Russian aquatech: smart solutions for India’s expanding fisheries sector

With global wild fish stocks under increasing pressure, aquaculture—the farming of fish, shellfish and other aquatic organisms—has become a critical pillar of food security and export growth. India, now among the world’s top producers, is accelerating its digital transformation across the sector. Russian FishTech companies are offering advanced data management, monitoring and automation technologies to enhance efficiency and sustainability in India’s fast-developing fisheries industry.

India’s aquaculture growth outpaces the global market

Aquaculture is one of the fastest-growing sectors in Indian agriculture. By 2025, its market value is projected to reach $4.27 billion, growing at a CAGR exceeding 7 per cent. India ranks second globally in aquaculture and third in total fish production after China. Production volumes are expected to double within the next decade—from 14.4 million tonnes in 2024 to 28.8 million tonnes in 2033. Several key factors are driving this expansion:

• Unstable wild catches caused by ocean warming and climate change
• Growing domestic demand for new products and international seafood cuisines
• Modernisation of supply chains, including expanded cold storage, refrigerated transport, and better logistics
• Faster farm-to-consumer delivery, improving freshness and product quality and boosting demand
• Government and private support programmes providing financial and technical aid, infrastructure development, and training in sustainable aquaculture, notably the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)
• The HoReCa sector, especially restaurants and hotels, acting as the largest commercial consumer and a major growth driver of India’s aquaculture industry

World food and non-food uses of fish and aquatic products, million tonnes

Source: OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2025-2034

India’s aquaculture market forecast, million tonnes 

Source: IMARC

What technologies are being implemented in Indian aquaculture?

Indian aquaculture companies are rapidly adopting a wide range of technologies, including the following:

1. Production Efficiency Technologies

• Automated feed calculation and delivery to reduce costs and improve feed conversion
• Water quality control systems monitoring parameters such as temperature, pH, and oxygen levels
• Disease-monitoring systems for the fish population, allowing efficient use of antibiotics and other treatments 
• Water purification and recirculation systems for sustainable and efficient operations
• IoT- and AI-based monitoring
• Robotic harvesting and processing systems
• AI-driven smart feeding algorithms based on fish behaviour
• Energy-efficient aeration systems

2. Digital technologies and data management

• GIS systems for monitoring farming zones and optimising site selection
• Mobile and cloud platforms for supply-chain traceability and farmer marketplaces
• AI technologies for market-trend analysis, demand forecasting, feed and resource optimisation, and “smart vision” tools for early disease detection and growth assessment, etc.

3.  Sustainable Practices

• Biofloc technology (BFT), based on managing the water’s microbial community, including the introduction of beneficial bacteria
• Aquaponics, where water containing fish farming waste is used as fertilizer in agriculture, etc.

Promising Russian fishtech solutions 

Given aquaculture’s strategic importance to India’s economy, demand for innovative FishTech solutions is growing fast. Russian developers offer advanced technologies tailored for fish farming, for example the Limatech liquid-medium aeration system and the FishWeb farm management platform by Inforika.

All fish farms worldwide that raise fish using pond or cage systems face the challenge of ensuring adequate aeration. Common issues include:

• Hypoxia, or oxygen deficiency, which is a major cause of stress, disease, and mortality in aquaculture.
• Accumulation of toxins (ammonia and nitrites), which are by-products of fish metabolism. High dissolved oxygen levels are critical for the bacteria in filters that convert these toxins into safe nitrates.
• Carbon dioxide (CO₂), high concentrations of which inhibit fish growth.
• Energy costs—one of the largest budget items for a fish farm. 
• Feed conversion. The more comfortable the conditions, including oxygen saturation, the better fish can utilise feed and grow faster, which is especially important at feeding points in pond-based aquaculture.

Bioprintech High-Speed Gas Dissolution Technology 

Russian companies have developed aeration technologies to maintain fish populations in ponds despite seasonal or daily fluctuations in dissolved oxygen levels. One such solution is the high-speed gas dissolution technology, Bioprintech, from Limatech. It increases the rate of oxygen dissolution by 970% and air dissolution by 367% compared with standard aeration systems. Operating costs for aeration are reduced 3.7 times due to significantly improved energy efficiency. As a result, at the same electricity budget, a fish farm can increase stocking density and triple fish production without the risk of hypoxia. Using this method, up to 750 kg of fish can be cultivated per hectare of open water, and the technology is suitable for all aquaculture species, including warm-water species such as tilapia, African catfish, and shrimp, which require high temperatures (25–30 °C) and uniform oxygen distribution throughout the tank or pond.

“We are preparing the necessary documentation to export our technology and see significant potential in East Asian and Asia-Pacific countries due to its high adaptability and cross-industry applicability. India and other Southeast Asian countries (Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand) are the largest producers of shrimp and pangasius, and disease outbreaks and water pollution in these regions pose significant economic risks. Russian aeration equipment in the fish farms of these countries will increase aquaculture productivity (shrimp, pangasius) through intensive oxygenation, reduce mortality, and enhance export profitability,” says Angela Bakhareva, CEO of Limatech.

FishWeb fish farm management

In addition, Russian FishTech solutions support fish farm management and staff training. With competition based on efficiency and productivity, simply installing high-performance smart equipment is not enough; professional systems for record-keeping, planning, and analysis are also essential to stay ahead.

For example, the FishWeb fish farm management platform enables:

• Tracking aquaculture operations, distributing tasks among on-duty staff, and reducing the workload of the senior manager
• Automatic calculation of production metrics, such as biological and economic feed conversion ratios
• Production planning and performance analysis. This system can result in a 20–80% time saving, with data always accessible to managers. Planning and analysis are completed 8–15 times faster and require less specialised expertise than before.

FishWeb is designed for fish farming in both cage systems and RAS or flow-through systems, and it is also adaptable for warm-water species.

“We are already seeing strong interest in FishWeb from Russian fish farmers as well as from international ones, particularly from rapidly growing aquaculture companies in Central Asia, where annual growth rates reach tens of percent and there is a pressing need for effective management and skilled personnel,” notes Evgeny Ivashko, CEO of Inforika, the developer of FishWeb.

Other promising Russian aquaculture technologies

Several other Russian projects are developing advanced aquaculture technologies, with experience and solutions that could benefit Indian producers. These include ready-made systems using Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) or closed-loop water supply units, technologies for specific tasks such as water treatment and filtration, as well as integrated solutions for automating aquaculture production.