Open Blue
Open Blue is committed to supplying the freshest, healthiest fish by continually innovating our open ocean aquaculture technology while maintaining the utmost respect for our environment. Open Blue is the leader in open ocean raised fish. We work every day to ensure that Open Blue delivers safe and healthy seafood products to the market while maintaining an integrated open ocean farming platform that is innovative and serves as a role model to the aquaculture industry.
Company details
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- Business Type:
- Distributor
- Industry Type:
- Aquaculture
- Market Focus:
- Nationally (across the country)
Our Process"
Open Blue is the culmination of more than a decade of cutting edge investigative research on deep ocean aquaculture in collaboration with the world’s leading scientific laboratories and universities. Founder Brian O’Hanlon is an open ocean aquaculture expert who has achieved several milestone successes in sustainably cultivating new species of marine fish and pioneering methods of open ocean operation. Brian developed the second private open ocean farm site located in US waters, was the first to introduce fresh farm raised cobia to the US market and was the first to produce cobia in commercial quantities in open ocean submerged cages.
By using innovative, open ocean aquaculture technology, Open Blue has moved fish farming into the deep sea. Our farms are carefully located, far from shore and sensitive ecosystems. We purposely avoid areas commonly used for artisanal fishing, recreation, conservation and navigation. We refuse to crowd our fish at high densities in small cages, tanks or ponds. Instead, we give them plenty of room in very large, stress-free, deep-water net pens.
Open Blue’s deep ocean aquaculture methods can sustainably scale with the growing seafood demand in harmony with the oceans. The open ocean is a high-energy environment where the water is pure and pristine, and our fish never see the same water twice. This approach enhances the surrounding environment, lowers the risk of disease and provides a more humane and natural growing environment for fish. This translates into guilt-free, high-quality, safe, healthy and sustainably cultivated seafood.
Sustainability
Aquaculture is the most efficient form of animal protein production. It requires less energy than other protein producing sectors because it raises cold blooded animals that do not require energy to generate heat and that use less energy to build their skeletal structures due to a decrease in gravity’s force under water. Aquaculture also requires much less raw material consumption because the feeds require less fresh water and petroleum.
At Open Blue, we challenge ourselves every day to provide our fish with the best environment possible that will cause the least impact to the environment and surrounding communities. Our farm is not located in a sheltered body of water where energy is low and wastes can build up over time; it is located in a highly exposed environment where energy is high and the fish never see the same water twice. Wastes do not build up over time, but are dispersed in massive volumes of water providing life supporting nutrients to the surrounding environment, which is healthier in deep waters.
We believe that in order to be truly sustainable one must find the right balance between economic, social and environmental factors. The reality is that no human activity has zero impact. However, if we are smart about it and conduct ourselves and our business practices in the best and most appropriate manner, our impacts can be negligible and in many cases positive. Open Blue has taken on multiple initiatives to evaluate the life-cycle of our products, including the raw materials we purchase, our day-to-day operations, distribution processes and everything in between. We will continually strive to improve the overall sustainability of our company and our products. As we take on more of these initiatives we will share them with you.
Safety.The open ocean is the best environment on the planet for fish to thrive, however, it is also one of the toughest work environments for humans. Open Blue’s team operates under very challenging conditions every day, 365 days a year. Fish do not follow weekend or holiday schedules and are not affected by harsh sea conditions of 20 foot swells. At Open Blue, we are always ready and able to care for the fish safely and efficiently. We try to be humble in our approach to open ocean operations and always respect mother nature. Open Blue’s open ocean farm equipment is incredibly robust and our team is equipped with the best tools, knowledge and training the industry can provide. The safety and well being of our team, our fish and the environment is of paramount importance to everyone at Open Blue.
Most of our farm is submerged 30 feet below the surface of the sea where the water is cleaner and more stable than at surface level. Our fish thrive in this comfortable and consistent environment. To manage and maintain our submerged farm, we operate a large team of commercial divers – something that is unique to this industry – who are all certified to international standards and undergo rigorous training.
Vision
Open Blue’s vision is to feed future generations in harmony with the ocean.
We work every day to ensure that Open Blue delivers safe and healthy seafood products to the market while maintaining an integrated open ocean farming platform that is innovative and serves as a role model to the aquaculture industry.
We are dedicated to fulfilling a major void in the seafood industry – a reliable, sustainable source of healthy, premium fish, grown with care in a clean, natural and regulated environment. We currently raise cobia, a premium sashimi-grade, marine white fish that is gaining popularity in the high-end seafood market. Open Blue has built a unique enterprise to provide a healthy environment for the fish we raise, where we control quality and maintain full traceability through every step of our open ocean aquaculture process.
At Open Blue, we are dedicated to improving the standards of the aquaculture industry through safe and sustainable innovation. Our vision for an aquaculture industry focuses on safely providing the world with healthy fish from the clean, open-ocean waters, while integrating values of social justice and environmental stewardship. As we continue to innovate and improve our technology and processes in Panama, we hope to expand our operations and facilities closer to major modern and Third World global markets, greatly reducing the energy requirements of transporting fish to market, while creating a sustainable and localized solution throughout the world.
Company History
Open Blue grew from an age-old family passion for fish. Brian O’Hanlon, Open Blue’s Founder and third generation fish farmer, realized his vision for an innovative and sustainable fish farm at an early age. In 2002, he cultivated and harvested his first stock of open-ocean raised fish. After years of planning and innovating with small-scale operations, Open Blue was founded in 2007 and began selling Open Blue Cobia to the US market in 2009. The Company is founded on Brian’s desire to fill an industry need for quality fish, raised in a natural, controlled environment and delivered to market with the highest of standards. Open Blue draws from its employees’ collective industry knowledge and experience to improve its business practices, while remaining true to its core values of sustainability, reliability and safety. Because of this dedication, Open Blue is continually innovating its business practices and inspiring others in the industry to do the same.