Marinove was the first aquaculture company to place its trust in us and is now part of our history. This shellfish hatchery, based in Noirmoutier, supplies oyster and clam spat. To feed these spats, Marinove cultivates microalgae every day in large quantities.
To reduce the laboriousness of microalgae cultivation by transporting less water and by obtaining more concentrated volumes, Marinove became interested in photobioreactors. Since then, Synoxis algae and Marinove have worked together to improve the quality of life at work and to satisfy the expectations of the hatchery. Today, three LUCYs are continuously producing microalgae at Marinove.
Lucie BOUCKELLYOEN, Hatchery and Quality Development Manager, and Simon OLLIER, Research and Development Manager, agreed to answer our questions about the use of the LUCY photobioreactor in an aquaculture environment.
Synoxis algae: What motivated you to acquire a photobioreactor?
Marinove : LUCY transforms the working method by taking into account the rather complicated ergonomics in aquaculture.
LUCY is on the starting line for algae cultivation. The replacement of the strain part by several LUCYs will be beneficial for the ergonomics, the cost, and therefore the productivity of this phase.
This tool allows the reduction of potential MSDs (musculoskeletal disorders) because the weight of the algae being transported to other rooms is really very reduced.
LUCY enables culture 2.0!
Synoxis algae: What productivity do you achieve with LUCY?
Marinove : With LUCY we get about 80 million cells per ml using a turnover rate of 20 to 30%. In tank culture systems we only get about 15 million cells per ml.
The cultures in LUCY have very good mobilities. This is an important quality criterion. Despite the high concentration and proximity, this mobility and liveliness is maintained until the end of the culture in larger volumes. This is a sign of quality for us.
Synoxis algae : What was the longevity of the culture at 80 million cells per ml?
Marinove : We maintained the culture for 4 months. However, we stopped after four months to allow good rotation and cleaning between our LUCYs. We could have continued…
Synoxis algae : We designed the LUCY photobioreactor to preserve microalgae cultures. Does LUCY meet your expectations in terms of production safety?
Marinove : If there is a power cut, LUCY programmes will start up again on their own. There is no need to do anything. The autonomy is interesting. For us, it is a real security.
Synoxis algae : Would you recommend LUCY to other aquaculture producers?
Marinove : Yes, we highly recommend it. Aquaculture is an old business; it is evolving slowly but we think the future is here. With these tools, the operators are cultivators and not cleaners.
We thank Marinove very much for trusting us and taking the time to answer our questions. User feedback is a major element for us in the design of our equipment and in our general operations.
See you soon!
