Preserving water, oceans, and feeding the French

Interview with Lionel Colin, QHSE and CSR Director, AQUALANDE Group

With the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) taking place in June 2025 and the Year of the Sea continuing, what practices can companies implement to protect the oceans and preserve water resources while growing their business?

An illustration with Lionel Colin, QHSE  and CSR  Director of the Aqualande group, which is supported by SG Entrepreneurs. Founded in 1981 by fish farmers from the Southwest of France, this cooperative structure has developed a comprehensive sector from selection to fish processing. Leader in the French smoked trout market with the Ovive range, the group employs more than 1,000 people.

Promoting food safety with a high-quality local product

"Our ambition is to offer as many people as possible access to high-quality local fish at an affordable price, while respecting the natural balance," says Lionel Colin. "Our stakeholders – retailers, consumers, etc. – are taking a growing interest in environmental and social issues. 

The French favour trout as an alternative to salmon and are increasingly turning to products of French origin. In response to these trends, our actions are recognised: our fish farms are Agri Confiance certified and were granted the Engagé RSE (CSR Commitment) label, exemplary level, by Afnor Certification in 2017. The goal is to sustain our activity in support of the regional economy."

Offering an alternative to overfishing

"France faces a fish supply deficit. The health of the oceans has deteriorated, and fishery resources are at an all-time low. If we want to continue eating fish under good conditions, aquaculture is a solution to overfishing.

To reduce our impact on the oceans, we have adapted the feed for our animals. We now feed our fish with 75% plant-based ingredients. For the remaining 25%, we use flours and oils produced from the leftovers of fish from our processing workshops, avoiding mixing species."

Improving water quality while adapting to climate change

"Faced with rising water temperatures, a sensitive parameter for our trout, we adapt our farms. When possible, we equip our ponds with photovoltaic panels that protect the animals from heat while producing electricity with less water.

Trout are very sensitive to water quality, and we do everything to preserve it. We recirculate water: provided it is of good quality, we recover it to reuse upstream in the system. We add oxygen and vaccinate the fry to prevent disease development. Not to mention an innovative process, bioremediation, that regenerates the quality of the environment: plants capture nitrogen and phosphorus released by the fish to produce vegetables, such as lettuce. We want to expand this solution more widely."

The Aqualande Group and SG

"To continue developing, we need to finance our projects. That is the whole point of the partnership with SG," Lionel Colin explains. "We discuss together the consideration of environmental and societal issues. Talking about CSR with your banker is a recent fundamental movement that is growing and will continue. Every actor in the economy must play their part to meet these challenges." 

Key facts and figures

Fish consumption: between dependency and overfishing

• 35.5% of fishery stocks * are overexploited, compared to 10% in the 1970s, a figure that is continuing to rise (source: United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 2025)
• 33.7 kilogrammes is the amount of fish and shellfish consumed annually per capita in France (source: FranceAgriMer, 2024** - in French only)
• •    60% of fish and shellfish consumed in France come from fishing (source: FranceAgriMer, 2024** - in French only)

Recirculation and bioremediation: the advantages

• A water recirculation system allows for the use of much less water than conventional aquaculture (source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2022 - A guide to recirculation aquaculture)
• La bioremédiation consiste à utiliser des organismes vivants (plantes, champignons…) pour dépolluer un environnement contaminé. Il s’agit d’une technologie peu invasive, économique et frugale en énergie.

* Fishery resources refer to all aquatic living species caught in the natural environment or produced by aquaculture.
**French National Institute for Agricultural and Seafood Products