JONESPORT, Maine–The Kingfish Company, a pioneer and leader in sustainable land-based aquaculture, has announced that it has concluded the purchase of land for its new facility in Jonesport, Maine. Upon completion, the facility will serve as Kingfish’s first production facility in the U.S. as the company looks to replicate its successful operation in Europe and establish significant local sustainable seafood production for U.S. retailers and food service.
The purchase follows the approval of two final permits from the State of Maine Department of Environmental Protection (MDEP) earlier this month, that enable Kingfish Maine to advance to pre-construction design and engineering on schedule. Both critical water-side permits were obtained earlier during 2021.
“These announcements represent a major milestone in The Kingfish Company’s execution of its expansion strategy, and its focus on technology driven local production of high value import dependent seafood in the EU and the US,” said Ohad Maiman, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Kingfish Company. “Today, Kingfish Maine is one step closer to achieving fully operational status, and we are ready to build on our proven blueprint, and scale our technology locally to service our network of distributors nationwide.”
Kingfish Maine is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Kingfish Company- the largest Yellowtail Kingfish producer in the EU- and will deploy the same advanced technology and operational excellence proven in the Netherlands to become the largest producer of Yellowtail Kingfish in the US once the Jonesport facility is operational.
In recent months, Kingfish confirmed a U.S. nationwide retail partnership with Whole Foods to sell the company’s yellowtail product at all locations across the country.
You can learn more about The Kingfish Company’s mission to a perfect fish here.
About The Kingfish Company
The Kingfish Company is a pioneer and leader in sustainable land-based aquaculture.
Current annual production capacity at its Kingfish Zeeland facility in the Netherlands is 1,500 tons of high quality and high value Yellowtail Kingfish.
Expansion is underway and capacity in the Netherlands will reach 3,500 tons in the second half of 2022. In the US, permitting, design, and engineering for the company’s approximate 8,500 ton capacity facility is in advanced stages.
Production is based on advanced recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), which protect biodiversity and ensure bio security. Animal welfare is paramount, and the fish is grown without use of antibiotics and vaccines. Operations run on 100 percent renewable energy, sourced from wind, solar and biogas. The company’s facilities operate on sea water, avoiding wasting of precious fresh water.
The Kingfish Company’s main product at present, the Yellowtail Kingfish (also known as Ricciola/Hiramasa/Greater Amberjack) is a highly versatile premium fish species, well known in the Italian and Asian fusion cuisines.
Its products are certified and approved as sustainable and environmentally friendly by Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) and British Retail Consortium (BRC). It was the winner of the 2019 Seafood Excellence Award, and it is recommended as green choice by Good Fish Foundation.
