“I think the real benefit is, of course, the size of the lots (as) they are quite large. And I think that’s also a hint that any new bidder needs to come with a programme that is focusing on scale,” he said of the new plot.
“Scale is very important because at the end of the day, we all have to compete and we need to provide customers with a product that they are able to afford and pay for. And in farming, without scale that’s quite often not possible.”
CHALLENGES FACED
The size of the space, however, is not enough to get farms to bite, due to investment in new technology needed.
Bidders must use something called a “closed-containment system” to prevent damaging the environment.
Mr Leow said that such a system would allow farms to optimise the use of space, while protecting the natural biodiversity.
This means traditional fish farmers could face more challenges when it comes to ramping up the technology that is needed.