Resources Database

May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024 Aquaculture Harvest License (to harvest & sell aquacultured product) Application

Discusses what marketing is and why it is important including developing a marketing plan, market outlets, and personalizing the products and the business.

Coastal Enterprises, Inc. provides loans to aquaculturists. If you are seeking to grow your aquaculture operation but have had difficulty getting a loan from a commercial lender, CEI is here to help.

The spreadsheet provides estimates of cost and returns for bottom culture of spat on shell oysters in Maryland. Being able to accurately determine cost and return in business allows you to plan to maximize potential profit and determine expenses, cash flow, and other important aspects of management. This spreadsheet will give you the opportunity to do “what if” scenarios when planning your business.

General budget guidelines for growers marketing 250,000 - 1,000,000 oyster per year.

List of Grants and Requests for Proposals (RFPs) on the Department of Marine Resources (DMR) website. These include opportunities in Coastal Access & Working Waterfronts, Coastal Community Planning, and Outreach & Education.

Careful financial management is essential for the success of an aquaculture business. While financial management is a complex topic that can be approached from many perspectives, there are some key questions that the manager of an aquaculture business must answer affirmatively to be successful. Determining the answers requires careful, thorough, and comprehensive analysis. This publication, written by Dr. Carole Engle, a specialist in aquaculture economics, outlines the types of analyses and financial statements required to answer these critical questions.

Cash flow problems are one of the most common types of financial problems in aquaculture businesses. This publication, written by Dr. Carole Engle, a specialist in aquaculture economics, addresses the question of whether the business can generate enough cash when needed to pay its bills (liquidity). Liquidity is a fairly broad concept, and a number of financial indicators can be used to measure it. Of these, the cash flow statement is the most useful means of monitoring the liquidity of a business.

Lists contact information for DMR’s aquaculture program staff who are located in Augusta and the Boothbay Harbor Lab.

The comprehensive financial analysis of aquaculture businesses requires that three key aspects of financial management be evaluated: financial position, profitability, and liquidity/cash flow position. Profitability is the difference between total revenue and total cost. It must be analyzed separately from financial position and liquidity/cash flow. This publication written by Dr. Carole Engle, a specialist in aquaculture economics, discusses profitability as measured from income statements and enterprise budgets.

In depth document created to provide the information and a framework that will enable a shellfish farmer to write a comprehensive Best Management Practices document focusing on gear/operation and maintenance, user conflicts, permitting/siting, and environmental concerns.

Matt Parker, aquaculture business specialist, presents basic business concepts such as writing a business plan, developing pro forma statements, costs associated production, and record keeping to determine the costs of production.

Facilitating economic growth for Maine's farmed shellfish businesses. This project has produced two data-driven, quantitative market assessments to inform industry leaders and business owners about the potential scale and scope of markets for farmed shellfish and to facilitate strategic growth in the industry. The most recent report was completed in 2023 and published in 2024.

In September 2023 the ECSGA updated its 2010 Best Management Practices manual. Building on the 2010 version, this update adds a new section on the management and handling of floating gear, hundreds of embedded links, info on new gear types and a revised bibliography. ECSGA also completely revamped the tool to create your own farm-specific Best Practices document: the Best Practices Form.

The Maine Aquaculture Financing Resources Manual, developed by MAA Project Manager Christian Brayden with support from FocusMaine, is an in-depth summary of all known financing resources available to Maine aquaculture producers.

University of Maryland Extension, Maryland Sea Grant, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and Chesapeake Oyster Alliance are proud partners for “Seed to $$$” - a program for those in aquaculture to learn to manage their businesses for more profit. The US has experienced rapid economic growth in the last few years. This was due to increased spending designed to stimulate the economy in the wake of the pandemic. Recordings of the 8 presentations from the Seed to $$$ meeting are now available for viewing.

List of the over 200 harbor masters and deputy harbor masters in The State of Maine Harbor Masters Association.

Answers questions like "What can I grow?", "How much space can I occupy?" "How long does a lease or license last?", "How much will it cost?", "What type of gear can I use?", and more.

DMR resources for growers including approved hatcheries, biosecurity, shellfish sanitation, harvest and reporting, and forms.

DMR-approved hatchery status is contingent upon a variety of factors including clean pathology reports and hatchery inspections. Given this, the list below is subject to change.

This DMR page includes LPA License Applications for new LPAs, Riparian List form, Additional Information to assist in completing LPA license application forms, Sample Gear Plans and Vicinity Maps, Sample Mooring Designs, LPA Laws and Regulations, and LPA and Quiz Supporting Documents.

This web-based, report-centric tool provides coastal and ocean planners with a high-level analysis for their custom-drawn area of interest. It provides summary statistics and infographics for six main topics: general information, energy and minerals, natural resources and conservation, oceanographic and biophysical, transportation and infrastructure, and economics and commerce.