AQUATICODE AND ILKNAK ENTER AGREEMENT

Aquaticode and Ilknak enter agreement to deploy AI phenotyping and sorting for 300 million sea bass and sea bream. Hatcheries producing sea bass and sea bream have traditionally relied on manual visual assessment to evaluate juveniles and identify weak or unviable individuals.

At the volumes required by modern commercial operations, this approach is labour-intensive, highly variable, and unable to provide the biological consistency needed to optimise outcomes across large cohorts.

Aquaticode has entered into a commercial agreement with Ilknak to deploy its AquaLens technology for the phenotyping and sorting of 300 million sea bass and sea bream. Under the agreement, Aquaticode will lease its AquaLens systems to Ilknak, enabling AI-powered assessment and physical sorting of juveniles across Ilknak’s hatchery operations.

“Ilknak is one of the most significant juvenile producers in the world, and this agreement is a clear signal of where the industry is heading,” said Stian Rognlid, CEO of Aquaticode. “AquaLens brings a level of biological precision to hatchery production that was not previously achievable at commercial scale. We are proud to be working with Ilknak and to be deploying this technology where it can have a direct impact on outcomes.”

AquaLens uses multi-sensor imaging and deep learning to assess individual fish in real time and sort out unviable individuals at the point of assessment. By identifying and physically removing weak or unviable fish early, producers can reduce unnecessary feed, labour, and tank capacity spent on fish that will not perform, improve cohort uniformity, and support better animal welfare outcomes from the earliest stage of production.

“Quality at the juvenile stage determines what is possible later in the production cycle,” said Georgios Meletiadis, CEO, Ilknak. “We have always invested in the best available technology, and AquaLens gives us a level of individual-level insight that was simply not available before. Applying this across 300 million fish represents a meaningful step forward for how we operate.”

The agreement builds on Aquaticode’s growing presence in Mediterranean species. The Ilknak agreement represents a major step in the commercial deployment of AquaLens at scale across the Mediterranean aquaculture industry.

About Aquaticode

Aquaticode is the global leader in AI phenotyping and sorting for aquaculture. The company’s multi-sensor imaging and deep-learning systems provide real-time insight into fish health, robustness, and performance across species and production stages. With operations tripling year-on-year, Aquaticode is deployed with leading producers across multiple continents. Contact information: info@aquaticode.com

About Ilknak

Ilknak is one of the world’s leading producers of Mediterranean sea bass and sea bream. Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Turkey, the company operates four modern hatcheries with a combined annual capacity of 300 million juveniles, and three offshore fish farms producing sea bass, sea bream, and pagrus. Ilknak is the biggest Mediterranean juvenile producer and seller worldwide, with a sales presence in Turkey, Greece, Italy and Albania.

Image: Stian Rognlid_Aquaticode CEO and Georgios Meletiadis_Ilknak CEO. Credit: Aquaticode and Ilknak