Budj Bim Aquaculture Centre – Live Eel Display

We are very pleased to announce that Fresh By Design has been engaged to work with the The Budj Bim Aquaculture Centre to design and construct a recirculating aquaculture system for the storage and display of live eels. The fish will be stored on site for viewing and educational purposes and may be purchased, processed and consumed on site by the general public.

The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape is in the traditional Country of the Gunditjmara Aboriginal people, south-west Victoria, Australia. This area is one of the world’s oldest aquaculture sites, consisting of constructed weirs, channels and dams used to trap, store and harvest short-finned eel (Anguilla australis). These elaborate aquaculture systems were constructed approximately 6,600 years ago, providing an economic and social base for Gunditjmara society. The site also contains evidence of structures used to smoke or otherwise preserve the eels, dispelling myths that all Indigenous people in Australian did not engage in agricultural practices.  The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape was added to the World Heritage List in 2019.

It is important that the design of these systems and the equipment used are of the highest quality and specification to ensure the quality and freshness of the final product, which ultimately starts with ensuring the welfare of the animals being held.

The system will include:

• 12,000L holding tank
• Mechanical and Biological filtration
• UV Sterilisation
• Ozone injection
• Water Quality Monitoring and control systems

This is an exciting opportunity for FBD and the Budj Bim Aquaculture Centre to help showcase Indigenous cultural heritage and some of the world’s oldest aquaculture systems. The Budj Bim Aquaculture Centre will also celebrate the lifestyle for the Gariwerd communities and Kooyang  which is the late summer  and season of eels from late January to late March