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Revista de Biología Tropical, ISSN electrónico: 2215-2075 Vol. 69(S1): 474-486, March 2021 (Published Mar. 10, 2021)

Blue Growth: Sea Urchin Sustainable Aquaculture,

Innovative Approaches

Tamara Rubilar

1,2

* & Dana Cardozo

1. Laboratory of Chemistry of Marine Organisms, Instituto Patagónico del Mar, National University of Patagonia San

Juan Bosco, Bv. Alte. Brown, Puerto Madryn, Argentina; rubilar@cenpat-conicet.gob.ar (*Correspondence).

2. Biological Oceanography Laboratory CESIMAR, CCT CENPAT,CONICET, Bv. Alte. Brown, Puerto Madryn,

Argentina.

3. University of Quilmes, Departamento de Postgrado, Roque Sáenz Peña Bernal, Buenos Aires Argentina;

dcardozo3@uvq.edu.ar

Received 24-VII-2020. Corrected 10-XI-2020. Accepted 11-XI-2020.

ABSTRACT

Introduction: “Blue Economy” refers to ocean-based economies with a sustainable approach. It focuses in

smaller carbon footprints and efficiency, principles that can be applied to aquaculture. However, it has been

difficult to develop successful blue economy projects in sea urchin aquaculture. Objective: To compare

URCHINOMICS (Norway) and ARBACIA (Argentina), two aquaculture projects with different business

models. Methods: We used publicly available information to compare both companies on the basis of their

value proposition and tensions (e.g. cultural, social economic and technological). Results: To be successful,

sea urchin aquaculture requires development of appropriate technology, open innovation and cooperation of

people with different academic, business and organizational backgrounds. Conclusion: The ultimate suc-

cess of these and similar companies will depend on free interaction of experts from multiple fields and on

technological innovation.

Key words: sea urchin; circle economy; aquaculture; Arbacia; urchinomics; business model; sustainable.

Rubilar, T., & Cardozo, D. (2021). Blue Growth: Sea Urchin

Sustainable Aquaculture, Innovative Approaches.

Revista de Biología Tropical, 69(S1), 474-486. DOI

10.15517/rbt.v69iSuppl.1.46388

Blue revolution is often referring to the

rapid development of aquaculture and to the

creation of an agricultural activity with a high

productivity (McGinn, 1998; Costa-Pierce,

2002; Movik, Mehta, Mtisi, & Nicol, 2005;

Simpson, 2011). This blue revolution is respon-

sible for the increment in food production

worldwide (Béné et al., 2016; FAO, 2020).

However, aquaculture has important different

environmental issues that must be address (Hall

et al., 2011; Ahmed & Thompson, 2019). Sea

urchin aquaculture, as any aquaculture activity

must learn from the experience, failures and

successes of the blue revolution, and improve

its practices and developing long-term solu-

tions to mitigate the environmental concerns as

water waste, use of antibiotics, organic matter

waste, etc. (Ahmed & Thompson, 2019) and

generate commercial products.

Blue Economy refers to ocean-based econ-

omies with a sustainable approach (UNDESA,

2014). The focus is to have a compatibil-

ity between economic development and ocean

health (WWF, 2015). In this way, it considers

the carbon footprint (it should be low), the effi-

ciency in the use of resources (specially water),

DOI 10.15517/rbt.v69iSuppl.1.46388

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and presents the possibility of create differ-

ent economic ventures around it (aquaculture,

fisheries, tourism, maritime transport, marine

biotechnology, renewable energy) (World Bank

& UNDESA, 2017). The FAO (2018) launched

the Blue Growth initiative for oceans, seas and

coasts. This initiative aims to develop aqua-

culture and fisheries taking in account the eco-

systems, the environmental and the economic

impact. In this way, any aquaculture enterprise

under the Blue Economy framework, should

have incorporate the sustainable development

and incorporate social, economic and environ-

mental benefits (UNDESA, 2014).

Since sea urchins have been consumed

since the beginning of humanity (Lawrence,

2007), the industry that exploit them should

engage in a Blue Economy framework. The

historical basis of this industry is the fishing

and consumption of the gonads, known in the

market as “uni” (oonee), “caviar de oricios”,

“roe” or “sea urchin caviar”. There has been a

major decline in the number of sea urchin spe-

cies supplying the international market in the

last few years, from landings of around 120 000

ton in 1995 to the current levels of about 75 000

ton (Stefánsonn, Kristinsonn, Ziemer, Hannon,

& James, 2017). Only a few species show the

highest level of fishing pressure, with 32 thou-

sand ton for Loxechinus albus and 25 thousand

ton for Strongylocentrotus spp. (FAO, 2020).

The sea urchin roe market is very traditional

in Japan, a country that accounts over 80 % of

the global consumption the seafood (Brown &

Eddy, 2015) Consumer demand for sea urchins

is driven by several key market factors, includ-

ing innovation and experimentation, conve-

nience, and health (Stefánsonn et al., 2017).

Sea urchin roe is a delicacy served in sushi

bars, restaurants and at wedding banquets (Sun

& Chiang, 2015). For centuries the roe has

been consumed in Mediterranean countries in

sauces, with pasta, breads, as well as in custards

and ice-cream (Wise, 2008; Gangi 2011; Ste-

fánsonn et al., 2017). There have been a variety

of efforts to generate new species entrants into

the market, such as the Project DIADEMAR

a private-public consortium that developed a

novel sea urchin pate from Diadema africanum

in the Canary Islands (González-Henríquez,

2012). Other species have been studied on the

Pacific coast of America, such as Loxechinus

albus in the coast of Peru-Chile (Yamashi-

ro-Guinoza, Benites-Rodrigez, Zeballos-Flor,

Tafur-Jimenez, 1996; Lawrence, Olave, Otaiza

& Lawrence, 1997; Olave, Bustos, Lawrence

& Carcamo, 2001; Ayerbe-Ochoa et al., 2018),

Tripneustes depressus in México and Ecua-

dor (Vives-Pérez, 2018; Sonnenholzner-Varas,

Touron & Panchana-Orrala, 2018; Sonnen-

holzner-Varas, Moreira & Panchana-Orrala,

2019), and Arbacia stellata in Ecuador (Jorge

Sonnenholzner, Comm. Pers., 2020).

Roe is often thought to be the main prod-

uct from sea urchins. However, in the 1980s,

the USSR pharmaceutical industry initiated

the first studies on naphthoquinone pigments,

commonly known as Spinochromes, from

sea urchins in the Far East of Russia. Rus-

sian scientists found that Echinochrome A, a

molecule belonging to the spinochrome fam-

ily, extracted from the testes and spines has

cardioprotective action and healing proper-

ties for ocular diseases and they developed

two drugs, “Histochrome” and “Gistochrome”

which were commercially approved in Rus-

sia (FSP R002363/02-260213 Manufacturer’s

Pharmacopeia Article; Mischenko, Fedoreyev

& Bagirova, 2003; US6410601B2; Mischenko

et al., 2005; Lebed’ko, Ryzhavskii, & Demido-

va, 2015; Vasileva, Mischenko, & Fedoreyev,

2017; Fedoreyev et al., 2018a; Fedoreyev et

al., 2018b; Shikov, Pozharitskaya, Krishtopina,

& Makarov, 2018; Yoon et al., 2019; Oh et

al., 2019; Barbieri et al., 2020; Rubilar et al.,

2020). There are also biologically active foods

being developed with naphthoquinone pig-

ments from sea urchins, such as Thymarin, Sea

Hematogen and AXIVOS® (Table 1). In this

manner, the actives principle present in sea

urchin testes and spines have been used com-

mercially in an innovatively. However, this is

still based on harvesting sea urchin. Still, on the

positive side, it would appear that it has been

evidenced that there are real benefits for human

health (Shikov et al., 2018; Itoh et al., 2016;

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Vasileva et al., 2017; Yoon et al., 2019; Artyu-

kov et al., 2020), and marketable products have

been developed to meet the increasing demand

for these pigments.

Sea urchin aquaculture has its own very

unique background and history (Fig. 1) but

all of the possible uses of sea urchins clearly

indicate that there is a requirement to meet the

demands of a number of areas, including qual-

ity roe production, naphthoquinone pigments

and drug discovery. In spite of the obvious

potential and research advances made to date,

according to Sun and Chiang (2015), it has

been difficult to find successful examples of

sea urchin aquaculture. Still, even though it

has been stated that sea urchin aquaculture is

a risky business (Smith, 2017), many countries

and companies have been making efforts to

overcome the risks stumbling blocks. Examples

can be found in China, Japan, Norway, Canada,

Ireland, Italy, Scotland, New Zealand, among

others. The interesting attempts cannot always

be seen to be reflected in the number of publi-

cations regarding aquaculture development in

the last 10 years; nor are these efforts reflected

in the number of patents generated around the

world concerning sea urchin aquaculture.

In this work we attempt to do a basic

review regarding the sea urchin aquaculture

attempts and the difficulties these enterprises

have as well as to examine to new examples

with Blue Economy in their core and present an

innovative approach in their projects.

Experiences regarding sea urchin species

consumed and culture

We will present the aquaculture attempts

in the main fished species around the world.

These are not the only examples of sea urchin

aquaculture; however, they showed the big

Fig. 1. Background and history of the sea urchin aquaculture according to requirement to meet different demands.

TABLE 1

Biological active foods from sea urchin extracts develop for marketing

Product Country Description Use

Axivos New Zeland & Russia Extract of sea urchin on fructosa and

Vitamin C (BBA)

Sea urchin pigments for diabetes type

1 and 2

Sea Hematogen Russia Syrup with antioxidant properties with

raw honey and sea urchin extract

Preserves the maximum amount of

substances useful for human health

Thymarin Russia Honey or fructose formulation with

Vitamin C and Echinochrome A

Dietary supplment

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picture in sea urchin aquaculture development.

China initiated sea urchin aquaculture stud-

ies in the 1980s and by the 2000s started to

produce considerable numbers of sea urchins,

motivated by the market demand for urchin

roe (Sui, 1981; Zhou, 1982; Liao 1985; Sun,

Hu, Li, & Liu, 1989; Gao, Hu, & Sun, 1990).

China adapted the processes used for other spe-

cies, such as finfish, shellfish, and seaweeds

as sea urchins have not been the main focus

of Chinese aquaculture. No specially designed

sea urchin hatcheries exist and, therefore, lar-

vae are usually cultivated in ordinary shellfish

or abalone hatcheries. China has achieved the

production of 10 million seeding and around

6 000 ton annually, however this data is from

10 years ago (Liu & Chang, 2015). Strongy-

locentrotus nudus is the most widely cultured

species with S. intermedius (Liu & Chang,

2015). There has been an increase in land-

based tank development for sea urchin brood-

stock conditioning in narrow rectangular tanks

with a flow-through commonly used in other

aquaculture species. This generates expensive

juveniles due to the cost of heating the water.

To alleviate this cost, there have been efforts

to modulate spawning periods to obtain early

seedlings (Liu & Chang, 2015). There is only

one brand formulated feed for sea urchins com-

mercialized by Dalian Pacific Seafood Co. Ltd,

who also process iced roe, frozen and canned

products from sea urchin aquaculture and these

are sold to Japan (https://www.zhangzidao.

cn/products?lang=en). Other feeds have been

developed by small aquaculture companies but

they have not been commercialized.

In Japan, the sea urchins that are consumed

are wild; there are at least six major edible

sea urchin species: S. intermedius, S. nudus,

Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus, Pseudocentro-

tus depressus, H. crassispina, and Tripneustes

gratilla. Due to the incredible pressure on sea

urchin fisheries in Japan, there is a govern-

ment effort to reseed the natural stocks. In this

context, this reseeding is not considered to

comprise an aquaculture activity. The majority

of the production is focused on S. intermedius

and most of the hatcheries are located in the

same region, Hokkaido. To produce the seed-

lings, broodstock is held in large tanks with

flow through seawater with 100 sea urchins. In

Japan, there are two types of sea urchin aqua-

culture, one with the whole life cycle based on

aquaculture and the other incorporating a short-

term aquaculture improving the gonad quality

of the wild animals. These activities started in

the 1980s but is still not widely implemented

in Japan (Unuma, Sakai, Agatsuma, & Kayaba,

2015). There were attempts during the 1980s

to apply this to P. depressus and S. intermedius

(Uchiba & Yamamoto, 1983; Uchiba, 1984;

Uchiba,1985). Currently, there are sea-based

and land-based aquaculture systems. In the sea-

based systems, the technology used is similar

to the one used for shellfish. This requires a

small capital investment but demands strong

and competent management and small boats as

the feeding, sorting and harvesting take place

in the sea and is, therefore, weather dependent.

On the other hand, the land-based operations

are at early stage and are not yet profitable.

These facilities have been converted from

existing ones used, originally, for other species

(Unuma et al., 2015).

Although Chile accounts for approxi-

mately fifty percent of global roe production,

entirely by harvesting L.albus, and has the

largest sea urchin fishery in the world (Moreno

et al., 2007; Sun & Chiang, 2015), aquaculture

is not yet developed. Heavy fishing pres-

sure has resulted in a reduction in produc-

tion by fifty percent along the Chilean Coast,

making it unsustainable (Stotz, 2004). The

Chilean government and fisherman are imple-

menting restocking and reseeding programs

(Cárcamo, 2004), especially in small scale

harvesting locations. There have been public

and private efforts to only produce restock

sea urchins (Espinoza-Alvarado & Arriagada-

Moreira, 2017).

Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis is wide-

ly distributed in the Arctic-Boreal (Sivertsen,

1997; Scheibling & Hatcher, 2001; Blicher,

Rysgaard, & Sejr, 2007) and is a species that

has been the subject of research and aqua-

culture efforts undertaken by a number of

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countries. In the 1990’s in the US and Canada,

began researching about hatcheries, restocking,

and gonad enhancement methods (Walker &

Lesser, 1998; Robinson, Castell, & Kennedy,

2002; Pearce, Daggett, & Robinson, 2002,

2003, 2004; Pearce, Williams, Yuan, Castell, &

Robinson, 2005). At that time, there were three

different hatcheries established in the northeast

of the US for seeding production. Columbia

Island Scallops Ltd. in British Columbia was

able to produce up to 750 000 seedings in 2000;

however, the company is no longer focused on

sea urchins (McBride, 2005). Peacock Cannery

was another producer of seedings which is no

longer producing. Green Seafoods tried in 2000

to establish sea urchin aquaculture in Canada,

but the correct feeding of the animals and get-

ting roe to a marketable size were important

issues that could not be overcome and they

abandoned the project (Sherrat, 2018). Green

Seafoods has once again taken up the challenge

and has been working together with the Norwe-

gian based company, URCHINOMICS on feed

innovation. For more than 30 years, research

has been going on in a variety of countries,

including countries that have no established sea

urchin fisheries, such as Norway. In addition

to research, there have been numerous small-

scale ventures to establish profitable sea urchin

aquaculture. ScanAqua AS was a sea-based

roe-enhancement farm in Hammerfest but is

no longer in operation (James, Siikavuopio, &

Mortensen, 2015). There are two other compa-

nies in Norway focusing on sea urchin aquacul-

ture (Troms Kråkebolle AS, Sea Urchin Farm

AS) since the mid-2000s. In Norway, Nofima

(The Norwegian Institute of Food, Fisheries

and Aquaculture Research) has focused on the

development of feed for the broodstock diet

and on enhancement of sea urchin roe quality

to avoid the use of macroalgae (Siikavuopio,

Christiansen, Sæther, & Dale, 2006; Siikavuo-

pio, Dale & Mortensen, 2007; Siikavuopio,

Mortensen, & Christiansen, 2008). In Russia,

there is an interest on behalf of scientists and

businessmen to develop sea urchin aquacul-

ture in the Barents Sea; however, to date,

there has been a lack of funding (Dvoretsky &

Dvoretsky, 2020).

Innovative approaches

While one can find various, on-going

efforts to produce or increase the production of

roe for human consumption to meet the global

food demand, there are fewer examples of com-

panies addressing both environmental chal-

lenges and food production on a large scale,

using innovative techniques. However, there

are two examples, located on opposite sides of

the globe and with completely different innova-

tive approaches, who are trying to tackle some

of the shortcomings of the industry and who

propose new aquaculture methods and tech-

niques to meet the Blue Economy framework.

URCHINOMICS, a company based in

Norway with a global reach and organization,

is just such a “pioneer” in this field. Focused

on an environmental challenge, namely the res-

toration of ocean habitats to lead to sustainable

food production, URCHINOMICS proposes

to harvest sea urchins to eliminate the extreme

overgrazing of kelps along coastal areas and,

then, to produce, in a land-based facility, pre-

mium sea urchin roe. The company presents

itself as a restorative aquaculture venture aim-

ing to turn an environmental challenge into a

commercial, ecological and social opportunity.

It is privately funded by a European invest-

ment group (www.urchinomics.com). URCHI-

NOMICS benefits from more than 30 years of

research on S. droebachiensis. They propose

to solve environmental problems on which

they are focusing while making aquaculture

and respond to the demand for roe. URCHI-

NOMICS works globally with fishermen, sci-

entists, ecologists and distribution partners

and have been particularly active in sea urchin

feed development with a strong cooperation

in this field with Nofima. URCHINOMICS

are confident of their success as they believe

that sea urchins are easy to farm and that in

ten weeks they can improve the roe (Sherrat,

2018). With operations in Japan, Canada and

the US, URCHINOMICS has now opened its

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first land-based sea urchin ranch in Norway in

Stavanger Municipality, which is still in a pilot

stage. Together with Nofima, URCHINOM-

ICS is part of the large Horizon 2020 proj-

ect AquaVitae which focuses on sustainable,

low-trophic aquaculture and which includes

looking at sea urchin aquaculture and logistics

(Waycott, 2020).

Geographically far from URCHINOM-

ICS’s new land-based operation in Norway,

one finds a completely new aquaculture

approach involving an unexpected species, in

an unexpected country, Argentina. Here, one

finds ARBACIA, a spin-off from the national

research council, CONICET, with strong ties

to local universities (Universidad Nacional de

la Patagonia San Juan Bosco and Universidad

Tecnologica Nacional) and is privately funded

from shrimp fishery industry. ARBACIA pres-

ents itself as an aquaculture venture aiming at

developing organic aquaculture for healthier

fish and consumers (www.arbacia.com.ar).

ARBACIA has been founded and conceived to

work as a driver behind the global movement

to improve the aquaculture industry and food

production practices. The company benefits

from 15 years of research in the sea urchin spe-

cies Arbacia dufresnii, as well as from 20 years

of research on the naphthoquinone undertaken

by Russian scientists. ARBACIA aims to pro-

duce principle actives and biologically active

additives (BBA) based on sea urchin eggs to

improve human health and result in a sustain-

able commercial, environmental and social

impact. One area of focus is on the chronic-

disease prevention in humans by using marine

natural products. And with the upcoming pan-

demia, ARBACIA has focus their efforts in

a treatment for COVID-19. ARBACIA is a

land-based operation with a comprehensively

designed program for waste control, as well as

for the tracing and control of the environmental

footprint. The company’s working methods and

techniques are based on an ethical approach

towards sea urchins (Rubilar & Crespi, 2017;

Crespi & Rubilar, 2018; Crespi & Rubilar,

in press) where the sea urchins are cultivated

from the egg to the adult, where no cruelty

is involved and where the eggs are harvested

without harming the animals. Arbacia’s core

focus is on increasing the amount of active

principles (spinochromes, astaxanthin, amino

acids, fatty acids, cholines, phospholipids, vita-

mins and minerals) in the eggs and on har-

vesting every 8 weeks. Business-wise, this is

important as wild sea urchins spawn only once

a year (Epherra et al., 2014) but by increasing

the amount of active principles and the fre-

quency of egg harvesting, there is the possibil-

ity of securing a stronger potential commercial

basis for this type of operation. ARBACIA has

developed its technology based on biotechnol-

ogy, sea-tech, other aquaculture ventures and,

most important, all of this has been specifi-

cally modelled for a particular species Arbacia

dufresnii. The tanks, the RAS, the feed and the

control of the production variables are all based

on the requirements of this species. A.dufresnii

is not commonly thought of as an edible sea

urchin. In fact, it is often rejected by the roe

market due to its color and texture. However,

these same features make it perfect for the

production of eggs with a high concentration of

healthy principle actives

Both projects have something in common:

their innovative culture. This culture refers to

the natural way to applied problem solving

based on innovation. An innovative culture is

one that leads the organization towards a way

of functioning that incorporates a systematic,

continuous learning mode, that is, with a per-

manent training perspective in order to know

how to adapt to new contexts, new technologies

and business models (Marcet, 2014).

We have analyzed both of these innovative

companies on the basis of their value proposi-

tion (Ballantyne, Frow, Varey & Payne, 2011;

Pokorná, Pilar, Balcarová & Sergeeva, 2015;

Sire et al. 2019). To do so we analyzed the

tensions (cultural, social economic, technologi-

cal, etc.) inherent in the sea urchin aquaculture

industry to secure a harmonic status between

science and business (Joffre, Klerkx, Dickson

& Verdegem, 2017; Andriopoulos & Lewis,

2009). We chose to represent this as a spring

in order to visualize the assumption that when

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the tension is released and a common language

and objective is secured, the project may be

successful as in the SECI model the spring

progressively forms more complex knowledge

with each cycle (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995;

Nonaka, Toyama & Konno, 2000; Bandera,

Keshtkar, Bartolacci, Neerudu & Passerini,

2017; Nonaka & Takeuchi, 2019).

URCHINOMICS centers its innovation

around the environmental challenge of restor-

ing the kelp forests while feeding the world

(Fig. 2). This project is able to clearly under-

stand a serious environmental challenge and

propose a novel an innovative solution based

on a high demand product, the sea urchin

roe. URCHINOMICS has applied previous

experience of sea urchin aquaculture and sea-

tech already in place. The feed that Nofima

developed was the key to kick off URCHI-

NOMICS’s project. URCHINOMICS is aimed

not only at tackling an environmental issue,

but also at producing sea urchin feed with a

diminished carbon footprint, thereby work-

ing towards the United Nations Sustainable

Development Goals 2 Zero Hunger. In this way

URCHINOMICS proposes an environmentally

sustainable business model with cutting edge

technology and an innovative approach.

ARBACIA centers it innovation around

the sea urchin Arbacia dufresnii and the health

of consumers (Fig. 3). The company aims at

improving the way aquaculture products are

produced by focusing on the most impor-

tant factor, that is, resistance to antimicrobi-

als (FAO, 2018), with the goal of producing

healthier fish and consumers. ARBACIA pro-

duced innovative extracts from sea urchin

eggs with active principles reducing the use of

antibiotics in fish aquaculture. The company

also focuses on human health, producing bio-

logically active additives (BBA) for human

consumption. They have applied previous

knowledge developed by Russian scientists and

commercial ventures already in place based

on other sea urchin extracts. In the Russian

case this is from the testes and spines (https://

tifarm.su/). ARBACIA has invested signifi-

cant funds and energy in developing sea-tech

specifically for A. dufresnii aquaculture, as

well as in developing a feed which diminishes

the carbon footprint. The critical point in the

transition from a project to a company is the

scalability of production and the business and

financial assessments. Marketing and design

thinking are key factors in the development

of commercial products from science-based

Fig. 2. Schematic spring that visualize Urchinomics project.

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projects into commercial products. ARBA-

CIA understands that the food industry is

going through a huge transformation and that

healthier products, supplements and BBA are

in demand worldwide (Stirling & Kruh; 2015;

Pinder, Walsh, Orndorff, Milton, & Trescott,

2017). As a result, new products focusing on

human health are being developed. This trend

has also energized the need of understanding

consumers and their demands in terms of the

way the manufacture of the animal –based

products takes place. In this way, consumers

rely, once again, on science and the incorpora-

tion of an ethical approach (Rubilar & Crespi,

2017). They are leading a movement call “Ali-

mentos que curan” in Ibero America, that focus

on improve human health through healthy food

to widen the social impact of ARBACIA. In

the global context, it is necessary to continue to

analyze risks in order to bring flexibility to the

business model. For example, in a pandemic

scenario, this innovative and flexible approach

allowed ARBACIA to explore the possibility of

using its products for SARS-CoV-2 and there

have been satisfactory results to date (Barbieri

et al., 2020; Rubilar et al., 2020). ARBA-

CIA has developed the sea-tech and business

model by using agro ecological principles in

its land-based operations (FAO, 2018). Conse-

quently, ARBACIA proposes an environmen-

tally sustainable business model with cutting

edge technology and approach.

The circular economy aims to achieve sus-

tainability and carbon neutrality. To accomplish

this, it is important to design models for the

optimal use of waste and pollution prevention,

ensuring that products, equipment and mate-

rials are in use as long as possible, and that

natural systems are regenerated (Schmidt et al.,

2020). Any aquaculture project or company can

aim at reaching carbon neutrality, starting from

a high carbon footprint due to the use of feed

and mechanical aeration (Boyd, 2013). Conse-

quently, ARBACIA and URCHINOMICS are

on track by eliminating fish oil and meal from

their feed. URCHINOMICS is also helping

to restore natural marine habitats. ARBACIA

is helping to ensure the environmental equi-

librium by producing land-based sea urchins

instead of fishing them as A. dufresnii is not a

species that produces barrens in the rocky reefs

of Patagonia.

Future Perspective: Without a doubt, sea

urchin aquaculture is on the global agenda.

This can be due to a number of reasons, such

Fig. 3. Schematic spring that visualize Arbacia project.

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as the pressure to secure good quality roe or

to address the environmental challenge of sea

urchin barrens, or in response to the global

change in the food industry or to drug discov-

ery pressure. Whatever the reason, there is no

doubt that this is an industry that must innovate

and advance. In this context, developing sea-

tech specifically for sea urchins has proven to

be crucial. The use of fish or shellfish facilities

for sea urchin aquaculture has not been effec-

tive. Neither has the use of feed developed

for other species. The key to success has been

open innovation and the cooperative work of

people with different backgrounds (scientists,

fisherman, ecologists, aquaculture producers,

medical, biohackers, feed producers, business-

men and women, investors, governments, etc.),

all with the same aim. Both of the companies

described here have this in common and can be

beneficial to one another and collaborate with

each other and with the many other programs

and activities underway, such as those under-

taken by Pure Ocean, UNESCO, FAO, WHO,

Harvard University, AquaVitae, HatchBlue, the

Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of

Sciences, just to name a few, in order to build

up a sustainable sea urchin aquaculture indus-

try worldwide to meet multiple purposes.

Commercially innovative products from

sea urchins, i.e. drugs and BBA developed by

the Russian scientists, comprised major com-

ponents in the development of sea urchin aqua-

culture in Argentina with a focus on human

health. This is just one example showing that

drug discovery in marine organisms is starting

to be a global issue (Abdel-Razek, El-Naggar,

Allam, Morsy, & Othman, 2020; Shin, 2020).

An approach that incorporates biologi-

cal, technological, social and environmental

issues can determine the basis of an open

business model. Such an approach incorpo-

rates and addresses cultural diversity, power

struggles, diverse interests, a broad range of

players (scientist, academics, investors, pro-

ducers, government, non-governmental organi-

zations, etc.) but also considers market aspects

(regulations, market demand, price, produc-

tion costs, etc.), all in all, making possible a

sustainable local economic development based

on a global perspective.

A successful project could be defined as

one that can rapidly respond to global, chang-

ing dynamics, reflecting these changes its busi-

ness model to meet consumers’ and society’s

demands, needs and choices. If this can be

accomplished, any number of sea urchin aqua-

culture projects could be able to be sustainable

both economically and environmentally. Time

will tell, but we all can hope that sea urchin

aquaculture will be a global reality in the

near future.

Ethical statement: authors declare that

they all agree with this publication and made

significant contributions; that there is no con-

flict of interest of any kind; and that we fol-

lowed all pertinent ethical and legal procedures

and requirements. All financial sources are

fully and clearly stated in the acknowledge-

ments section. A signed document has been

filed in the journal archives.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thanks to Kathleen

Anderson for the revision of the English,

criticism of the manuscript and her business

advice and Clara Volonteri for the final edit-

ing. We would like to thank a lot of people and

organizations that had been helping us in this

venture, we hope we name all of them. First,

to the private investors for believing in us. To

the public sector for their support, the Chubut

government (Science Secretary, Health Minis-

ter, Production Minister, COVID-19 Emergen-

cy Committee), the Municipality from Puerto

Madryn, the National Ministers (Agroindus-

try, Science and Production) and Institutes,

CONICET, INTI, INTA, INPI and Universities

(Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San

Juan Bosco, Universidad Tecnológica Nacio-

nal and Universidad del Chubut). To the US

Embassy and the GIST Program, Venturewell,

Fundacion Emprear, Aceleradora El Lito-

ral, Aceleradora CITES, Aceleradora Gridx,

Torcuato Di Tella University, IEA Business

483

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School (Centro de Emprendedores), NAVES,

Pan American Energy, Aluar, Mayma (spe-

cially Margarita Carlés, Juan Sicardi, Norberto

Fraile and Marcelo Baudes), Mercado Libre

Sustentable (specially to Guadalupe Marin),

ITBA, Hacela Rodar, Social Lab, ID-Core

Biotechnology, CIMA, Oxymoron Argentina,

Institut Pasteur, Farestaie, Radcliffe Institute

from Harvard University, Red Iberoamericana

de Equinodermos, Procens, Argentina Chal-

lenge, Red Biolangostino Argentina, Lagom,

Inntegra Consultora.

RESUMEN

Introducción: “Economía azul” se refiere a las eco-

nomías basadas en el océano con un enfoque sostenible. Se

enfoca en menores huellas de carbono y eficiencia, princi-

pios que se pueden aplicar a la acuicultura. Sin embargo,

ha sido difícil desarrollar proyectos exitosos de economía

azul en la acuicultura de erizos de mar. Objetivo: Compa-

rar URCHINOMICS (Noruega) y ARBACIA (Argentina),

dos proyectos de acuicultura con diferentes modelos de

negocio. Métodos: Utilizamos información disponible

públicamente para comparar ambas empresas sobre la

base de su propuesta de valor y tensiones (por ejemplo,

culturales, socioeconómicas y tecnológicas). Resultados:

Para tener éxito, la acuicultura de erizos de mar requiere

el desarrollo de tecnología adecuada, innovación abierta

y cooperación de personas con diferentes antecedentes

académicos, empresariales y organizativos. Conclusión: El

éxito final de estas y otras empresas similares dependerá de

la libre interacción de expertos de múltiples campos y de la

innovación tecnológica.

Palabras clave: erizo de mar; economía circular; acuicul-

tura; Arbacia; urchinomics; modelo de negocio; sostenible.

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