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From the editor: RAS leaders wanted

For those who are just tuning in to the recirculating aquaculture systems industry (RAS) in North America now, it may seem as though the United States and Canada are becoming more and more inhospitable. Investors and other outside observers might look at the current situation and raise an eyebrow at the fact that the tumultuous political and regulatory landscape may just be too much of a risk. 

One only has to look at recent news to feel as though RAS projects are just simply not the right avenue for aquaculture in Canada and the United States. But as a person in the industry media, I am also acutely aware of how appearances can be deceiving. 

Unfortunately, the news cycle favours bad news. When a project loses 20 per cent of its fish stock, or rising construction costs force a company to liquidate its assets, or a local owner ousts the company that once acquired its farm, or regulatory uncertainty forecasts broken supply chains; all these headlines capture clicks. It captures traffic, engagement and discourse. 

Again, as a person in the industry media, I can’t deny the importance of following these types of stories. But, it is not to feed in the distrust of an industry still finding its feet in North America. In fact, for me, it is more about understanding the challenges more deeply with whatever details these projects can offer to the rest of the community. It’s to allow others to learn from it and reveal systematic problems that need to be solved by innovative pioneers.

But on the other hand, there are so many RAS projects in Canada and in North America that have carved their own place in the market. There are projects that make headlines less often because they have been quietly operating and growing successfully for decades. They get less attention because they’ve built a system and a model that has worked for them and year over year, it is business as usual. Not to say that these legacy projects don’t have their own challenges to face, but they are the ones that are solving their own problems as they come; just like any other farm does.

This is what our team has been reflecting on in the past few months. Since we hosted our RASTECH 2024 Conference and Trade Fair in Charlotte, N.C., we’ve realized how much the RAS industry craves new leaders and role models. The early pioneers that the community had laid its hopes on have proven to be more like cautionary tales, so they want to hear from those who can say that they’ve done what they’ve set out to do and they’ve been doing it for a long time. We heard time and time again, “We need to hear more from the success stories.”

That is the challenge that was put forward to me for this publication and it is one that our team is working towards. We have some new projects in mind, like our upcoming virtual event, RAS Summit 2024, that we hope will address this for our readers.

Despite all the difficult challenges that the RAS has faced, even on the global stage, there is a returning optimism coming up among the community. Successful first harvests, new project deals, and whispers of expansions are bubbling again. The year is not yet over and as any aquaculturist knows, tides can turn very quickly and completely. 

Keep in touch with me at jkodin@annexbusinessmedia.com. 

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