Advancing Aquaculture

What is aquaculture?

Aquaculture is the practice of growing seafood in a controlled setting, as opposed to harvesting wild populations. Roughly half of all global seafood production comes from aquaculture, and that number is growing rapidly, outpacing wild-harvest production rates. From Atlantic salmon, oysters, mussels, and eels to sea vegetables like kelp, the variety of farmable seafood is vast and growing. Sea farmers and researchers are working to develop techniques for growing additional species like sea scallops, soft-shell clams, hard-shell clams, and additional species of marine algae.

Why aquaculture?

Aquaculture is playing an increasingly important role in the Gulf of Maine. The growing industry has the potential to support livelihoods and our coastal communities, strengthen our working waterfronts, and improve the outlook of long-term local and global food-security.

For those reasons and more, we were inspired to launch an aquaculture program at GMRI to support the growth of the aquaculture industry in the Gulf of Maine. Successful aquaculture approaches produce some of the most sustainable and nutritious food available anywhere, but running a lucrative aquaculture business requires a lot of hard work and careful considerations.

Our role

The sustainable aquaculture sector in the Gulf of Maine is growing, and its potential to bolster the blue economy in our region is clear. To support the growth of the aquaculture industry here in Maine, we work collaboratively with industry leaders, farmers, researchers, the business community, and other nonprofits to identify and pursue opportunities that will secure its healthy future. Together, we can help the industry meet rising workforce demands, and provide the kinds of business planning and training resources that will lead to long-term profitability.

For more than a decade, we've worked to ensure that the Gulf of Maine’s rich and productive ecosystem supports an array of wild fisheries, as well as the communities that depend upon them. An expanded aquaculture industry doesn’t need to get in the way of healthy wild fisheries, either. In fact, the two approaches depend on a clean environment, a solid understanding of the Gulf of Maine ecosystem, thoughtful management strategies, innovative leadership, and an informed and supportive public. The combination of healthy wild-harvest fisheries and aquaculture farms will help our region meet the challenges of feeding growing populations and adapting to a warming climate.