Our latest news and publications

The terms “offshore” and “open ocean” have been used to describe aquaculture sites that are further from the coast or in higher energy environments. Neitherterm has been clearly defined in the scientific literature nor in a legal context, and the terms are often used interchangeably....

This work attempts to define metrics for hydrodynamic exposure, using knownoceanographic variables to provide a universal site assessment method formariculture structures....

When moving from a very sheltered aquaculture site to a very exposed oceanic aquaculture site, the energy increases proportionally in a continuum. Lojek et al. (in review) considered the primary influential parameters (water current, wave height, wave period, wavelength and water depth) which influence the species, structure, technology, methods, and operational...

As aquaculture ventures into more demanding environments, a concerted focus on operational efficiency is imperative. This publication considers the commercial and research progress relating to the requirements of aquaculture’s expansion into exposed seas, with a particular focus on the cultivation of bivalves, macroalgae, and marine finfish cultivation technologies and structural...

From “open ocean” to “exposed aquaculture”: why and how we are changing the standard terminology describing “offshore aquaculture”. This paper, published in Frontiers in Aquaculture, explores the use of the term ‘offshore’ with reference to aquaculture and the need to resolve ambiguity about its meaning. The term “offshore” with regards...

This article and video case study by TU Braunschweig features interviews with the multi-disciplinary team of researchers work to model and test prototype farming structures for seaweed farming in exposed ocean. Article by TU Braunschweig > Open ocean aquaculture: the future of seaweed farming Check out their video case study...

This article covers the international collaboration between a multi-disciplinary team of researchers to develop new farming structures for the open ocean. Article by World Fishing & Aquaculture Magazine > Mapping opportunities for open-ocean seaweed cultivation...

The foundations of new aquaculture farming businesses were laid this week in Te Tai-o-Aorere Tasman Bay.   Led by Cawthron Institute’s Open Ocean Aquaculture team, as part of the five-year MBIE-funded Ngā Pūnga o te Moana (Anchors of the Ocean) research programme, an experimental trial of new prototype farming structures for...

Multi-species aquaculture farming is being trialled in Tasman Bay in a bid to help the sector expand and adapt to climate change. Article by the Nelson Mail > Ocean trial looks at farming aquaculture species offshore | Stuff...

Ōpōtiki College Year 10 student Ngaio Wood examining a nudibranch/sea slug at Ōpape Beach during the Cawthron’s Inspiring Aquaculture programme near Ōpōtiki last December. Aquaculture education and training is on track to be a key part of Ōpōtiki College’s programme in 2024 after the success of the first Cawthron-organized Ahumoana...

Open ocean oyster farming is one step closer to becoming commercially viable thanks to a new trial facilitated through the national Ngā Punga o te Moana open ocean aquaculture research programme....

This work is part of a two-piece contribution on novel marine aquaculture technology and details physical laboratory tests of a new cultivation system for bivalve farming called “Shellfish Tower”. The tests were conducted to prove the feasibility and functionality of this aquaculture system, which is usable for the collection and...

A recently published study has shown that an innovative new open ocean aquaculture structure is a promising solution for marine farming of shellfish and other species in exposed waters....

The purpose of this publication is to perform a system analysis of new cultivation technology for exposed bivalve farming. The technical feasibility of the new construction, called Shellfish Tower, was assessed. The device has gone through several very different phases of development on its way to the deployment of the...

Cawthron Institute has received government funding to deliver two strategic and impactful research programmes....

This paper presents a brief overview of the potential zones for open ocean aquaculture, the influence of climate change, and two potential shellfish operational systems that may facilitate the expansion of shellfish aquaculture onto New Zealand’s exposed ocean sites....

A trial of new open ocean farming structures for oysters is currently underway off the coast of Ōpōtiki on Whakatōhea Mussels marine farm....