AI/IoT technologies help to develop the fisheries industry in Japan

AI/IoT technologies help to develop the fisheries industry in Japan

In Japan, Oita Prefecture is known as one of the areas leading in aquaculture production(especially yellowtail, Seriola quinqueradiata) Their yellowtail production volume is the second largest in Japan, and its proportion to the total volume of domestically farmed fish is over 7%.

Yellowtail aquaculture holds a crucial position for both the fisheries industry and food supply in Japan. However, a majority of aquaculture businesses in Oita Prefecture are fish farms of small to medium scale. These businesses still rely heavily on labor-intensive manpower, resulting in the lack of progress on improving work efficiency.

In addition to the decrease in manpower and the aging population, these farms also face a lack of human resources to efficiently obtain data that is essential for aquaculture growth rate management which consequently, this lack of essential data resulted in a barrier for businesses to assess and improve on their operation.  Such business management based on tacit knowledge, as a result of insufficient data, is expected to be a major obstacle to the succession of business in the future.

To solve these problems, Umitron was appointed by Oita Prefecture as the prime contractor for the “JFY2018 Oita IoT Acceleration Project” in 2018 to integrate the use of AI・IoT Technology for data management, and improving operational efficiency in the field of aquaculture. By building a growth rate management system using data of growth rate and marine conditions gathered through AI・IoT technology, Umitron cooperated with aquaculture businesses in Oita Prefecture and helped them achieve business stabilization and operational efficiency. Likewise, through the near real-time evaluation of asset value in the fishponds, it aided in the assessment for aquaculture insurance.