A 1.7m project conceived to get Scottish mussels to spawn in a hatchery environment has been visited by its Australian partner, Spring Bay Seafoods – operators of a commercial-scale mussel hatchery.
Project founders, Scottish Shellfish Marketing Group (SSMG) and University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI), hosted Spring Bay Seafoods’ hatchery manager, Bryce Daly, for a three-week visit to the NAFC Marine Centre UHI in Scalloway, Shetland, where he observed the systems in place, shared his husbandry expertise and discussed best practise for rearing mussels in a hatchery environment.
Michael Tait, chairman of SSMG and a Shetland-based mussel farmer, said: “The visit has come at a hugely opportune time for the project. We have had lots of spawning but increasing post-spawn survival rates has been a core focus. Bryce, with his many years of experience in hatchery production, has helped identify several small adjustments that should significantly improve survivability.”
The project partners have confirmed these adjustments are already being implemented in the one-year-old project and closely monitored on a new batch of mussels. They stated they are optimistic that they will shortly have the first numbers of hatchery-reared spat going out to farm sea sites.
If successful, the partners stated, the pilot hatchery project will lead to a commercial-scale hatchery, resulting in higher and more reliable yields of spat, additional jobs and wider distribution of sites.
The partners first met during a four-day fact-finding mission to Spring Bay Seafoods in February 2015; the insights from which helped shape the project.
The 30-month project is co-funded by the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC), Highlands and Islands Enterprise, and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.
Currently, Scotland produces over 7,700 tonnes of farmed mussels – 74% of which are produced in Shetland – generating an estimated £11.7m for the economy. The Scottish shellfish sector aims to produce 21,000 tonnes of shellfish annually by 2030.
