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First workshop and field visit for the UK-Institutional Links Research Project in Brazil

Professor Ram Ramanathan and Professor Yanqing Duan visited Camboriú in Brazil in March 2019 for the first workshop and field visit for the UK-Institutional Links Research Project on “Implementing Technology solution for sustainable development of Artisanal Fisheries in Santa Catarina (TAF) in Brazil”.

During their 7 day visit, Prof Ramanathan and Prof Duan introduced the emerging digital technologies (IoT and Big Data Analytics) and their applications in aquaculture to over 50 participants in this first workshop in Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia Catarinense (IFC), Camboriú Campus. The workshop was jointly organized by Professor Joaquim Valverde and Professor Silma Battezzati Valverde in IFC and the UoB project team.

The project team members also visited four artisanal fish farms in the local region and talked to fish farmers regarding the challenges and current technology applications in fish farming practice.

The workshop and field visits provided useful insights into the current situation of technology applications in the sector. All artisanal fish (AF) farmers expressed their interest in expanding their business and also felt that technology can help them do this. However, the level of technology use in aquafarms in Brazil is still primitive. There is a limited supporting infrastructure for aquaculture development and digital technology applications in the region. There is also a general lack of awareness on sustainability issues among most AFs. Based on the field visits, three areas were recommended for future IoT and Big Data applications: (i) improving the monitoring and control of water quality, such as oxygen and temperature, by using  sensors and remote control digital technologies; (ii) optimising and managing the fish feed to improve resource efficiency; (iii) enabling fish farmers to have better access to information (e.g. suppliers information, weather, market demand and prices, etc), knowledge and technical support and expert advice via mobile Apps.