Selection center
A controlled and secure environment to guarantee the traceability and quality of each generation
Rigorous genetic selection for optimized quality
The selection center is geographically and sanitarily isolated from the other Aqualande Group sites to limit any risk of transmission. No entry of fish or equipment is permitted, which makes it possible to provide the highest possible sanitary guarantee and to ensure conditions of maximum biosecurity, essential for reliability and the performance of our rainbow trout strains.
Passionate about their profession, our employees, at the forefront of knowledge, are exclusively trained in selection work.
Our teams are made up of experts in aquaculture, genetics, and bioinformatics, dedicated to the continuous improvement of the quality of fish eggs.
A team of experts mobilized to optimize our strains
Presentation of our genetic selection manager: Boudjema Imarazene, holder of a PhD in genetics, joined the Aqualande Group to work on our genetic selection programs. With several years of experience on research projects in fish genetics and genomics, as well as in farm management, his objective is to optimize the performance of our fish through various selection modules (for more details, see the “Genetic selection” page).
Under his leadership, Aqualande programs integrate the latest innovations in aquaculture genetics to develop robust, well-adapted, high-yield strains.
R&D, Selection and Reproduction
Selection notably enables a significant reduction in the use of medicinal products.
This approach is part of a vision of sustainable and responsible aquaculture.
A sanitarily secure selection center at the forefront of innovation:
Thanks to individual identification, we know their genetic heritage and their genealogical tree over 15 generations. We implement a strict program that consists of starting from a core population, evaluating populations using different criteria, and measuring performance.
This genealogical monitoring, unique in the aquaculture sector, enables full traceability and optimized selection of the best rainbow trout lines.
In partnership with the French scientific organizations SYSAAF and INRAE, the Aqualande Group has chosen an innovative selection approach, both family-based and mass selection.
Complete genetic traceability in the service of selection
Our selection center implements a strict program that consists of starting from a core population and establishing genetically identical populations that are then subjected to selection through various evaluations: growth, robustness, and yields.
We assess the performance of each fish raised, which is identified with electronic chips to ensure complete monitoring and flawless traceability.
What is selection?
Selection consists of choosing, within a population of fish, the individuals that have the most interesting characteristics for the farmer, the processor, and the consumer.
We carry out our selection at a site unique in the world.
The eggs are carefully selected and then sent to our multiplication centers, where they will become our future broodstock.
Selection carried out within the Aqualande Group and the search for the best broodstock are among the main R&D priorities of our group.
Each decision is made in consultation with the Aqualande Group’s management team and the team of scientists who advise us.
Our strain owes its excellent reputation to:
- Very good growth
- Technological yields (fillets, evisceration, egg production)
As our strain is the most widely distributed in the world, we are aware that the selection carried out on the fish is of paramount importance for long-term performance.
That is why our selection strategy is based on a balance between scientific innovation, animal welfare, and environmental performance.
Genetic excellence in the service of measurable performance, generation after generation.
The selection program: performance, quality, and sustainability
Precise selection criteria for measurable performance
The selection program is structured around several key areas:
• Farming performance: growth, robustness, and adaptability,
• Feed efficiency: the ability to digest feed, notably involving a reduction in environmental impacts,
• Flesh quality, in terms of both taste and texture,
• Resistance to diseases: IPN, SHV, NHI, Flavobacter, to limit the use of medicines in farming,
• Morphology, to improve yield during processing,
• The number and size of the eggs.
Thanks to our technological selection processes, our embryonated eggs are of high quality and have a strong growth potential recognized internationally: 12 months are sufficient to go from the egg stage to a 2.3 kg fish under optimal farming conditions.
Validated biological performance supported by concrete results
This biological performance illustrates the success of our selection programs and our commitment to offering fast-growing trout with high-quality flesh.
The quality of our trout is also at the heart of our R&D.
We have implemented methods to improve the quality of our trout, such as improving the feed conversion ratio. As a result, we achieve very low feed conversion ratios, from 1.0 to 1.2 in conventional farming sites, from egg hatching up to a size of 3 kg.
This makes it possible to significantly reduce environmental impact and decrease the amount of feed used, leading to better economic performance.
Animal welfare, natural resistance, and environmental optimization
We also control the stress resistance of our trout through upstream work on our broodstock and their behavioral capacities under extreme conditions. They are also selected for their ability to maintain a stable intramuscular fat content.
This behavioral selection helps improve animal welfare and the quality of the final fish, while reducing losses in farming.
Our focus on so-called “rustic” strains allows farming with zero antibiotics after vaccination at the fry stage. This guarantees a resilient and healthy fish.
Selection in the service of performance
Finally, we control yield criteria: the morphotype of each broodstock fish is analyzed, and ultrasound measurements are carried out to determine performance in evisceration and filleting yields.
Faced with the major threat posed by infectious diseases to fish development in farming, we have integrated research efforts into our selection program aimed at increasing the fishes’ natural resistance to diseases.
Since 2014, cutting-edge genetic approaches have been developed to identify and select the families of fish most resistant to diseases such as Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis, Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis, and Flavobacter.
We thus achieve an average evisceration yield greater than 88% and a filleting yield greater than 70%.
These performances confirm the reliability of the Aqualande Origins program and its positioning among the world leaders in genetic selection of rainbow trout.
Quality Control
By the demanding nature of our work as selectors, we have traceability that allows us to trace back beyond the grandparents of each egg.
What is selection control?
During the selection of our eggs, we focus on key control points:
• Parentage assignment through genotyping,
• Genealogical indexing,
• Control of genetic variability,
• Control of maternal and social effects,
• Cryopreservation of gametes.
These quality control procedures strengthen genetic security and ensure performance stability over several generations.
FAQ
1. What is the purpose of an egg selection center?
Our fish selection center enables the careful selection of the best eggs, which are then sent to our multiplication centers where they will become our future trout broodstock.
It is the fundamental step that guarantees the quality, robustness, and performance of our Aqualande Origins strains.
2. What is the impact of selection on egg quality?
At Aqualande Origins, genetic selection results in more homogeneous and more resilient rainbow trout eggs with an excellent hatching rate. Our strain enjoys a very strong reputation thanks to its high adaptability to water temperatures and its great robustness, both in acidic and calcareous water.
Genetic selection of trout in the service of excellence.
3. How is the quality selection of Aqualande Origins embryonated eggs controlled?
We focus on key quality control points for trout eggs, such as parentage assignment through genotyping, genealogical indexing, control of genetic variability, management of maternal and social effects, and cryopreservation of gametes.
These selection controls ensure that we have the best broodstock for our eggs.
4. How does the selection program for our rainbow trout eggs work?
Our program is structured around farming performance, the reduction of environmental impacts, flesh quality, disease resistance, morphology, and the number and size of eggs.
Each criterion is measured, analyzed, and optimized to ensure reproducible and measurable results in fish farming.
5. How do we ensure sanitary quality?
The selection center is geographically and sanitarily isolated from the other Aqualande Group sites to limit any risk of transmission. No entry of fish or equipment is permitted, making it possible to ensure the highest sanitary guarantee.
This strict biosecurity protocol is an essential guarantee for the sanitary quality and genetic stability of our trout.