CMA CGM and Krijn Verwijs Yerseke made the first transatlantic shipment of live lobsters

The first AQUAVIVA containers with 4 896 live lobsters have arrived in perfect conditions in Yerseke from Canada on board the EM KEA ship owned by CMA CGM Group. Krijn Verwijs Yerseke (KVY) is the first importer of lobsters shipped this way.

AQUAVIVA is a life-support system for lobsters developed by the leading worldwide shipping company CMA CGM Group and French company EMYG Environment & Aquaculture. The AQUAVIVA containers are designed by biologists especially for the crustaceans. This new generation of containers creates the possibility to transport lobsters from their original waters while keeping them in a natural habitat during shipment.

Previously lobsters were carried either frozen by sea or alive and on ice by airfreight. With the new AQUAVIVA container, they can now travel by sea in optimal conditions maintaining their natural habitat. This mode of transport relies on three major characteristics:

• It replicates lobsters’ natural living conditions.
• It guarantees the water’s optimum temperature during transportation, thanks to CMA CGM’s expertise in Reefer.
• It preserves the water’s oxygen level and quality, thanks to INNOPURE® and its natural filtration system.

The lobsters shipped that way will be kept in optimum conditions all along the transport chain, remaining in their original water from their fishing zone to wholesalers and restaurants, thus preserving their freshness.

This solution is, on one hand, more environment-friendly in terms of CO2 emissions than air transport and, on the other hand, ideal for ensuring the well-being of lobsters during and after shipping as it minimizes their stress levels.

At the end of the trip KVY found the lobsters were in excellent condition and particularly vigorous.

The development of this innovation is the result of CMA CGM’s expertise and the unique technology INNOPURE®. This technology was developed by EMYG, a French engineering firm specialized in industrial grade water filtration for the quality of live shellfish.

KVY, who is constantly seeking the best products around the world, is the natural customer for lobsters shipped in AQUAVIVA containers. The Dutch company’s focus on quality, cultivation methods, transport and innovation makes it one of the leading suppliers of high quality products. Shipping lobsters in containers with a simulated natural environment allows it to keep delivering the best products on the market.

KVY’s long collaboration with EMYG has allowed it to get the opportunity to take part in this project.