Oceanloop, in collaboration with the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), has launched the ShrimpWiz project to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into land-based shrimp farming in Europe. The initiative aims to improve shrimp farm performance while addressing welfare and efficiency challenges.
Currently, shrimp operators must handle animals frequently for weighing and health checks, which can stress the shrimp and impact their well-being. Additionally, water turbidity makes it difficult to monitor their condition or detect signs of disease. The new AI-driven system uses computer vision software to count and measure shrimp in real time, offering a non-invasive solution to these issues.
The first prototype of the system has been tested at Oceanloop’s research farm in Kiel, where an advanced smartphone captures images of shrimp every minute. These images are processed by AI algorithms, which count individual shrimp and measure their length with 95% accuracy. The system can also detect visual signs of stress in the shrimp.
The project builds on Oceanloop’s use of clear water for shrimp farming, a key advantage over traditional pond systems, where high water turbidity prevents effective monitoring. Dr Stephan Ende of AWI emphasized that the clear water technology combined with AI-based image processing could lead to better animal welfare and more efficient farming practices.
The AI system aims to drive digital transformation in indoor shrimp farming and the consortium sees the technology as a step toward achieving more objective welfare labelling in the shrimp industry.
