Cargill purchased EWOS, a supplier of feed to the international aquaculture industry, in 2015 for $1.52 billion.
The new $1.25 million facility, which brings together lab, nutrition and raw material knowledge from EWOS and Cargill, is dedicated to developing new diets for the fish farming industry.
The Dirdal lab was built on the Cargill (formerly EWOS) Innovation Center grounds, where research has been conducted for more than 30 years. In addition to the new research facility, the center includes a pilot plant and the seaside fish trial sites Gråttnes and Oltesvik. It has 11 employees who will work in the lab and support Cargill’s pilot plant, sea site fish trials and aqua scientists.
Cargill said it has a long-term commitment to investments in R&D, and this represents an important milestone in its ambition to be the leading force in fish nutrition research. The new facility builds on Cargill’s existing fish nutrition research and leading analytical capabilities.
The Dirdal lab joins other facilities across the globe, including a $10.5 million fish health center opened in Chile less than six months ago. Cargill’s R&D success in the aqua space is dependent on close cooperation and knowledge transfer between personnel and scientists across laboratory, pilot plant and fish trials, the company said.
“We are delighted to open our new laboratory in Dirdal,” said Daniel Barziza, global aqua R&D director. “Having world-class laboratory capabilities sitting right next to our fish trial units and our feed processing research center will strengthen the performance of our products by giving us greater abilities to understand the interaction of raw materials, nutrients and feed manufacturing. It will also enhance our raw material development work and build on our leading knowledge in this area, allowing us to accelerate our product development programs and introduce new solutions to market more quickly.”
