Aquaculture
Aquaculture Programs Overview
Aquaculture production has become a rapidly growing industry in Southeastern Massachusetts with over 200 shellfish growers and several finfish growers operating at various scales in the region. This growth has lead to Massachusetts becoming the 7th largest producer of cultured shellfish in the U.S. according to a 2007 report. To assist the growth in aquaculture, the Marine Program of the Cooperative Extension also staff the SouthEastern Massachusetts Aquaculture Center (SEMAC). With the assistance of MA Department of Agriculture, and direction provided by the board of directors of SEMAC, projects to assist the aquaculture industry are developed in addition to those already conducted by the Cooperative Extension.
Research Farm Network
With this program, in collaboration with SEMAC, we seek to improve the production of regional shellfish aquaculture through applied research into issues relevant to regional shellfish farmers. The project relies on the industry itself to help identify topics of interest, which are then investigated on a network of farms spread throughout Southeastern Massachusetts. A number of research projects have been undertaken with this program and descriptions and results are available on the Research Farm page.
Monitoring Programs
A number of monitoring programs have been initiated to develop information useful to the development of aquaculture and other marine based industries in Southeastern Massachusetts. These programs include response to and monitoring of diseases, water quality monitoring, as well as keeping record of aquaculture production in the region. To view results and pertinent information from these programs see the specific pages located on this site.
Industry Grant Program
An industry grant program was formed to help develop and test new ideas within the Massachusetts aquaculture industry. With an industry like aquaculture arising really just in the past few decades new ideas and approaches are common. These ideas unfortunately often go untested or undeveloped due to lack of resources, especially in small farms. The funds available through this program are intended to allow development of new ideas for industry enhancement.
Explore the links for more information on these and other projects relating to aquaculture.
