STOFNFISKUR hf. of Reykjavik, the international salmon egg breeding company, has acquired 100% share control of the Ireland-based Galway Aquatic Enterprise Ltd., (GAEL). The new company becomes part of Stofnfiskur Ireland Ltd, which is wholly-owned by Stofnfiskur hf.

The development will enable Stofnfiskur to expand its breeding and R&D activities in Ireland while also providing an additional secure base for genetic material.

"We've been working closely with GAEL since 1997, during which time we've held a minority shareholding in the company," said Dr. Vigfus Johannsson, Stofnfiskur's managing director. "Our decision to now invest in the total ownership of the company reflects our appreciation of the quality of GAEL's Corrandulla location and the proven ability of the unit to deliver top grade breeding results."

Stofnfiskur currently produce 50 million eyed salmon eggs a year from a selective breeding programs, which has been running for 12 years and is based on 400 broodstock families, all of which are maintained in Iceland. In order to obtain necessary information for its selection programmes, the company has established test sites for on-growing operations in co-operation with fish-farming companies in Scotland, Chile and Ireland. In each case, essential performance data is collected during the freshwater and saltwater growth phrase for use in future breeding selections.

"It's an exciting step forward for the company. We are also confident that it will prove to be of significant benefit to our international customers,” Dr. Johannsson