Resources Database

Supporting marine science for Maine people focusing on Maine’s coastal communities, scientific research, and tomorrow's marine workforce.

Thesis paper explaining the work that went into creating the Oyster suitability Index.

An overview of oyster production techniques including nursery and husbandry, common gear used, and oyster biology.

Kelp offers a promising way for fishermen to diversify their income streams in the lobster offseason, and it's also the newest seafood product GMRI verified under their Gulf of Maine Responsibly Harvested® label. The Gulf of Maine Responsibly Harvested® label is a promise that seafood hails from the clean, cool waters of the Gulf of Maine and the fishery or farm is managed in a way that contributes to the long-term health of the resource. The label empowers consumers to buy seafood they can feel good about.

This report is based on the research priorities survey conducted in June 2019 of Maine’s aquaculture community and is compared with surveys from 2012 and 2016 to look at trends. There have been some changes in the prioritization of needs since 2016, but many of the same research, development, and education (R&D&E) needs persist and remain unaddressed. As expected, there are different R&D&E priorities for different aquaculture sectors.

Reviews quality, consistency, cleanliness, food safety, shape, flavor, year-round availability, timely shipping, attractive packaging and a nice name.

The Coastal Satellite Oceanography team at University of Maine created a high resolution satellite imagery of the coast of Maine that uses sea surface temperature, turbidity, and chlorophyll concentration to determine oyster suitability.

Detailed look into why site selection is so important including, biological requirements, physical characteristics, as well as social & regulatory factors.

Provides a summary of direct and indirect environmental factors that may affect your site selection for your marine aquaculture business.

Reviews the keys to running a successful business; the four P's of marketing, wholesale distributors, risks, and sales.

Video of a workshop that goes over niche marketing for raw bar cultured oysters, differentiating your product on qualities and adapting your marketing pitch, how to target key buyers and get maximum return.

Details how to set up a seaweed nursery including how to make seawater media, temperature and light parameters, biology, cultivation, and culture systems.

ShellGIS is a desktop-based software tool that, for the choice of 14-commonly cultured shellfish species, enables dynamic predictions of shellfish production, environmental effects, and profitability according to culture practice and site selection within a given GIS domain.

Dr. John Supan demonstrates how to build a drum silo to raise oyster seed.

Covers the basic elements of a longline system, including materials, construction, installation and maintenance.

An in-depth guide on kelp farming including how to set up a farm, the application process, nursery set-up, maintaining cultures, and farm site operations.

This fact sheet reviews the method for constructing a cylindrical silo for an upwelling system.

Reviews upwelling techniques for growing juvenile shellfish including different design considerations pros and cons and locations.

Use this to create your own farm-specific Best Management Practices (BMP) document use this template, a Microsoft Excel file in macro format.

Reviews business management skills, such as finance, record keeping, marketing, and personnel management. More aquaculture businesses fail because of poor management than poor production practices.