June 4, 2014
Aquaculture cluster of 11 companies formed in Catalonia, Spain
ElevenCatalan aquaculture companies, which collectively bill a total of US$457.4 million, have formed the Aqüicat Cluster Association.
The project, which began more than two years ago, has the support of the Catalan Government through Acció, the government agency responsible for the competitiveness of companies.
The companies that make up the board of Aqüicat are: Andrés Pintaluba, CENAVISA, Delta Aqua Redes, the Federation of Mollusc Producers Delta de l'' Ebre, Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (Institut de Recerca i Tecnologia Agroalimentàries, ITA), Hipra , Maymó Laboratories, Musselsforall, Servimar Innova, Technology & Medicine and Cetaqua.
This
aquaculture group intends to add new members and is open to all companies and agents of the industry value chain: producers of fish and shellfish; feed manufacturers; laboratories; providers of biotechnological solutions for
food and animal health; research centres.
According to the president of the Aqüicat, Susanna Colomer, the goal "is to be the meeting point for businesses to promote innovation in the broadest sense and increase our presence and visibility in international markets."
Currently, Catalan aquaculture ranks fifth in the ranking of autonomous communities in terms of production behind Galicia, Murcia, Valencia and Andalucía.
Catalonia has 450 kilometres of coastline for aquaculture practice.