Caring for our planet whilst operating our business responsibly.
Our growing global population and increasing demand for protein means that we need to produce more but this needs to be done with minimal environmental impact if it is to be sustainable for the future.
Human consumption of fish has now overtaken that of beef, with aquaculture accounting for half of all fish consumed. Aquaculture holds great potential but the industry is still relatively young and faces significant challenges.
The global population is increasing and, in order to maintain at least the current level of per-capita consumption of aquatic foods, the world willl require as additional 23 million tonnes thereof by 2020”
In order for the aquaculture industry to meet the growing demand for protein, we must ensure we continue to reduce our environmental impact, and ensure the sustainable future of the sector.
We take our leadership position seriously and are working with clients and partners to develop and deploy solutions to some of the industry’s most pressing challenges including:
- Minimising the environmental impact of ours and our partners’ operations
- Safeguarding biodiversity and the waters we operate in
- Minimising emissions such as CO 2 , phosphorus and nitrogen
- Increasing the efficiency and use of fresh water
- Applying technology to develop innovative and efficient solutions
- Collaborating with partners and industry stakeholders to share information and best-practices when it comes to the environment.

There is a great deal of alignment between Benchmark’s work and the aspirations of the Goals. Benchmark directly and indirectly contributes to the delivery of them, in particular, Goal 14: Life below water, which runs through everything we do, including:
- Collaborating with long-standing partner, Espersen, and other industry partners to develop new technologies with improved selectivity to reduce by-catch, increase fuel efficiency and reduced environmental impact — including damage to the ocean floor.
- Improving fish genetics to increase yield, quality and health. Providing advanced nutrition to enhance fish growth and health thereby contributing to a sustainable source of protein to feed a growing population.
- Developing health products and solutions that reduce waste from disease or sub-optimal production;
- Providing training and data solutions to educate and up-skill stakeholders throughout aquaculture and the food chain.
- Investing in research, development and innovation to solve the most pressing challenges to achieving greater sustainability.
Policy: Safeguarding the Health & Safety of our people and the environments in which we work
Every decision we make must uphold the ethical treatment of people and animals, minimise the impact on the environment and be economically viable.
Read more3Rs Approach to Antimicrobial Stewardship in Livestock Supply Chains
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a challenge of global significance to human health, resulting in increasing mortality and growing pressures on health care systems across the world. Benchmark is working with our global partners to adopt the 3Rs framework in their policies.
Read moreInnovation to Improve Water Quality
Benchmark is proud to be one of six organisations working in partnership to improve the quality of surface water across Europe. Funded by the EU ECO-INNOVATION initiative this €1m research project is developing a commercial Continuous Flow Integrative Sampler (CFIS-ECOPHARMA) to detect pharmaceutical compounds and pesticides in wastewater.
Read moreBeyond Monoculture Integrated Multitrophic Aquaculture (IMTA) in Europe
Integrated Multi-trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) holds great potential to deliver greater productivity and reduced environmental impact for the European aquaculture industry.
Read moreSmart-Fish Data System for Fresh Fish Cold Chain Monitoring
Through our subsidiary, FAI Farms, Benchmark is a member of the collaborative project SmartFish (2015-2018), along with the University of Iceland, Oulu University of Applied Sciences (Finland), Hätälä (Finland) and Nofima (Norway).
Read moreCleanTreat® by Benchmark
Chemical-based bath treatments that are released into the environment is one of the biggest objections to the salmon farming industry.
Read more