KISR opens Kuwait’s first state-of-the-art marine hatchery as fish demand outpaces local supply
- KISR inaugurated the state-of-the-art facility at its marine research center in Salmiya, expanding the country’s infrastructure for fish production and aquaculture research.
- About 30% of Kuwait’s fish needs are currently met by local sources, with the remaining 70% supplied through imports.
- The hatchery is designed to produce fingerlings locally, potentially reducing reliance on imported fingerlings and supporting the development of a domestic fish-farming production chain.
The Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) has inaugurated Kuwait’s first state-of-the-art marine hatchery at its marine research center in Salmiya, creating new scope for fish production, technology transfer and private-sector investment.
KISR Director-General Dr. Faisal Al-Humaidan said the facility builds on decades of the institute’s research and technical expertise in fisheries and aquaculture, transforming that knowledge into an integrated system that supports production and technology transfer.
He said the hatchery could also pave the way for new partnerships with the private sector and investors. KISR researchers have developed hatching and breeding techniques for several marine fish of economic importance to Kuwait, including methods for producing larvae and fingerlings, feeding and care, and adapting fish to local environmental conditions.
The new hatchery was designed using modern technologies and operates as an integrated system covering broodstock care and egg production, live-feed production, larval rearing, incubation, acclimatization and fingerling production. It also includes quarantine, research and development facilities, seawater treatment and recycling systems, and continuous water-quality monitoring.
Al-Humaidan said production trials began during the facility’s technical preparation and operation phase to develop protocols for raising targeted marine species, localize production-related knowledge and technologies, and prepare the hatchery for efficient and sustainable operation.
He said the project is particularly important to food security, noting that this extends beyond current production levels to include the ability to develop the knowledge and technology needed to increase production sustainably in the future.
Fingerling production, he added, is a key part of the fish farming industry. Localizing this stage in Kuwait could help establish a production chain that begins domestically, reduce reliance on imported fingerlings and provide a scientific and technical base for farms and investment projects to advance to fish fattening and commercial production.
Al-Humaidan noted that local sources currently meet about 30 percent of Kuwait’s fish needs, with the remainder supplied through imports, highlighting the importance of developing fish farming as part of national food security efforts. He said the hatchery would also support a broader role for the private sector through the supply of fingerlings, transfer of technical knowledge and expertise, and the development and testing of technologies in Kuwait’s environment.
The facility is intended to help bring research and development results into production and turn scientific knowledge into economically valuable solutions and applications serving national priorities. Al-Humaidan said the hatchery marks the beginning of a new phase in which KISR aims to develop it into a national platform for research, development, production and technology transfer, as well as a bridge for cooperation between government agencies, the private sector and investors.
He also praised the researchers, technicians, engineers and administrators who contributed to completing the project and thanked Al Khususiya Constructions for General Trading, the company that executed the project, and its CEO Engineer Mubarak Al Waqyan and team for their efforts and cooperation.
