Gijs Rutjes is passionate about fish, feed and fish farming. He studied aquaculture at Wageningen University and Research in the Netherlands, specializing in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), fish nutrition and immunity in fish. He completed an internship in Scotland with Mowi, during which he was involved in selective breeding and supported the feed department with feeding tables and strategies.

After completing his studies, Rutjes worked for a leading African catfish RAS hatchery in Holland and an RAS catfish farm for nearly three years before entering the fish feed industry. Initially, he worked as a technical sales manager, selling feed and technically supporting customers in Europe, Russia and Asia.

In 2003, Rutjes joined Alltech Coppens, where he is currently responsible for technical sales support. His main focus is directly supporting the sales force and customers with feed choices, feeding strategies and fish farming matters to help achieve the best results with Alltech Coppens' feeds. Rutjes is also strongly involved in Alltech Coppens’ R&D and product development. He helps translate the results of research undertaken at the Alltech Coppens Aqua Centre (ACAC) to salespeople and customers and also identifies trends and opportunities for product development. He is strongly committed to the Alltech Coppens motto, “Dedicated to your performance."