Providing scale-appropriate aquaculture equipment to support the long-term sustainability of small-scale aquaculture farms in Maine and beyond
Tools & Technology for small-scale aquaculture operators
We are seeing rapid growth in the aquaculture sector in Maine and worldwide (Fig. 1).
Aquaculture represents an opportunity to diversify Maine’s coastal economy in a time of rapid socioeconomic and ecological change. However, there are two key impediments to achieving this outcome:
(1) lack of scale-appropriate gear and services
(2) growing public concern.
Our Oyster Sorter Design
Our oyster sorter design is unique because we don’t need a battery-run motor to power the sorter. Our rotating arm design is one-of-a-kind for this sorting mechanism. Our design does not have a hopper mechanism and instead was designed with a hatch in the drum that allows for easy feeding/removal.
Aquaculture represents an opportunity to diversify the coastal economy in a time of rapid socioeconomic and ecological change. We conducted an equipment needs assessment of small-scale aquaculture farmers in Maine in 2018 and found that maintenance, specifically sorting, was the most time-consuming aspect of the business. We are addressing this problem by making this work more efficient, profitable, and sustainable by providing high-quality equipment that fit your operations.
The process of mechanical sorting improves shell quality which farmers have indicated that it could increase the value of oysters by as much as 50%.
- Inexpensive materials
- Durable and rust-resistant
- Manually powered (i.e., a source of power is not required to operate it)
- Small enough to operate from a boat, dock or small floating platform
- Portable (i.e., light-weight & breaks down for easy transport)
Figure 1. Number and locations of limited purpose aquaculture licenses in Maine. Map shows oyster farms only.
Oyster Sorter Assembly & Exploded View
Our Future: Suite
We aim to build a suite of tools & technologies that are specifically designed to support small-scale aquaculture farmers.
Download Informational PDF
