Tainan officials say new technology can reduce fish farm costs and labor

• Author: Liu Zixuan/Contributing Writer, CNA

The Tainan City Government on Thursday announced the results of aquaculture in Tainan City’s Magnetic Drum District using smart technology to reduce costs and increase profits (seven shares).

Tainan Mayor Huang Weizhe said that Tainan’s aquaculture industry is huge, with nearly 14,000 hectares of farms, the largest in the country.

In order to reduce the demand for labour, minimise damages from climate change and increase the productivity of the industry, the government has organised the event to encourage fishermen to adopt these techniques.

Image courtesy of Tainan City Government via CNA

The Industrial Development Bureau of the Ministry of Economic Affairs has cooperated with Guangwei Company to introduce smart technology into aquaculture and fishery in this year’s Taiwan Smart City Project.

They installed intelligent distribution boxes, water quality monitoring systems, fishery aerators and new cold chain systems in fish farms in Tainan’s magnetic drum and Xuejia districts.

Traditionally, fish farmers have to check farms frequently to adjust equipment and distribute feed when needed, which is labor-intensive and can pose personal risks, Huang said.

The technology could reduce labor requirements and allow remote monitoring of farms, he said.

Smart distribution boxes can control the timing of feedings and other activities and include an alarm system to call for emergency response, he said.

The technology could reduce costs and increase reproduction rates, he added.

In the lecture, fish farm operator Luo Yongzhong (Luo Yongzhong) shared his experience using smart aquaculture equipment and fishery aerators, demonstrating proper maintenance and data collection.

He said the new fishery aerators create a flow of water to oxygenate the water, a process that is five times more efficient than other methods and consumes 80 percent less energy than traditional aerators.

Li Jianyu, deputy director of the Tainan Agricultural Bureau, said traditional aerators account for 60 percent of the fish farm’s energy use.

In a statement, the bureau said the aquaculture sustainable development project is a joint effort of the municipal and central government.

With additional help from aquaculture researchers, the project hopes to transform the industry and attract more young people back home to work on fish farms, it said.