A team made up by Swedish aquaculture company Bohus havsbruk,the research Institute IVL and the Native Oyster Restoration Alliance (NORA) is looking for companies interested in evaluating a new protocol for pond based production of oyster spat. Culture of native oyster species Ostrea edulis is one of the objectives of AquaVitae case study on oysters led by the same team composed by Dr. Åsa Strand, of IVL, and the company Bohus havsbruk.
The European flat oyster Ostrea edulis plays an important role in the aquaculture sector both in terms of food production and ecological services. However, there is limited seed available, a problem that could be tackled by developing new production methods. Pond based production is a promising solution, but most knowledge is based on individual experiences, lacking from standardised protocols that support a production of more and better quality spat.
Oyster spat pond production protocol
Bohus havsbruk and IVL have delivered a first draft of this pond production protocol based on field visits to spatting ponds and literature review. The protocol also includes a virtual prototype of a sea based pond system for spat, a solution for the limited acces to land at the highly exploited Swedish coastal areas. The project is based on the conditions of production in Scandinavia and is oriented towards sea based construction, but may be relevant also for land based spatting ponds. The protocol contains:
- Summary of activities to be performed
- Schedule for timing of each activity
- Considerations during the culture cycle
- Procedures stating how to perform the activities
- Maintenance routines
A relevant and robust protocol
Participating companies will contribute to the relevance and robustness of the protocol by contributing to its evaluation, which will also allow them to test new spat production methods, exchange knowledge with researchers and benchmark their performance. The work plan foresees an evaluation of the protocol on summer 2020 and, summer 2021, if necessary. If you are interested, please contact Åsa Strand (asa.strand@ivl.se) for more information.
