Blue Ridge Aquaculture

Blue Ridge Aquaculture is the largest indoor Tilapia farm in the United States, and MariCal will supply the technology for this innovative method of fish farming, which uses a combined water treatment and specialty feed process in the commercial rearing of Cobia, a marine fish, in inland areas of the U.S. "Virginia is the first state in the United States to introduce this high-tech method of fish farming," said Governor Kaine. "We are pleased that MariCal and Blue Ridge Aquaculture have selected Saltville as the site of this cutting-edge aquaculture technology." MariCal, headquartered in Portland, Maine, was founded in 1996, and has operations in Alaska, Canada, Chile, United Kingdom and Norway. The company discovered a class of molecular extracellular ion receptor proteins, called Calcium Receptors (CaR's), that serve as the biological "thermostats," or "master switches," enabling fish and other aquatic organisms to sense and respond to changes in both water salinity and nutrient levels. Over the past decade, the company has focused both its product development and licensing efforts in the fields of aquaculture, fisheries, and marine products. Blue Ridge Aquaculture, Inc., headquartered in Martinsville, has been in operation since 1993. The company raises nearly four million pounds of Tilapia each year at its 100,000-square-foot facility.