US government opens new oyster-breeding center

NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have opened a new center dedicated to improving oyster breeding in Milford, Connecticut, U.S.A.“At a time when 75 to 85 percent of our seafood is imported, shellfish aquaculture provides our coastal communities with healthy local seafood and jobs,” NOAA Office of Aquaculture Director Danielle Blacklock said. “The Northeast Oyster Breeding Center is a significant investment to ensure the resiliency of American aquaculture.” Located inside a renovated hatchery at NOAA Fisheries’ Milford Laboratory, the Northeast Oyster Breeding Center will use advanced breeding methods to develop new strains of eastern oysters that are more resistant to disease and changing environmental conditions. “There’s a need for oysters that are resilient or tolerant to disease but also retain optimal performance across the Northeast’s oyster production environments,” Agricultural Research Service National Program Leader for Aquaculture Caird Rexroad III ...