INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — With the pending sale of the former Indian River Correctional Institution to a company called Algae to Omega Holding, the county is well on its way to becoming an important hub in Florida’s burgeoning $100 million aquaculture industry.
Algae to Omega – which will produce and harvest algae for nutritional and personal care products – will join other established aquaculture businesses, research facilities and organizations already located here, including Florida Organic Aquaculture; FIT’s Vero Beach Marine Laboratory; Parabel; and the Florida Aquaculture Association. FAU/Harbor Branch, a few miles south of the county line, is another important aquaculture player, with a major R&D facility that exerts state and nationwide influence.
The 99-acre correctional institution property, which is under contract for $850,000, is just south of the county landfill and includes 34 buildings totaling approximately 139,000 square feet. The facility closed in 2012, as part of the Florida Department of Corrections’ statewide consolidation plan.
Incorporated in 2009, Algae to Omega’s corporate and scientific headquarters are located in a 60,000-square-foot facility in Oakland Park, Fla., where it produces and processes algae biomass for food, personal care and nutraceutical products. It also makes animal feed from algae.
The company’s Indian River County operation will employ 30 people. Closing on the sale is set for April 18.
County Commissioner Tim Zorc and Chamber of Commerce Director of Economic Development Helen Caseltine met with Algae to Omega CEO Dr. Frank Jochem and the company’s department heads, and came away enthusiastic about the company.
“We’re very excited,” says Zorc, who notes it is of particular importance to him that “this company is proven, they’re way past the experimental stages.” He’s also pleased that the property’s existing structures will be utilized. “They needed a pretty good-size campus, so they can grow.”
