Energy, Environment and Community
What makes Lobsters ‘R’ Us Atlantic Canada’s most energy efficient lobster storage facility? We have designed our plant with state-of-the-art features that help us to conserve and save energy, while limiting our environmental impact, and promoting sustainability.
We purchase lobster, store them in a holding facility, and when markets are optimal, take them out for shipment. It sounds easy, but storing lobster requires a lot of energy to keep the water cold, or as we say, at “winter status”, which is a fresh 2-3°C (35-37°F).
Typically, most lobster holding plants use what is referred to as the “Flow Through System” when storing product. This means that when they store lobster, a large amount of ocean water comes into the plant. This ocean water is eventually filtered out as waste water once it has taken on all the by-products from the lobsters such as ammonia, fecal matter etc. Flowing water in and out of the plant also keeps a chemical balance inside the storage tanks. However, as waste water flows back out into the ocean, this results in a loss of energy and money.
At Lobsters ‘R’ Us, we take the storage process to the next level. We use a “Closed Loop System”, which allows us to recirculate and recondition the water within our plant to keep the tanks topped off and to diminish our energy consumption. This is done using “Cold Recovery Units” or CRU’s, along with other equipment, which helps us to control the amount of energy we use to store lobster, based on the capacity of lobster we have in storage at any given time.
With the current energy efficient control system we have in place, we are able to use only the energy needed at any given time. The power can be gradually regulated to accommodate a small or large amount of lobsters, with the maximum energy consumed only when we have a full capacity of lobsters in storage. While other plants must operate at full power, from the very beginning, no matter how many lobster they have, Lobsters ‘R’ Us has a “Soft Start” period that consumes little energy.
Lobsters ‘R’ Us uses a Live Power System Monitoring network that allows us to control our power consumption, so we know how much energy we are consuming at any given time, which enables us to take corrective action to minimize power waste and reduce costs accordingly. Our ability to monitor how much power we are using, and to control the amount we use, is a testament to our commitment to efficiency.
By incorporating energy efficiency and climate control in our plant, we not only lower our own operating costs but create ideal conditions that allow us to store more lobster for longer periods of time, which prolongs their sell-by date and gives their market value time to rise.
Energy efficiency, along with product traceability and accountability, means the freshest premium product with a lower impact on the environment, and a better outlook for our communities.
