The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre

What The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre does

The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) is an independent, not-for-profit aquaculture innovation hub operating as a Company Limited by Guarantee in Scotland. Following its full independence from the University of Stirling on 1 April 2026 and relocation to the Life Sciences Innovation Centre in Inverness, SAIC functions as the central coordinator of collaborative R&D across the Scottish aquaculture sector, connecting industry, academia, and government through its near-400-member Consortium network. Its core activities are funding and facilitating projects in fish health and welfare (gill disease, sea lice management), environmental monitoring (eDNA metabarcoding, benthic impact modelling), and climate resilience for finfish, shellfish, and seaweed aquaculture. Notable technology outputs of SAIC-funded projects include the AquaGill biomarker panel (a machine-learning classifier of Atlantic salmon gill health at 87.7% accuracy), MeioMetBar and BactMetBar eDNA-based seabed monitoring tools, and the NewDEPOMOD benthic impact modelling platform used in regulatory decision-making.

SAIC's business model is grant-based rather than commercial: it receives a £1.4 million annual grant from Crown Estate Scotland, secured for a minimum of five years as part of a broader £7 million five-year funding package announced in 2026, with additional discrete grants such as the £1.5 million fish health R&D award from Marine Fund Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council in 2024. Funding is allocated to collaborative projects through competitive bid-based funding calls, with additional sector impact generated through leveraged co-funding from private sector and academic partners. SAIC operates with a lean in-house team of up to seven staff (Principal Officer/CEO, two Aquaculture Innovation Officers, Project Support & Finance Officer, Knowledge Exchange Manager, Knowledge Exchange Officer, Finance Manager) supplemented by contracted HR and IT support, delivering against the Scottish Government's Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture and the National Innovation Strategy. Key industry partners include Scottish Sea Farms, Mowi Scotland, Bakkafrost Scotland, Cooke Aquaculture, BioMar, and Pharmaq; academic partners include the University of Stirling's Institute of Aquaculture, SAMS, University of Aberdeen, and UHI; and SAIC maintains a formal advisory relationship with SEPA on regulatory matters.

Name

The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre

Legal name

Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Cluster Limited

Website

https://sustainableaquaculture.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SAIC is an independent, not-for-profit Scottish aquaculture innovation hub that funds and coordinates collaborative R&D across fish health, environmental monitoring, and climate resilience, serving salmon, shellfish, and seaweed producers, academia, and government through a 400-member consortium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aquaculture Innovation Services

NAICS

Aquaculture (11251), Finfish Farming and Fish Hatcheries (112511)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Aquaculture Farm Services & Operations Support (net cleaning, diving, grading, harvesting) (AFAEAAAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Aquaculture & Fish Health Services (AFAEANAE), Aquaculture Health, Biosecurity & Veterinary Services (AFAEAAAK)

Keywords

• Aquaculture innovation hub
• Collaborative research funding
• Industry-academic partnerships
• Sustainable aquaculture R&D
• Knowledge exchange services

Headquarters

HQ city

Stirling

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Annual Government Grant: SAIC receives an annual grant of £1.4 million from the Scottish Government, using income collected by Crown Estate Scotland. This supports core operations and forms seed funding for project delivery.
2. Co-funding from Private Sector: Additional impact is achieved through leveraged co-funding from the private sector, academia, and other partners on collaborative R&D projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) is a not-for-profit innovation hub that funds, manages and coordinates collaborative research and development projects across Scotland's aquaculture sectors. It convenes a consortium of nearly 400 members from industry, academia and government to deliver grant-funded R&D in salmon farming, shellfish, and seaweed. Its work is supported by a £1.4 million annual grant from the Scottish Government via Crown Estate Scotland.

Product overview

The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) operates as an independent aquaculture innovation organization that funds and coordinates collaborative R&D projects rather than selling commercial products. SAIC's innovation support includes facilitating research projects such as AquaGill (biomarker-based gill health prediction using machine learning), MeioMetBar/BactMetBar (DNA-based seabed monitoring), and supporting the NewDEPOMOD benthic impact modeling tool. SAIC also manages a Consortium network for aquaculture professionals and delivers knowledge exchange activities including workshops and sector events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Collaborative R&D Project Funding and Management SAIC's core service: identifies, co-funds and manages multi-partner aquaculture research projects (e.g. AquaGill biomarker, MeioMetBar eDNA metabarcoding, NewDEPOMOD modelling, BactMetBar) for industry, academic and government partners across salmon, shellfish and seaweed sectors.
• Industry-Academic Consortium Network Membership-based consortium of nearly 400 Scottish aquaculture organisations spanning industry, academia and government, providing networking, partnership formation and collaborative opportunities.
• Knowledge Exchange and Events Programme Workshops, conferences and knowledge-exchange activities that disseminate R&D findings and connect consortium members across Scotland's aquaculture value chain.

Quantifiable outcome

• £183.7 million invested in joint-funded salmon innovation projects across 268 publicly supported projects since 2018
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered former core partner, core and minor.

• University of Stirlingformer core partnerStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrevious host institution until March 2026. SAIC is now fully independent with no operational or governance connection. Collaboration continues with the Institute of Aquaculture on mutually beneficial research.
• Scottish Fish Immunology Research CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic research partner in AquaGill project developing biomarker-based approach to predicting gill health in Atlantic salmon. Valued at over £480k.
• Scottish Sea FarmscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry partner in AquaGill gill health project. One of Scotland's major salmon farming companies collaborating on practical fish health solutions.
• University of AberdeencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in AquaGill project bringing molecular diagnostics expertise to salmon health research.
• BioMar LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAquafeed company partner in AquaGill project. Collaboration supports development of novel functional feeds to support non-medicinal health management strategies.
• Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead academic partner in ExPAND project for NewDEPOMOD development. Core partner in multiple seabed monitoring and environmental impact projects.
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegulatory partner providing advisory role in modeling projects. SEPA is key stakeholder for compliance monitoring and environmental standards in Scottish aquaculture.
• Mowi ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor salmon farming company partner in MeioMetBar project developing DNA-based seabed monitoring methodologies. Also partner in NAMAqI aquaculture impact monitoring.
• Rivers and Lochs Institute - UHI Inverness CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in MeioMetBar project contributing to DNA-based methodologies for seabed monitoring and aquaculture management.
• PharmaqcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFish health company partner in lumpsucker research project developing vaccines and health management tools for cleaner fish used in sea lice control.
• Otter Ferry SeafishcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLumpsucker production facility partner in research project to establish sustainable supply of cleaner fish for sea lice control in Scottish salmon farms.
• Cooke AquaculturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSalmon farming company operating in Orkney and Nova Scotia. Partner in NAMAqI project studying sulphide levels as environmental monitoring tool in dispersive sites.
• Dalhousie UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner in NAMAqI project, performing sample analysis for aquaculture impact monitoring research across Scottish and Canadian sites.
• WAR Environmental LtdminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUK-based environmental consultancy and distribution partner for The Water Cleanser (TWC) technology, introduced through SAIC's consortium member introductions.
• NICO (Nanobubbles India Co.)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational technology company focused on nanobubble technology for aquaculture, introduced through SAIC's sector innovation introductions.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Nofima: Nofima is Norway's largest food and aquaculture research institute, running collaborative R&D programmes funded by government and industry. It is the closest international analogue to SAIC's model of brokering applied aquaculture innovation between academia, government, and private operators.
• SINTEF Ocean: SINTEF Ocean is a major Norwegian applied research institute focused on aquaculture, fisheries, and marine technology. Like SAIC, it coordinates large multi-stakeholder R&D projects with industry and government partners to solve sector-level challenges.
• Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS): SAMS is a core academic delivery partner for SAIC (e.g., ExPAND/NewDEPOMOD) and itself runs applied aquaculture and marine R&D projects with industry. It is a peer in the Scottish marine innovation ecosystem, with overlapping focus areas in seabed monitoring and environmental impact.
• Centre for Aquaculture Technologies (CAT): CAT is a Canada-headquartered aquaculture R&D services provider offering contract genetics, health, and nutrition research to salmon producers. It overlaps with SAIC's portfolio in fish health diagnostics, biomarkers, and applied salmon innovation.

Broad incumbents

• Marine Scotland Science: Marine Scotland Science is the Scottish Government directorate responsible for marine and aquaculture science, evidence, and monitoring. It is a broader public-sector incumbent operating in the same regulatory science and aquaculture evidence space as SAIC.
• Innovate UK: Innovate UK is the UK's national innovation agency, funding collaborative R&D across sectors including aquaculture. It is a broader public funder in the same ecosystem as SAIC, but not specialist in aquaculture.
• Wageningen University & Research (Aquaculture): Wageningen's aquaculture and fisheries group conducts applied R&D for sustainable fish production, often in multi-stakeholder consortia. Comparable to SAIC in linking academic expertise with industry challenges, though broader in mandate and global in reach.

Regional players

• Marine Institute Ireland: The Marine Institute is Ireland's national agency for marine and aquaculture research, coordinating applied R&D with industry and government. It is a regional peer to SAIC in its role as a national aquaculture innovation facilitator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights1 record

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCdo3ykvyVbNtCCW3VmDy4Ug
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/about
• Instagraminstagram.com/saicinnovation
• Facebookfacebook.com/sustainableaqua

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre