reduction of oyster waste: establishing best practices for controlling wild spat under commercial production
BUDGET EXPENDITURE: $50,000
PRINCIPLE INVESTIGATOR: Ms Donna-Maree Cawthorn
ORGANISATION: Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
PROJECT CODE: 2022-023
PROJECT STATUS: Current
WHY IS THE RESEARCH BEING UNDERTAKEN?
‘Overcatch’ or ‘fouling’ costs Australia’s Sydney rock oyster (SRO; Saccostrea glomerata) farming industry an
insurmountable sum each year in labour, crop losses and reduced prices due to unmarketable product.
Although numerous methods have been implemented to control overcatch over many decades, the issue
persists across NSW and Qld oyster growing regions and has resulted in the near collapse of the latter
industry.
This project revisits this ongoing industry challenge, by comparing the efficacy of various available methods and identifying the best solutions for managing overcatch on SRO in commercial production scenarios. It was conceptualised by two SRO farmers in Qld’s Moreton Bay region, who suffer incessant losses due to overcatch but are aware of few guidelines or benchmarked parameters for tackling the issue in on-farm settings, and who then approached DAF Qld and the Fight Food Waste (FFW) CRC for support. Further development of the proposal involved a process of extensive consultation with regional and national oyster grower associations, industry members, commercial equipment suppliers and the FRDC. Through this consultation, it was decided that the project would trial four existing and emerging overcatch control treatments (air drying, heat immersion, cold shock hypersaline system, FlipFarm system) using the same location, stock and environmental conditions in the Moreton Bay region.
There is widespread consensus from the oyster industry and the FRDC that further research on eliminating
overcatch is urgently required; but that this needs to consider application of methods within the farming
system to minimise cost and maximise usefulness to growers. This is precisely what this project aims to
achieve, by providing oyster growers (end users) with validated methods and Best Management Practices
(BMPs) for overcatch control that can be integrated into their existing commercial production settings.
OBJECTIVES:
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To improve knowledge and establish critical information for controlling overcatch on SRO using
existing air drying and heat immersion methods in commercial production settings. -
To provide oysters growers with validated new technologies (cold shock system, FlipFarm system,
temperature / RH sensors) that offer more effective and efficient control of overcatch on SRO in
commercial production settings. -
To reduce oyster losses/deaths, as well as labour requirements, associated with controlling overcatch
on SRO, when compared to current practices. -
To develop Best Management Practices for overcatch control that can be used for demonstration and training to the wider oyster-growing community and public.
RESOURCES GENERATED:
