Egg&Smolt® 3.3
U.S. Salmon Digest
Volume 3, Issue 3
May/June 1993
Special Issue:
Domsea® Coho A Domesticated Livestock!
"Twenty years from now fish farming will have evolved into a more predictable livelihood, less susceptible to the spasms of disease and environment".
Stephen Newman, Ph.D. Northern Aquaculture, Jan/Feb. 1993.
This issue of Egg&Smolt: U.S. Salmon Digest is based on an E&S
interview with Dr. Robert Iwamoto, NMFS and Mr. Greg Hudson,
Broodstock Manager for Domsea Broodstock, Inc.
Bob Iwamoto: has worked with the Domsea genetics program since its
initiation in 1977. He was instrumental in the development of the
selective breeding program and in 1985 he became Domsea's geneticist and
Manager of RA&D.
Greg Hudson: started working with the Domesa Farms in 1976
and became its general manager in 1988. Hudson participated in the
development of the selective breeding program. He is currently the
general manager for Domsea Broodstock, Inc. and is in charge of
husbandry, management and the genetics program.
The greatest aspiration of most salmon farmers is to develop a designer fish that is hardier and better adapted to netpen environments
than its predecessors. With better growth performance and with genes
that express traits which protect them from environmental hazards,
these fish are more resistant to diseases. To create such a designer
fish, its desirable qualities must be enhanced through inherent
selective breeding programs. This in turn enables quality, cost
contained production and assists in meeting the increasing world
demand for seafood.
One of the pioneering selective breeding programs for salmonids is
the Domsea genetic program for coho in Washington state. In an
article written for Aquaculture Magazine, Douglas Tave summarized
the programs success: "Perhaps the biggest benefit of this program
is the development of a prototype selective breeding program that
not only yields improvements in important production traits, but
also demonstrates that such a program can complement, not complicate,
husbandry and production efforts at a commercial aquaculture facility."
Described as 'classical quantitative genetics' by Dr. Robert Iwamoto,
Domsea's genetic program was initiated in 1977. The company decided
the quality and quantity of its production needed to be improved if
it was to become a successful and prosperous operation.
Consequently it was essential that Domsea control the entire life
cycle of the coho. To depend on erratic returns of wild coho to
the hatcheries makes it difficult to develop long-term plans.
Domsea's History
Domsea Farms, Inc. was founded in 1969 by Union Carbide and managed
by Jon Lindbergh. At that point it was a saltwater netpen operation
rearing pan-sized coho in Manchester, Washington. Later a selective
breeding operation was added at Gorst, Washington. In 1979 Domsea
Farms, Inc. was sold to Campbell Soup and in 1988 Global Aqua, a
group of farmers from the West Coast of Norway, purchased the
saltwater operation and hatcheries in Washington to set up an
Atlantic salmon operation. Campbell Soup retained the Domsea coho
genetic program and it's broodstock.
Following this sale Campbell Soup transitioned its operations to
Idaho and Domsea's Puget Sound sites were gradually shut down.
The pan-sized coho rearing operation was moved to Blind Canyon
Hatchery, Idaho, under the direction of John Hewitt . From here
the coho were staged to contract growers. Domsea's selective
broodstock was transferred to Scattercreek Hatchery, near Rochester,
Washington.
In July 1991 Domsea Broodstock, Inc.(DBI) purchased the Domsea coho
broodstock and production from Campbell Soup. In June 1991, DBI,Inc. trademarked and registered the Domsea broodstock in the
U.S. and foreign countries. DBI is owned by AquaSeed Corporation
and Arnie Einmo of Dory Seafood, a joint venture which strengthened
both the future genetic development and the marketing of coho
foodfish. AquaSeed Corporation is an international supplier of
salmonid seedstock. Einmo, who has built the Washington-based
Dory Seafood, is a major marketer in the seafood industry and
works with coho contract growers in four states.
The advantage of the Washington-based DBI purchase of the broodstock
is that both the genetic and production programs are retained in the
state. The program is maintained at a site leased from Swecker
Salmon Farms in Rochester, Washington.
Domsea's Genetic Program
Dr. Bob Iwamato managed the Domsea's genetic program since its
outset in 1977, initially as a graduate student and in 1985 as
Domsea's geneticist and Manager for R&D. In an interview with
Egg&Smolt, Dr. Iwamoto recalls his first contact with Domsea
Farms, Inc.: "During my studies at the University, Domsea's Jon
Lindbergh approached the fisheries department regarding feasibility
studies for a coho breeding program. They were interested in
identifying specific traits that would be of most economical value
for their coho."
In a collaborative effort between the University of Washington School
of Fisheries and the Washington Sea Grant Program, Domsea's genetic
program was conceived. The University and Dr. William Hershberger,
Principal Investigator, were funded to provide technical assistance
to Domsea's breeding project. The primary goal of the program was to
create and maintain a domesticated broodstock capable of rapid growth
and good survival in intensive culture conditions. The methods
outlined to support the goal included: a) establishment of brood
lines based on family units, b) identifying selection criteria and
genetic traits, c) developing an index to rank families, d)
identifying cross schemes to minimize inbreeding, and, e)
implementing the selective breeding program.
Domsea's research team identified three general characteristics
necessary for a successful genetic program: fresh water growth,
saltwater growth, and smoltification or survival rate of the fish
upon transfer to saltwater. One major problem with coho farms was
the high mortality rate, which could reach 40% when an abrupt method
of saltwater transfer was applied.
In December of 1977, under the leadership of Jon Lindbergh and the
research team, the first families of the genetic program were
selected and established. Using a random or representative sample
of the coho, the first crosses between selected male and female
coho were initiated and two 2-year cycles were started: the 1977
odd-year line, and the 1978 even-year line. At the completion
of one full cycle, the research team had achieved the desired
results to further pursue the genetic program.
Domestication and Selective Breeding
In light of this success, a selective breeding program for the coho
was designed. The program utilized "between family selection with
individual selection at the time of spawning," according to Dr.
Iwamoto. A family is defined as the progeny of the cross between
a male and female coho with selection depending on performance of
the family in fresh water, saltwater and smoltification. 20 males
and 40 females were initially used crossing 1 male with 2 females
to strengthen heritability estimates.
Ongoing data was collected on fecundity (gamete production)
fertilization rates, survival rates to the eyed stage, in the
hatchery and during the swim-up phases. Additional growth data
was collected monthly on each family during the 5-month freshwater
phase. The coho were then branded and transferred to saltwater.
Three months later the pan-sized coho were inventoried to determine
growth rate and smoltification survival rates. A selection index
was used to rank families and identify the top families to be used
as parents for the next generation of coho.
The process of selection and culling (rejection due to facility
constraints and/or poor fertilization rates) at the various stages
of the life of the salmon was repeated for several generations.
Greg Hudson, Domsea's and currently DBI's Manager, recalls: "There
were large gains in the growth of the selective fish when compared
to the wild coho control right from the start. The gap became even
more noticeable in the mid 80's. The selected fish have always grown
faster and each year's growth would outdo the previous year".
Data indicates that after 4 generations of selective breeding the
average growth increase per generation was approximately 6.7% in the
fresh water phase and 10.1% in the saltwater phase. As a result the
time needed to produce a marketable fish decreased Nebraska Domsea®
coho growers are able to produce pan-sized coho (350 grams) in an
eight month period, while in Washington, due to colder waters,
pan-size coho are produced in 10 months. Coho families not used
in the selection process were used as production broodstock in
other hatcheries (Scatter Creek and Black River hatcheries in
Washington). Since these coho came from a breeding program,
their growth was better than coho grown for market and consequently
improved the growth rate of the production coho.
Year Round Supply
One of the main goals of Domsea's genetic program in the mid 80's,
according to Hudson, was "to have a year round supply of eggs so
that we could stage the fish out to saltwater for pan-size grow-out
and harvest every month of the year. This strategy would supply
coho to restaurants and customers year round." Domsea's genetic
team decided to take the first step in that direction by attempting
to produce a second coho spawn. The team experimented for almost
7 years. "We played with a lot of ideas that did not work.
Through a long process of trial and error we finally came upon
the current method which lead us to the most successful results"
said Hudson. "The success of the program makes Domsea coho the
only broodstock to spawn at six month intervals".
Marketing
The eggs currently produced by the Domsea broodstock are, for the
first time, available to customers and coho farmers around the
world. Under Domsea's old management the company's policy was to
retain the eggs and brood for in-house grow-out and production
operations. Today, approximately 5-8 million Domsea eggs are
sold to farmers in the U.S. and several other countries such as
Chile, Japan, and Israel. DBI works jointly with AquaSeed
Corporation and Dory Seafood. The main goal of the DBI operation
is to continue the genetic program, spawn the broodstock, secure
and ship the eggs to customers and salmon farmers worldwide.
DBI, through AquaSeed Corporation, provides Domsea coho eggs to
contract growers and Dory Seafood buys back the finished product.
Advantages of Farmed Broodstock
When asked about the advantage of farmed coho, Hudson explains:
"Our farmed coho is a domesticated livestock like a broiler chicken.
Domesticated coho are less stressed by the hatchery environment,
more friendly and more willing to feed on a regular basis, which
translates into faster growth rates than its wild counterpart.
The result is a better and more affordable product for both farmers
and consumers. Additionally, "...with selective breeding we can gage
production to customer needs. We can work better with customer on
timelines, specific traits, size, weight. However with wild coho,
you take what you get".
Health Issues
When it comes to health issues, domestication and isolation have the
added advantage of better disease control. Unlike saltwater pens,
well-water fish farms are not generally exposed to severe cases of
bacteria and viruses. At this isolation facility the coho is
maintained in individual tanks and monitored closely. Well-water
pumped into the tanks is relatively pathogen-free. In addition
fish farms abide by numerous regulatory standards issued by such
agencies as the EPA and FDA. "Between the Food and Drug
Administration and the Department of Ecology," reports Hudson,
"fish farms are regulated quite stringently, and much more so
than the poultry or dairy industries." Levels of antibiotics or
other chemicals that are allowable in the poultry or dairy industry
are not permitted in farmed fish.
Domsea Coho; what's next?
Dr. Iwamoto was asked about what the future can hold for Domsea
coho. He explains: "In addition to reaching a growth plateau,
future goals for the Domsea coho include: maximizing the fecundity
and hatchery performance of Domsea coho to increase the number and
survival rate of the eggs." Another goal is to increase the egg
size. Farmers prefer larger eggs due to the misconception that
the resulting progeny's growth and survivability will be greater.
Data indicates, however, that Domsea® coho stock grows faster and
the resulting end product is 30-40% larger (see table 2). DBI is
however, focusing some of its selection efforts on egg size to
increase marketability.