Exploring New Frontiers in Mussel Farming: Shell volution Hosts Tim Rensen in Shetland

Last week (23 to 28 March), the Shell‑volution team had the pleasure of welcoming Mr Tim Rensen to Shetland to explore how innovative subsea technology could support the future of mussel farming.

Tim travelled north with his remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to demonstrate how high‑resolution underwater scanning could unlock new research opportunities for the sector. The goal: to understand whether ROV footage, enhanced by AI, can be used to estimate mussel size and volume directly from the line, offering farmers a faster, safer and far more data‑rich approach to stock assessment.

Despite some truly appalling weather forcing us to rethink our original plans, the visit was a success. This was made possible thanks to the flexibility and support of Blueshell Mussels and Shetland Mussels, who warmly welcomed Tim and the Shell‑volution team onto their sites and enabled us to visit and scan their farms.

We would also like to extend our appreciation to Christopher and Marvin of C&A Thomason, who generously stayed behind at the end of a long working day to share their experience of mussel farming in Yell. Their openness and knowledge added greatly to our growing understanding of mussel production in Shetland.

Tim’s ROV delivered rapid, detailed scans and gave farmers a rare chance to view their own lines from a completely new perspective.

This visit marks an important step in Shell‑volution’s mission to harness innovation for the benefit of the Shetland aquaculture industry. We’re excited to continue developing this work and exploring how AI‑supported ROV scanning could enhance productivity, sustainability and decision‑making for mussel farmers across the isles.

More updates to follow as the project progresses!

Video clip of rov scanning a mussel line