NOAA Fisheries Science Helps Maine’s Pioneering Sea Scallop Farmers
“Adaptable” is a word that perfectly describes Marsden Brewer, a third-generation commercial fisherman, who is also a scallop farmer and owner of PenBay Farmed Scallops.
Brewer’s business is the result of his 20-year
effort, as well as techniques learned through Maine's enduring friendship with
its sister state, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. His three-and-a-quarter acre
Stonington, Maine, farm is the first of its kind in Penobscot Bay.
“Princess” Scallops: A New England Locavore’s Delight
The Atlantic sea scallop
fishery is one of the most valuable in the United States. While wild caught
scallops have shells four inches across or larger and you only eat the adductor
muscle, Brewer sells a smaller, whole-animal product. He offers three sizes:
“Princess” scallops are
two inches across and can be grown in just 18 months
Medium scallops are
about 2.75 inches and take 2 years
Large scallops are about
3 inches and take 3 years to grow.
Whole scallops are a
delicacy prepared by chefs at restaurants in Maine and as far away as Colorado
and Arizona. Brewer is not competing with the wild scallop fishery, but
bringing a new local seafood to market. He has led other fishermen to farm
scallops as a way to diversify their income in a changing environment.
Finding the Right Conditions for Farming
Because scallop farming
is new to Maine, growers need to know which environments have the right
conditions. You wouldn’t want to start a dairy farm where there’s no grass for
the cows to graze. Similarly, you also don’t want to start a scallop farm where
there’s not enough algae for the scallops to filter feed.
In 2019, NOAA Milford
Lab scientists conducted a habitat suitability study for cultured scallops in
the Damariscotta River to assist this effort. Milford Lab Director Gary Wikfors
explained, “This is an industry-driven initiative. We held two public meetings,
one at the University of Maine’s Darling Marine Center and one at Coastal
Enterprises, Inc.’s offices in Brunswick, Maine, and got feedback directly from
the industry about how we could help.”
In June and September of
the 2019 growing season, Milford scientists conducted feeding studies with sea
scallops. They used a method developed for aquaculture site selection, which
measures performance of the animals in their environment in real time. They also
recorded water temperatures and the amount and quality of food
available—critical to shellfish growth and ultimately the farms’ profitability.
They found that the
scallops had higher feeding rates and efficiency in June than in September, and
by September water temperatures were on the edge of being too warm for growth.
That particular area is a good place for sea scallop aquaculture at some (but
not all) times of the year.
They now have a
framework to assess other spots for scallop farming potential, and hope to
recruit fishermen and farmers to take water samples.
“The expertise at the
Milford Lab has helped us understand feeding dynamics to work out site
selection. This expertise doesn’t occur just anywhere, and the fact that it’s
available at a federal lab is notable,” said Maine Sea Grant extension agent
Dana Morse.
Sister-State Relationship with Japan
Morse’s involvement with
scallop farming goes back to the late 1990s. His first trip to Japan in 1999
was organized by the Maine Department of Marine Resources and the Maine
Aquaculture Innovation Center. A group of fishermen and scientists visited
Mutsu Bay in Aomori Prefecture, where scallops are cultured.
Coastal Enterprises,
Inc. and Friends
of Aomori led the most recent technology transfer trip in 2016,
which included shellfish growers and fishermen. They visited fishing
cooperatives, traveled out to scallop farms to see the ear-hanging method and
lantern nets in use, and learned about scallop processing.
Enthusiasm for adapting
Japanese farming methods and technology to the Atlantic sea scallop is growing.
Coastal Enterprises, Inc. and Maine Sea Grant have since purchased
Japanese farming technology and made it available for growers’ use.
This includes
high-pressure scallop washers, a lantern net washer, and an automated drill
that punches a hole in the scallop shell’s hinge. This is used for the
ear-hanging technique, where scallops are strung on a submerged line.
Aomori Prefecture and
Maine are sister-states. Their relationship goes back to 1889, when the Cheseborough,
a ship built in Bath, Maine, ran aground off the coast of Aomori. Fishermen and
villagers there launched a daring rescue that saved some of the crew. When a
delegation from Aomori traveled to Maine a few years ago, Brewer hosted them at
his home for lobster and scallops.
He was impressed with
how well fishermen and growers who spoke different languages were able to
communicate when it came to their favorite topics: fishing gear and seafood.
Though PenBay Scallops
offers many inviting, whole-scallop recipes from around the world, Brewer’s
favorite way to cook them is simple. He likes broiling them in the oven for a
few minutes on each side, until the meat separates from the shell, then
shelling them and eating them with a salad. “They’re super good to eat!” Brewer
said, “and they fit the bill on everything—sustainability, restorative nature,
you can’t do any better for the environment.”
Though the Gulf of Maine
is changing rapidly, flexibility between fishing and farming, facilitated by
science and innovation, can keep Maine’s seafood industry going strong.
For more information,
please contact Kristen Jabanoski.