Resources Database

MTI offers grants, loans, equity investments, and services to businesses, organizations, and individuals to support Maine’s innovation economy. MTI defines innovators as individuals or groups who introduce ideas that create something new or improve an existing product, service, or process.

Lists Maine Sea Grant Funding Opportunities, Regional Research and Funding Opportunities, Sea Grant Supported Scholarship and Fellowship Opportunities, and Other NOAA Scholarship Opportunities.

Whole-Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) provides a risk management safety net for all commodities on the farm under one insurance policy and is available in all counties nationwide. This insurance plan is tailored for any farm with up to $8.5 million in insured revenue, including farms with specialty or organic commodities (both crops and livestock), or those marketing to local, regional, farm-identity preserved, specialty, or direct markets.

An overall business resource on starting a business, business licensing, corporate resources, business taxes, and employer resources.

Step by step guide to help plan, launch, manage, and grow small businesses including, writing a business plan, calculating start-up costs, get funding, managing your finances, and more.

A nonprofit organization providing educational workshops and helping small businesses get started, grow and operate effectively.

A leader in the small business economic and development arenas that assists new businesses as well as existing businesses manage, run and grow.

Provides advising and financing to fisheries and aquaculture businesses to improve their long-term viability, create and maintain quality jobs, safeguard marine-related infrastructure and environments, and help preserve the cultural integrity of Maine’s working waterfront.

The Top Gun training program is designed specifically for the entrepreneur with a desire to grow his/her business and achieve long-term success through the use of the right tools, resources, and related mentorship. MCE has taken the time to develop strong business partnerships and to acquire loyal sponsorships which allow us to provide Maine entrepreneurs with the programing, mentorship, training, and knowledge they need to grow and succeed.

If you have been around this business for a while, you’ve probably watched some of the newcomers make the same mistakes you did when you were getting started. ECSGA Executive Director Bob Rheault decided he would try to think of as many of these common pitfalls as he could to help new growers avoid making the same costly blunders. Through the years he has continued to add to the list.

This grant guide was prepared by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in consultation with the Subcommittee on Aquaculture (SCA) under the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC). This guide focuses only on grant programs that aquaculture farmers or aquaculture researchers may be eligible for. Updates will include Federal cooperative agreements, contracts, loans, or other direct support programs for aquaculture farmers or (non-federal) aquaculture researchers, for the purpose of aquaculture siting, research, development, and operations.

The “Clam Kit” video series shares techniques developed at Downeast Institute to help municipal shellfish management programs enhance their softshell clam flats affordably and effectively. This video gives an overview of clam seed, DEI's hatchery, floating nursery trays, public stock enhancement, DMR lease or LPA, basic husbandry, overwintering, and more.

This video gives a first-hand account of running a mussel farm by Bangs Island Mussels including on the water gear and husbandry and well as shore-side processing. Some highlights are seeding, socking, hauling and stripping machine, de-clumper, size grader, debyssing machine, automatic bagger/weigher/conveyor, and more.

There are several ways in which birds interact with shellfish aquaculture. Birds can cause significant damage to crops through predation. Some birds fall into the category of protected resources and farmers have been variously accused of interfering with foraging, (either attracting or disturbing or both) and interfering with hunting. Birds can be attracted to aquaculture structures for roosting or foraging and their guano can impact water quality and trigger the need for growers to develop management plans under the National Shellfish Sanitation Plan.

List state and federal grants to provide services, resources and personnel to nonprofit groups, municipalities and other agencies.

Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center has limited funds to support innovative research that will help advance the Maine aquaculture industry and also lists Maine funding opportunities.

Reviews the different types of disaster insurance that would cover hurricanes and typhoons, oil spills, harmful algal blooms, and other types of disasters, both natural and manmade, that cause a aquaculture farm to be harmed or fail.

Powerpoint on biofouling including, economic impact, general impact, common fouling organisms (macroalgae, tunicates, hydroids, boring sponge, over-set of barnacles, mussels, or oysters), controlling fouling, and methods to avoid, mitigate, or prevent the effects of biofouling.

Research paper on mussel spawning, spat (seed) collection, and hatchery grow out. They researched naturally and artificially conditioned mussel broodstock; compare different ropes used for settling larvae; hatchery production methods; if differences exist in growth and retention rates; whether working mussel farms would benefit from multiple cohorts of cultured seed; & the effectiveness of remote vs. traditional setting methods to decrease costs associated with the production of cultured mussel seed.

This non-profit organization helps export Northeast food and agricultural products overseas since 1973. They provides a wide range of services to facilitate trade between local food suppliers and importers around the world including: export education, self-paced training & expert advice, customized export assistance, new market analysis, international marketing &branding, facilitate meetings with international buyers, and a cost-share funding program.

These risk management tools are designed to help Maine aquaculture producers find new ways to identify and respond to risk on their farms and in their businesses. The tools include information and visuals to help farmers identify risk factors and risk management within each of the five categories of risk as well as aquaculture crop insurance options currently available.

University of Maine Cooperative Extension provides small-business education for Maine people. Workshops and business management publications cover a variety of business-related topics, including: marketing, pricing, financial management, Internet marketing, record keeping, and customer service.

The business plan features include short & long-term budget projections & tracking, financial projection and analysis tools, monthly cash flow projections, costs of production analysis, profitability analysis, sensitivity analysis, and breakeven analysis. The production plan offers short & long-term production projections & tracking data-based growth projections, monthly sales planning & tracking, and a production calendar. If you are interested in setting up a business plan, please reach out to Christian at [email protected].