diverse innovations, and the choice of selecting a winner was exceptionally difficult,” said Pat Charlton, CEO of Alltech Coppens. “Traditionally, the flow in the fish tank is stopped and the peracetic acid is manually applied to the water — this can cause additional stress on the fish and uneven distribution of the therapeutic. This invention is an extremely efficient method of treating fish in a way that ensures safe and stable dosing while minimising stress to fish stock during the process.”

Along with showcasing his invention to leaders and peers of the aquaculture industry at Aqua InDepth, taking place in Eindhoven, the Netherlands on October 1–2, the company has won €2,000 worth of Alltech Coppens feed and the support of the Alltech Innovation team to help develop the idea and communicate it to the aquaculture industry.

“The Inventor programme was created with the aim of discovering and supporting some of the unique ideas developed by farmers for farmers,” explained Charlton. “At Alltech Coppens, we want to pay tribute to the small and big innovations happening each day on aqua farms across the world. We want to empower farmers who are contributing to a Planet of Plenty by supporting their inventions and bringing them to a global stage.”

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