Nigel Pepper backs plans to build UK first King Prawn hatchery facility in Crowland
Plans to construct a UK-first King Prawn hatchery and processing facility in South Holland have been backed.
Aquaculture company Flo-Gro Systems wants to create a King Prawn hatchery and farm at Decoy Farm, based at Spalding Road in Crowland.
It would reportedly be the first project of its kind on a commercial basis in the country.
Proposals say that all prawns produced will be sold to restaurants and food services in the UK, reducing a reliance on foreign imports - with the majority imported from South America and Asia.
Prawn larvae would be grown in salt water until 21 days old in the hatchery building, before being taken to tanks in a ‘grow out’ building. After a 120-day period, the prawns would be ‘humanely electrically dispatched’ and shipped off .
The Crowland farm has been chosen due to ‘a number of critical factors’.
Reports say these include a saline aquifer - vital for the rearing of prawns - renewable energy production, and the ability for waste to be used in the adjacent AD plant.
Nigel Pepper, who represents Crowland on the district and county councils, has backed the project.
He said: “I understand if granted it will be the first of its kind in the country and when fully operational it will create in excess of 100 jobs.
“So as long as it meets all the planning criteria, is well screened and there is no odour from the site I would welcome the business to Decoy Farm, which already has various planning permissions granted including a green energy and recycling park.”
A planning, design and access statement says the King Prawn hatchery would resemble an ordinary poultry farm, aside from taller water towers.
The application states that £1.7million worth of funding from founders and shareholders is already in place. If permission is granted, construction would begin immediately with the aim of producing prawns by 2024.
Up to 2,250 tonnes are aimed to be produced annually after seven years.