If you walked through the halls of Trondheim Spektrum this past August, you felt it. That specific, humming energy of 25,000 people trying to solve one massive problem: how to feed the world without breaking the ocean. Imenco Aqua Nor 2025 wasn't just another trade show with free pens and awkward networking. It felt like a turning point. Honestly, if you've been following the industry, you know the vibe has shifted from "maybe we should automate" to "automate or disappear."
Fish farming is hard. It's brutal, actually. You’re dealing with biological assets that can’t tell you when they’re sick, in water that’s often too murky to see through, battling sea lice that seem to have a personal vendetta against your bottom line. That’s why the tech Imenco brought to the table this year mattered so much. They weren’t just showing off shiny gadgets; they were showing survival tools.
The Big Shift in Trondheim
Aqua Nor 2025 hit a massive milestone. Over 10,000 visitors crammed into the venue on a single day. Think about that. Ten thousand people in one spot, all talking about biomass, oxygen levels, and cleaner fish. Crown Prince Haakon did the honors of opening the whole thing, but once the formal ceremonies ended, the real action was at the booths.
People kept flocking to the Imenco Aqua section because of one simple reality: human eyes aren't enough anymore. We’re moving into an era of "zero blind spots." You've probably heard the buzzword "Smart Farming," but at this year’s show, it actually looked like something real.
What People Actually Wanted to See
What most people get wrong about aquaculture tech is thinking it’s all about the robots. It’s not. It’s about the data. Imenco’s presence was a masterclass in this. They’ve been busy. Since acquiring Vard Aqua and Estro, they’ve basically built a full-stack ecosystem for fish welfare.
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- Subsea Cameras: These aren't your standard GoPros. The MillieOne next-gen cameras were a highlight. When you're looking at fish in a pen, you need to see more than just a silhouette. You need to see the texture of the scales, the movement of the gills, and the presence of parasites.
- Oxygenation Systems: This is the unsexy part of the business that keeps fish alive. Imenco’s VitaDi system was a major talking point. In land-based RAS (Recirculating Aquaculture Systems), if your oxygen levels dip for even a few minutes, you’re looking at a catastrophic loss.
- Biomass Estimation: This is the "Holy Grail" of the industry. Knowing exactly how much your fish weigh without stressing them out by pulling them out of the water is a game-changer.
Why the Tech at Imenco Aqua Nor 2025 is Different
Let’s be real for a second. There’s a lot of "vaporware" in the tech world. Companies promise AI-driven miracles that don't work when the water gets salty and cold. But what I noticed at the Imenco display was a focus on ruggedness.
Their hardware is built by people who grew up on the Norwegian coast. They know that if a sensor can’t handle a North Sea storm, it’s useless. They’ve integrated their acquisitions—like the former Vard Aqua equipment—into a cohesive platform. It’s not just a bunch of separate tools anymore; it’s a nervous system for the farm.
The Problem with "Good Enough"
For years, the industry relied on manual sampling. You’d scoop out a few fish, weigh them, and guess the rest. It was "good enough." But in 2025, with feed costs skyrocketing and regulatory pressure mounting, "good enough" is a one-way ticket to bankruptcy.
Precision feeding was a huge theme. If you overfeed, you waste money and pollute the seabed. If you underfeed, your growth cycles lag. The AI systems showcased by Imenco use camera feeds to detect "appetite signals." Basically, the computer watches the fish eat and tells the feeder to stop the second they’re full. It sounds like sci-fi, but it’s happening right now in pens across Norway and Chile.
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The Human Element (Yes, It Still Matters)
You’d think with all this talk of AI and sensors, the people would be redundant. It’s actually the opposite. The tech is just there to stop humans from doing the boring, dangerous, or impossible stuff.
I talked to a few farm managers at the show. They aren't looking to fire their staff; they’re looking to give them better eyes. Instead of spending eight hours a day staring at a grainy monitor or manually scrubbing nets, they’re becoming data analysts. They’re looking at dashboards, spotting trends before they become disasters, and focusing on actual fish welfare.
Acknowledging the Hurdles
It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. One of the biggest complaints I heard—and something Imenco and others have to address—is the "data silo" problem. You’ve got a camera from one company, a sensor from another, and a feeding system from a third. If they don’t talk to each other, the farmer just ends up with five different apps and a headache.
The push toward open APIs and integrated platforms (like what Imenco is doing with their "Smart Solutions" suite) is a response to this. But honestly? We aren’t fully there yet. The industry is still figuring out how to make all these different pieces of tech play nice together.
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What's Next for the Industry?
If you missed Aqua Nor 2025, the takeaway is simple: the "digital twin" of the fish farm is no longer a concept. It’s a requirement. We are seeing a move toward land-based farming (RAS) and offshore facilities that are so complex they cannot be run manually.
Imenco’s role in this is pretty clear. They’re positioning themselves as the backbone of that infrastructure. Whether it’s the physical aeration systems or the AI vision that monitors health, they are betting big on the idea that the future of seafood is high-tech.
Actionable Steps for Farm Operators
If you're looking to modernize based on what we saw in Trondheim, don't try to do everything at once. That's a recipe for a mess.
- Audit your "Blind Spots": Where are you guessing? Is it biomass? Is it sea lice counts? Start your tech investment there.
- Focus on Integration: Before buying a new sensor, ask the salesperson if it has an open API. If it doesn't work with your existing software, it might not be worth the "discount."
- Invest in Training: Your team needs to know how to interpret data, not just how to fix a broken pipe. The most successful farms are those where the crew understands the "why" behind the numbers.
- Prioritize Welfare: The 2025 Innovation Award went to GreenFox Marine for fish gender sorting—a reminder that welfare and efficiency are now the same thing. Look for tech that reduces fish stress; it almost always pays for itself in better growth rates.
The era of "guessing" in aquaculture is officially over. Between the massive turnout in Trondheim and the sheer scale of the innovations on display, it's clear that the companies that embrace this high-fidelity, data-driven approach are the ones that will still be around for Aqua Nor 2027.
Invest in your data infrastructure today to ensure you aren't managing by guesswork tomorrow. Ensure your camera systems are calibrated for the specific turbidity of your local waters to maximize AI detection accuracy.
Review your oxygenation protocols against the latest RAS standards to prevent biomass loss during high-temperature events.