• This collaboration will boost research and development of innovative, all-biological solutions, such as probiotics, new foods or products that protect animals from disease, all from a natural and environmentally friendly perspective.

• According to FAO data, already 50% of the seafood consumed in the world originates from aquaculture.

Vigo, 12 May 2022 – The Nueva Pescanova Group, as part of its commitment to the principles of animal welfare and respect, has reached an agreement with MAAVi, the R&D&I centre of Kimitec, a company that develops and innovates natural agricultural products. The aim is to continue making progress in obtaining biological and healthy products that improve the quality of the species and their habitat in aquaculture.

This collaboration will enable both companies (through Kimitec’s MAAVi Innovation Center, Europe’s largest research centre focused on natural agriculture and one of the world’s largest natural technology hubs for food systems transformation) to conduct research and develop innovative biological solutions to improve the health, nutrition and animal welfare of aquaculture species.

Among others, they will conduct research into the development of natural probiotics to improve the immune system of animals, generating passive protection. In addition, research will be conducted into the development of new foods for farmed species, developed from the revaluation of by-products, such as parts of fish already caught that are not used for human consumption, or into new natural products to protect animals from possible diseases.

In the words of David Chavarrías, Managing Director of the Pescanova Biomarine Center, the Nueva Pescanova Group’s Aquaculture R&D&I Centre: “Our commitment to animal welfare and respect is firm across the entire aquaculture process. Working with KIMITEC in the development of healthy products will allow us to improve the welfare of animals and habitats, as well as to advance in research for more sustainable, safer and healthier farming”.

Félix García Moreno, CEO and Founder of Kimitec and MAAVi, adds: “With this agreement, we join Nueva Pescanova’s commitment, which we will help to strengthen thanks to our know-how in biological solutions and technologies built up over 15 years”.

Nueva Pescanova Group’s commitment to aquaculture, as a complementary activity to fisheries, arises with the aim of ensuring the availability of marine resources for future generations, while promoting greater protection of wild fishing grounds. Currently, 50% of the world’s seafood consumption comes from aquaculture, an essential safeguard for the future of marine ecosystems and their sustainability in the face of a growing world population.