The Riyadh-based startup develops and operates RAS to enable sustainable, water-efficient fish farming in challenging environments such as Saudi Arabia’s deserts.
Speaking to AgTechNavigator, CEO Abdulrahman Binghaith said it has been studying the local protein market and mapping the food value chain, from feed and farming technologies to processing facilities, to identify critical gaps holding the sector back.
“In Saudi Arabia, the most precious thing that we have is water. But the technologies used waste tonnes of water. And in 2012, there was a virus outbreak that led to billions in losses. What we are bringing today is new ways to mediate these kinds of risks,” he said.
A key advantage of RAS is its low water requirement, said chief technical officer Ivar Warrer-Hansen.
“With RAS, because you don’t need much water, you can locate it close to any market. It could be Saudi Arabia or another country that can be self-sufficient and minimise import,” he said.
In theory, RAS technology would make it possible for Saudi Arabia to farm cold-water species like salmon, said Warrer-Hansen.
“You can give the fish ideal conditions all year round. Of course, it would cost money to cool it in the desert, but still, it would pay off to build a salmon farm because of imports from Norway, for instance, costs $3 a kilogram. That’s plenty of money to pay for the cooling. So even salmon farming in the middle of the desert is, in theory, possible.”
While RAS has been recognised as the future of aquaculture, more than half of global RAS projects still fail due to inexperienced developers and untested technologies, said Warren-Hansen.
He is also the CEO of RASLogic and a co-founder of the Aquaculture Department at the Water Quality Institute in Denmark, where research and implementation of the world’s first successful RAS developments took place.
Consumption of fish in Saudi Arabia is relatively low due to the lack of access to seafood in general, however Binghaith believes demand for fish will rise alongside the demand for protein.
“Riyadh is in the middle of the desert. It’s very hard to find fresh fish in the first place. Some companies try to get fish from Turkey or Norway, for example. But it takes a long time to arrive there. Still, there is 200,000 tonnes of imported fish.”
Mustadem aims to position itself at the forefront of Saudi Arabia’s aquaculture transformation.
Currently, it is in the processs of constructing an a RAS farm dedicated to Sobaity sea bream.
According to the firm, it is realted to Mediterranean sea bream but better suited to the region’s warmer temperatures, making it an ideal candidate for aquaculture in Saudi Arabia.
Moving forward, it is looking to expand into more species, including trout, sea bream and salmon.
With RAS increasingly seen as the future of fish farming, the firm aims to help fish farm operate efficiently in extreme climates while supporting long-term food security goals.
