Galway Marine Tech Company Secures Funding to Tackle Sea Lice in Salmon Farms

11th July 2024

Dr Margaret Rae, founder of Konree Innovation

An Irish aquatech “start-up” is developing technology to detect sea lice in farmed salmon pens.

Konree Innovation aims to eliminate the issue of sea lice in salmon and fish farming.

The company founded by Dr Margaret Rae participated in Bord Iascaigh Mhara’s (BIM) innovation studio, and was backed by Enterprise Ireland’s pre-seed start fund in 2023.

Rae said the company is pitching for a €1 million investment round with the Halo Business Angel network and venture capital investment funds.

It also hopes to receive support from the Enterprise Ireland high potential start -up fund.

Sea lice are naturally occurring small parasites that cling on to the host fish and feed from its tissue.

Rae estimates that this costs the global salmon production industry between €3 billion and €4 billion annually.

“The solution we are developing to control sea lice is a drop-in solution, designed from the start to be a sustainable non-polluting technology,”she says.

“The salmon farmer does not have to invest in any special infrastructure to support it,” she says.

Konree Innovation is based at the Innovation Hub at the Atlantic Technological University in Galway.

It has employed two new staff members - bringing the number of staff to four – as it develops the second phase prototype.

Rae has a background in chemistry, biochemistry and marine science, and founded Konree Innovation in 2021.

Cofounder and chief technical officer Michael Flynn was previously involved in founding a “world leading” sub-sea imaging and measurement company, BIM says.

Rae is planning small scale field trial work in Ireland at a salmon producer site and at the Marine Institute’s research infrastructure in the west of Ireland and has plans to runs trials with the technology at a private research and development facility in Norway.

Potential markets for the technology are countries with a big salmon producing industry including Norway, Chile, Scotland, Canada, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, New Zealand, Australia and Ireland, BIM says.

BIM says that participation in its innovation studio in 2020, a partnership with aquaculture accelerator Hatch Blue, was “a turning point” for Rae.

“The seventh year of the programme, which is open to both Irish and EU projects involved in the aquaculture technology arena, takes place from September 30th to October 10th at the River Lee hotel, Cork city,”BIM says.

Applications are open until July 19th 2024 and more information is here

Published in Marine Tech, Aquaculture, BIM

Published in Marine Tech

Tagged under

About The Author

Afloat.ie Team

Email The Author

Afloat.ie is Ireland's dedicated marine journalism team.

Have you got a story for our reporters? Email us here.

We've got a favour to ask

More people are reading Afloat.ie than ever thanks to the power of the internet but we're in stormy seas because advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news sites, we haven't put up a paywall because we want to keep our marine journalism open.

Afloat.ie is Ireland's only full-time marine journalism team and it takes time, money and hard work to produce our content.

So you can see why we need to ask for your help.

If everyone chipped in, we can enhance our coverage and our future would be more secure. You can help us through a small donation. Thank you.

You might also want to read...

About Marine Technology

Marine technology, as defined by the European association WEGEMT, refers to the use of technology for ensuring the safe use, exploitation, protection of, and intervention in, the marine environment. This includes a wide range of technologies that support naval architecture, marine engineering, ship design, ship building, and ship operations.

In addition to these foundational technologies, marine technology also encompasses oil and gas exploration, exploitation, and production, hydrodynamics, navigation, sea surface and sub-surface support, underwater technology and engineering, marine resources (including both renewable and non-renewable marine resources), transport logistics and economics, inland, coastal, short sea and deep sea shipping, protection of the marine environment, and leisure and safety.

The importance of marine technology cannot be overstated. With over 70% of the earth's surface covered by water, the marine environment plays a critical role in our lives. From transportation to energy production, marine technology enables us to harness the immense potential of the oceans while minimizing the impact on the environment.

Moreover, the development of marine technology is crucial for the sustainable use of marine resources. As the demand for seafood and other marine products continues to grow, the sustainable management of these resources becomes increasingly important. Marine technology can help us to achieve this by providing innovative solutions for sustainable fishing, aquaculture, and other forms of marine resource management.

In Ireland, claims are made that the island country "has the potential to be the “Silicon Valley” of the aquatech world". Ireland is at a very exciting stage when it comes to aquatech. There are currently 62 aquatech companies operating here, all using technology to enable sustainable seafood farming at a time when the sector is facing many challenges.”

Ireland’s growing expertise in the developing aquatech sector means it has the potential to become a global leader in the field, with Irish aquatech companies turning over €200m last year.

Over €15m has been invested in aquatic businesses, and over 200 high-tech jobs have been created in the sector over the last six years.

In conclusion, marine technology is a vast and rapidly evolving field encompassing a broad range of technologies and applications. As we continue to explore and exploit the potential of the oceans, marine technology will play an increasingly important role in ensuring the safe and sustainable use of these resources.