Perfecting operations in the realm of oyster farming has risen in prevalence over the last decade, particularly in the U.S. state of Virginia, where oyster aquaculture is quickly becoming king.
As a means to establish best practices for the accelerating oyster aquaculture industry in the state, the Marine Advisory Services of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) created the Fisheries Resource Grant (FRG) program, which ultimately seeks to help Virginia growers and hatcheries explore new ways to fine-tune their trade. In the past, this has involved the advancement of the spat-on-shell (SOS) method, a technique that involves “hatchery-raised oyster larvae grown on shell deposited on privately-leased oyster grounds.”
Interest in the SOS method is climbing in the industry and thus, dynamics are changing, according to Karen Hudson, a Commercial Shellfish Aquaculture Extension Specialist for VIMS.
“The increased interest in SOS translates to a higher demand for large quantities of larvae from the commercial hatcheries (as opposed to single seed production). A large SOS operation might require tens of millions of larvae at one time. This alters the dynamic of the hatchery production, placing more emphasis on the success of mass spawns,” Hudson told SeafoodSource.
There is much benefit to ironing out the SOS method, which the Fisheries Resource Grant program aims in part to do, said Hudson.
“The value SOS offers is twofold – it offers growers looking to harvest a portion for the boxed market, the chance to reduce production costs (compared to intensive, or containerized, culture). For the growers targeting the shucked market, it offers the availability of quality product in the summer, when wild oysters are poor,” she noted.
Back in 2009, the FRG program – which was “born out of a need identified in the commercial fishing industry,” explained Hudson – worked to fund the “Practical Manual for Remote Setting in Virginia,” the original source for oyster farmers who wished to start or expand operations to include SOS in Virginia. Via the grant program, past recipient Rich Harding of Purcell’s Seafood – located on the Northern Neck of Virginia – was able to explore avenues to make “SOS feasible to do on a broader scale.”
Over the course of the past decade, the grant program has funded close to USD 900,000 (EUR 800,609) in oyster-related endeavors. The lion’s share of those funds have gone to seafood industry members rather than scientists, which is one way the program differs from others, according to Hudson: “What sets this grant program apart is that we’re not funding scientists, but instead look to industry itself to identify ideas they think will help improve a fishery, aquaculture, or seafood processing.”
“We look to industry to come up with ideas of how they can manage the resource and be more profitable,” added Tom Murray, director of Marine Advisory Services and Sea Grant Marine Extension leader at VIMS. “It’s not always easy for industry to dedicate money for new equipment and supplies – especially if a technique is not proven.”
The FRG program will soon start accepting new proposals for 2016 projects. Interested and qualified candidates who possess the following characteristics can start sending in their applications on 1 November:
“The ideal applicant is an active member of the fishing industry in Virginia with an idea for enhancing and protecting fisheries, but lacking the financial resources to experiment with innovations. Ideas range from designing more efficient fishing gear or, in the case of SOS, optimizing methods to increase setting efficiency. Projects funded include some type of test which can document whether the idea works or not in order to be able to share the results with others in the industry,” said Hudson.
Since the grant fund was established by Virginia’s General Assembly in 1999, it has provided USD 2.2 million (EUR 1.95 million) in assistance on 110 individual projects. Explore more about the program here: http://www.vims.edu/research/units/centerspartners/map/frg/index.php
