Internationally renowned aquaculture expertise

Aquaculture is the fastest growing agriculture sector in the world with a global growth rate of 8%. In Scotland, the aquaculture sector plans to double its output by 2030. 

The Institute of Aquaculture at Stirling University is the top-rated aquaculture research and training department in the UK, a leading international centre in their field, and in the top 150 of World University Rankings of schools of agriculture. Investment of £17 million through the Stirling and Clackmannanshire City Region Deal will create a new National Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Hub (NATIH); a pioneering innovation community that drives the UK’s ambitions to become a world leader in modern aquaculture practice.

Led by the University of Stirling, the National Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Hub will deliver new, state-of-the-art laboratories and aquatic experimental facilities, reinforcing this world-leading work. Collaboration will be at the heart of the approach, enabling experts to conduct dynamic and commercially relevant research in partnership with leading aquaculture companies, and ensure students are equipped with the skills the blue food economy of the future will require. By co-locating industry partners with the Institute of Aquaculture, ground-breaking scientific research will be translated into practical, applied solutions that support economic development in communities from rural Scotland to South America, Africa and the Middle East. In doing so, UK expertise and technology will be placed at the centre of efforts to support a sustainable international industry, while enhancing global food security.

Also found at the University of Stirling is the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre which aims to transform the relationship between the aquaculture industry and research communities by connecting people and providing funding to universities who deliver applied solutions to industry challenges. Combined with the research element, Stirling University produces graduates to support the sector with Degrees in Aquaculture and Post Graduate courses in Aquatic veterinary studies, aquatic food security, sustainable aquaculture and aquatic pathobiology.

Combining the size of the aquaculture market with the world class aquaculture research and innovation facilities on our doorstep and placing that alongside Stirling’s existing business infrastructure attributes, means that Stirling can offer a genuinely compelling proposition to companies within the aquaculture sector who wish to innovate and pioneer new technology for the sector.

If you are a business operating in any of the areas below then having on the spot access to Stirling’s internationally renowned aquaculture expertise can give you a distinct advantage.

If you’d like to discuss potential investment opportunities available through the National Aquaculture Technology and Innovation Hub please contact Dr John Rogers, Executive Director of Research, Innovation and Business Engagement at [email protected] or on +44 (0) 1786 466445

SAIC's Chief Executive, Heather Jones:

“Stirling is an ideal base for the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre. We’re close to Edinburgh and Glasgow, and within easy driving distance of many of the aquaculture businesses we work with – whether they’re in Oban, Fort William, Inverness or in the Central Belt.
 
Our consortium members like the location for meetings and workshops: it’s more convenient for businesses’ HQs and operational bases than Edinburgh or Glasgow would be. And it’s centrally positioned for academics travelling from Aberdeen, St Andrews, Oban, Glasgow and Inverness.

There are other reasons to be based in Stirling too. The local authority is efficient and responsive, the people friendly, and the staff at Stirling University Innovation Park very supportive.
 
It’s also a great place to live if you like walking, climbing, mountain-biking or looking at spectacular Scottish landscapes. We’ve already managed to persuade three staff members to relocate here from Canada, England and Edinburgh!”

Adding to our already compelling offer is the recently launched Centre for Sustainable Practice and Living at Stirling University. By combining world class expertise in sustainability practice with the wider offer of the Stirling Management School, the centre is an active hub for innovative research and education and seeks to facilitate meaningful collaborations between academia, industry and the public sector.

Aquaculture is an industry which places sustainability explicitly at its centre and by combining the Institute and Innovation Centre with the Centre for Sustainable Practice and Living at Stirling University, Stirling offers competitive advantages that are hard to rival anywhere else in the world.