It Doesn’t Take Rocket Science To Solve Vietnam Shrimp Farms’ Woes

Written By rynan technologies

Article written by Jillian Wong - RYNAN Technologies

Vietnam is among the top five shrimp-producing countries in the world but continues to be plagued by challenges that compromise the quality of its shrimp. As Vietnamese shrimp growers struggle to battle disease outbreaks, high production costs, and low shrimp yield to meet growing demand, what can be the panacea for Vietnamese shrimp farms?

RYNAN Aquaculture - Shrimp produdction

To many Vietnamese farmers, shrimp is gold. 

Shrimp has always been the biggest contributor to Vietnam’s seafood export value, and the government has plans to turn it into a key economic sector with sustainable development in the next few years. 

As one of the largest shrimp exporters in the global market, Vietnam’s shrimp exports hit an all-time high of US4.3 billion last year, which is roughly a fifth of the world’s total shrimp production. If Vietnam continues on this upward trajectory, it may well be on track to achieving its national target of US$10 billion in total export revenue of shrimp products by 2025, with shrimp output totaling over 1.15 million tonnes. 

 
RYNAN Aquaculture - Shrimp Farming

All That Glitters Is Not Gold

Despite its stellar performance, shrimp farming in Vietnam still faces numerous challenges. Current shrimp farm practices lack quality infrastructure and contribute to water pollution, environmental degradation, and disease outbreaks. Most farms are predominantly managed by small-scale farmers with limited access to digital technology for data collection and sharing. The convoluted value chain is also controlled mainly by middlemen who make full traceability an impossible task.

Raising shrimp is a risky business. Any fluctuations in water quality will directly impact shrimp growth, survival, and the livelihoods of shrimp farmers. Although water quality management is key in promoting shrimp productivity, farmers are still using low-efficient, energy-intensive aeration systems to balance pond water quality. Chemicals and antibiotics are also used to prevent diseases in hopes of higher yields to keep up with increasing demand. These practices result in unsustainable production and lower-quality shrimp in terms of size, flavor, etc. Poor quality shrimps which are unfit for export (due to antibiotic/chemical contamination) are sold in the domestic market for local consumption. 

 

“Vietnam is the third largest exporter of shrimp in the world, but over a hundred million people in Vietnam are eating bad shrimp every day. That’s wrong.” - Dr. My Thanh Nguyen, Founder and Chairman of RYNAN Technologies Vietnam.

Dr. My T - Founder of RYNAN Aquaculture

Change Must Happen - Starting From The Basics

One man is setting things straight. Dr. My Thanh Nguyen, Founder and Chairman of RYNAN Technologies Vietnam is on a mission to radically transform the way shrimp farming is done, starting with the basics of shrimp farming. 


“The wrong physics in farm design can lead to unsustainable practices.” - Dr. My Thanh Nguyen.

 
RYNAN Aquaculture - Eliminating paddlewheels

It’s Time To Eliminate Paddlewheels

In aquaculture ponds, microalgae photosynthesis, and oxygen release take place at the superficial water layer, resulting in higher oxygen concentrations and pH levels compared to water at the bottom. Aeration is essential for intensive shrimp culture and can greatly increase production levels. For decades, paddlewheel aerators have been widely used to circulate and mix oxygen-rich surface.

Dr. My Thanh Nguyen likens the paddlewheel to a “blender”. When the paddlewheels break the surface water to move oxygenated water away from the surface and into the water, what it actually does more of is breaking up feces and uneaten feed into fine particles and recirculating them back into the pond. Paddlewheels may also create disease-carrying airborne particles which can be carried by wind to neighboring shrimp ponds.waters with oxygen-depleted bottom waters. However, they do not take advantage of the dissolved oxygen molecules generated by microalgae photosynthesis during the day. While their rotations agitate water horizontally across the pond’s surface, paddlewheels fare poorly in creating vertical water movement, resulting in inconsistent DO concentration at the bottom water layers where shrimp dwell.  

Dissolved oxygen is one of the most crucial variables in aquaculture. As oxygen has a direct impact on disease resistance and feed intake; ensuring good levels of DO in pond water determines shrimp survival. Some farms may use porous diffusers on pond bottoms, but these become inviting hosts for vibrio bacteria. Most farmers also do not actively monitor DO levels in their ponds and few farms have dissolved oxygen meters. Instead, farmers choose to install additional aeration units to guard against unpredictable DO levels. With most paddlewheel aerators operating 24 hours a day, large amounts of energy are consumed and air blowers contribute significantly to noise pollution. 

The Pressure Swing Adsorption Unit by RYNAN aims to change that. The unit generates highly-concentrated pure oxygen molecules to ensure sufficient DO levels within the pond and reduce oxygen loss from the top layer. Water temperature data and DO concentration levels are continuously monitored and automatically adjusted via the mobile app, helping farmers save water treatment costs and electricity consumption by more than 50%. Unlike paddlewheels that cause turbulence and noise, the generator reduces the need for continuous operation, making it a highly-efficient aeration system that stabilizes oxygen concentrations for healthy shrimp growth. 

 
RYNAN Aquaculture - TOMGOXY Solution

Think Tank Design

The success of shrimp aquaculture also depends greatly on pond design and construction. The shape of a pond directly impacts water circulation and waste accumulation. Unlike rectangular ponds that have dead zones in corners that can accumulate waste, round ponds have a naturally self-cleaning action from their circular flow pattern. They also have better water circulation and more efficient distribution of oxygenation. 


Pond shape may be important, but an even more important consideration is the tank bottom. Organic waste matter such as uneaten feed, feces, dead phytoplankton, and carcasses accumulate on pond bottoms as sludge. These can cause a reduction in DO levels, increased ammonia levels, and a rapid decline in water quality. As shrimp are bottom feeders, the effect of sludge can be detrimental to shrimp survival. 

Flat-bottom ponds tend to trap organic waste matter at the pond's bottom. Ponds designed with funnel-shaped bottoms and a central drain will greatly reduce waste accumulation. In round ponds, water is pushed by currents from aerators toward the center of the pond. By leveraging the force of gravity with sloped bottoms, waste solids are effectively drawn toward the center and can be easily pumped out via an outlet drain.  

 
RYNAN Aquaculture - TOMGOXY, Digital solutions for shrimp farming

A New Digital Paradigm

For the longest time, shrimp farmers have limited access to good sustainable farming practices. But that’s about to change. RYNAN Technologies has developed TOMGOXY  - a complete digital shrimp farming management system that leverages AI to gather real-time information from a network of IoT devices and cloud services to achieve optimal water quality for raising healthy shrimp. 

“Tom” is shrimp in Vietnamese, “G” is “giàu” which means rich, and “oxy” refers to oxygen. That is the concept for the company’s solution for farming shrimp in oxygen-rich water. 

These farms are designed with in-tank oxygenation and waste discharge systems and automatic feeders. Floating roofs protect against diseases carried by birds or their droppings. Additionally, they provide shade from rainfall which can cause fluctuations in pH, salinity, and alkalinity that will affect feed consumption and shrimp survival. Ponds are equipped with LED lights that stimulate molting and quicker growth.

TOMGOXYTM was developed around four key criteria: efficient use of land, water, and energy resources; circular farming combining algae, shrimp, and fish farming to reduce production costs and environmental pollution; replacing the use of fossil fuel energy with renewable energy and automating farm operations. 

Compared to other intensive farms that use 80% of their land for water treatment and only 20% for grow-out ponds, TOMGOXY farms use only 50% of land for water treatment and the other half for grow-out ponds, increasing shrimp yield significantly. This is possible because of a central oxygenation system that helps farmers save water treatment costs and electricity consumption. By combining shrimp and fish farming, discharged wastes from shrimp ponds are decomposed naturally while algae ponds act as an additional source of DO. The roofs on these farms are fitted with a solar battery system to reduce CO2 emissions and protect against diseases carried by birds or their droppings. Additionally, they provide shade from rainfall which can cause fluctuations in pH, salinity, and alkalinity that will affect feed consumption and shrimp survival. Ponds are equipped with LED lights that stimulate molting and quicker growth. Automatic feeding units and smart sensors easily monitor real-time levels of DO, pH, salinity, water temperature, and other parameters.]


The TOMGOXYTM system includes tools that can detect levels of Vibrio bacteria through the RYNAN AQ-Vibriokit, and allows farmers to monitor shrimp size and health with RYNAN AQ-Vision. The compact RYNAN AQ-Spectro measures organic matter concentration while RYNAN AQ-AlkaliSense provides accurate alkalinity and pH values measurements through titrimetric analysis. Multi sensors from the RYNAN AQ-MultiSense deliver real-time water quality analysis for immediate intervention when necessary. All data are synced to the cloud and accessible from the app, providing farmers insights for effective farm management.

 

Revolutionizing Shrimp Aquaculture: Combining Simple Design Changes and Advanced Technology in Vietnam

Solving shrimp farming problems isn’t rocket science. By making simple changes to current farm designs and replacing paddlewheels with more efficient alternatives, half the battle can be won. The rest of the victory lies in harnessing the power of big data and artificial intelligence for the next generation of shrimp aquaculture farms in Vietnam. That will be the game changer. 

Reimagine the world of aquaculture with technology. Using IoT Solutions for shrimp farming, RYNAN Aquaculture brings to life a complete technological ecosystem for commercial shrimp aquaculture. By challenging traditional farming practices and harnessing the power of innovative technology, we empower farmers with digital know-how for a sustainable and productive aquaculture business.

References: 

rynan technologies
Previous

Shrimp Forever: RYNAN Technologies is trailblazing the future of Vietnam’s shrimp industry with big data, AI, and the Internet of things.
Next

Responsible Aquaculture: Farming Sustainable & Traceable Shrimps in Vietnam