Fish razor clams with 96% less nitrogen emissions with Seafarm's New Vessel
Seafarm confirms its position as innovative market leader with the new construction of a unique vessel, in which the company's vision for sustainable fishing of the future is applied. The ship's characteristics are far ahead of what is customary in the market.
Seafarm recently commissioned the Padmos yard in Stellendam to build an entirely new vessel for razor-fishing. This vessel will replace the current KG8. The new building responds to current social themes such as climate change and nitrogen problems. With regard to energy consumption, a substantial reduction will be achieved with the new vessel to be built. Nitrogen emissions are reduced by as much as 96%. These energy savings and emission reductions will be achieved through the application of innovative techniques such as electric propulsion with a capacity of more than 400 kW (545 HP), after-treatment of exhaust gases and fishing with an airlift system.
Innovative fishing technique results in higher quality shellfish
The way of fishing with an airlift system, already applied to the current ship the KG-8, is unique and was first used by Adri and Dave Bout. With this system, the blades are raised to the ship with the aid of the buoyant force of air bubbles.
The use of an airlift instead of a suction pump provides enormous energy savings and also leads to less breakage of the blades and therefore less stress. Less stress for the blades results in a shell that can be made sand-free later on. And that is exactly what Dave Bout is all about: 'This is exactly what the current market is asking for', says Dave.
After fishing, the razor clams are processed by Seafarm itself at the company in Kamperland, sold and transported to the wholesale markets.
Incidentally, Seafarm receives a lot of valuable feedback from their own restaurant, located at the Jacobahaven next to the Oosterscheldekering.
MSC certification since 2011
The Dutch razor clams fishery already received the MSC quality mark in 2011. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an independent organization that has developed an internationally recognized environmental label and certification program for sustainable wild-caught fisheries. MSC certification is recognition for sustainable razor claw fishing.
These shellfish, also known as sword sheaths or razor clams, are caught in Zeeland. The animal burrows upright under the sand, filtering the seawater just like mussels and oysters do. When the MSC blue logo appears on the product, you can be sure that the shellfish have been caught in a sustainable way, taking into account the fish stocks in the sea, minimal negative impact on the seabed and good management.
Small scale is an important theme for the future of Dutch fisheries. The new Seafarm ship is therefore 'only' 25 meters long, compared to the KG-8, which is 32 meters. A smaller ship helps enormously to achieve the reductions.
Two family businesses work together
Padmos Machinefabrieken in Stellendam was commissioned by Seafarm to build this new ship. This makes Dave Bout the third generation of his family to work with the third generation of shipbuilder Padmos, Leon Padmos.
'My grandfather Iman Bout and father Adri Bout worked with Leon's grandfather and father, who, like me, is of the third generation', says Dave.
On board this new ship, the crew is made as comfortable as possible. Each crew member has their own cabin with underfloor heating and air conditioning.
'And they definitely deserve it, I'm very proud of these men,' says Dave. 'Some have been working on board with us for more than 20 years and together they work hard to also do small repairs and keep everything looking neat. With such a team and this new ship, we are more than ever ready for the future.'
With Padmos as the main contractor, the construction of the hull at CSR in Rotterdam and the outfitting with many suppliers from Stellendam and the surrounding area (Zeeland), the new vessel will be an innovative and completely Dutch quality product.