Land-based commercial whitebait farm launches in Bluff

Photo: New Zealand Dept of Conservation

The former Ocean Beach Freezing Works in Bluff has commenced a pilot project to evaluate commercial land-based whitebait farming.

“This project, led by Manaki Whitebait, is the result of 16 years of research into the breeding of all five New Zealand whitebait species,” says Steve Penno, the Ministry for Primary Industries’ (MPI’s) director of investment programmes. “Manaki’s research shows that commercially viable production of the species is possible, and the next step at this new facility will be to scale up production to continuously service domestic demand.”

Manaki is owned by Tahu Whaoa Group Holdings, the commercial arm of the Ngati Tahu-Ngati Whaoa Runanga Trust. The company matched the SFF Futures funding worth $998,000, along with investors in the Bluff Ocean Beach site.

Manaki’s project manager Paul Decker, who led the project with Dr Tagrid Kurwie, says the project started with the objective of restoring and enhancing the native species that make up the whitebait catch.

“We started out at our Warkworth research facility trying to breed the whitebait species in captivity for their eventual release back into restored habitats,” says Mr Decker. “We managed to successfully breed all five New Zealand whitebait species, four of which are endangered.”

Mr Decker said the team identified the giant kokopu (Galaxias argenteus) as the only commercially viable species, and now have 50,000 breeding adult giant kokopu whitebait. This is extraordinary, given the Department of Conservation estimates up to 80,000 giant kokopu whitebait adults in the wild.

The goal is to deliver farmed whitebait that will provide a year-round supply to consumers, reduce the pressure on wild fishing stocks, be able to supply fish for restoration projects, and provide new jobs for the local community.

Mr Decker says the Bluff facility is testing key factors as the system is scaled up.

“We’ll be testing egg fertilisation rates, hatch rates, harvest ratios, biomass, and water change levels to achieve optimum survival and optimum feed. We’ll also work on developing a marketing plan and setting up supply chains.”

Mr Decker says the biggest expense for commercially producing whitebait in giant tanks is electricity, to ensure optimum water temperature. The second largest cost is water.

“We decided to relocate to Bluff as there’s already a licensed fish facility there with easy access to freshwater and seawater. This is essential for breeding whitebait as we need to be able to replicate their journey from river to the ocean.

In Warkworth, Manaki needed to transport salt water in, which proved too costly.

Mr Penno says the project fits with the New Zealand Aquaculture Strategy, which has a goal of $3 billion in annual sales by 2035.

“We’re aiming to supply fresh whitebait for consumption from February 2023,” says Mr Decker.


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