Over 80 customers of Behn Meyer Animal Nutrition and Behn Meyer Aquaculture flocked to Binh Duong, Vietnam on December 16th to witness the official opening of Behn Meyer’s new Research & Development facility.

Customers and guests saw Behn Meyer’s Center for Applied Aqua Research. Together with their aquafeed customers, Behn Meyer Aquaculture will invite students from local universities to do research on Behn Meyer’s vast portfolio of natural feed additives for shrimp and fish. 

In her Welcome Speech, Ms. Kim, General Director of Behn Meyer Vietnam praised the customers for their support and the Animal Nutrition and Aquaculture teams of Behn Meyer Vietnam for their determination to make the lab facility a reality. Prof. Le Thanh Hung of Nong Lam University thanked Behn Meyer for their long-term contribution to the aquaculture industry in Vietnam and encouraged the industry players to invest more into research-driven sustainable solutions.

Two years ago, the Behn Meyer Group of Companies opened its own office and warehouse buildings and decided that the company would also build a Research and Development facility on the same premises. On November 18, 2011, exactly 2 years after the Grand Opening of the Behn Meyer office, one of the principal shareholders of the Behn Meyer Group, Mr. Peter J. Schoenberg cut the ribbon to formally inaugurate the new Research and Development center. 

The R&D building spans more than 260 sqm and comprises of a central lab, a wet lab, lab office, and two lab rooms for further expansion. The central lab is outfitted with state-of-the-art analytical equipment and will be responsible for Behn Meyer’s enzyme analysis. Trained by Behn Meyer’s R&D staff from Thailand, the lab technicians will perform regular phytase and Hemicell analyses from customers’ feed samples. The central lab also houses water treatment and biological analysis applications. 

The second centerpiece of the R&D facility is the wet lab. Equipped with two separate recirculation systems, the wet lab will conduct feeding studies with freshwater fish like Tilapia and Pangasius. The first system consists of 24 tanks of each 200 liters. This system will be able to do well replicated studies with juvenile fish. The second system employs 12 tanks of each 500 liters and will be used to do trials with bigger fish. A shaded outside area houses 1mt and 2mt tanks to simulate grow-out trials and to condition incoming fish prior to the experiments. The addition of tanks for shrimp studies is already planned.

"The decision to build this wet lab in Vietnam is proof of Behn Meyer Aquaculture’s commitment to the industry in Vietnam and in Southeast Asia. We look forward to conduct experiments together with our customers and to address important questions about nutrition and growth of all farmed species". 

Behn Meyer Aquaculture specializes in innovations for the entire aquaculture value chain. Based on its own R&D,the company supplies customized solutions for hatcheries, feed producers, nursery and grow-out farms, and also offers market access for the final aquaculture produce in Europe.

"We believe in a natural approach to aquaculture. Most of our products are OMRI certified and are allowed for organic aquaculture. Our feed additives stretch from organic minerals, probiotics and prebiotics to liquid enzymes and a new line of phytobiotics. Behn Meyer Aquaculture is active across Southeast Asia and is currently building a new R&D complex for fresh water fish in Vietnam".