56 JUNE 2019 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WAS.ORG deeply-cupped shape. At the end of the first growing season, oyster densities are reduced to 700 animals per bag and bag mesh size is increased to 14 mm. At the start of the following summer, oysters are transferred to the bottom tray system, 0.9 m × 0.9 m, with 12mm mesh size and no cover, positioned 15 cm from the bottom. This system minimizes attenuation of water flow from the gear, allowing water to move over and under trays, assuring optimal access to algal food and enhancing oyster growth. Oysters are stocked at approximately 2,000 per tray and maintained in this system until harvest. Twice annually, oysters are sorted by size using a mechanical PVC tumbler. The relatively low flow environment in Potter Pond resulting from the 0.9 m tides limits the number of oysters that can be held on the farm at any given time and extends the time required for oysters to reach market size. The MOF has established a market for “cocktail oysters” with market-size oysters averaging 6-8 cm in shell length. Matunuck Oysters are harvested year-round, resulting in a yearly harvest of about one million animals. Fastest growing oysters are harvested by the end of the second growing season, while average and slow growers are harvested in the course of the following year. Upon harvest, oysters are shipped to restaurants nationwide. Distribution is handled by the Ocean State Shellfish Cooperative that Raso founded in collaboration with fellow Rhode Island growers. Additionally, MOF and SPO collaboratively also sell between 4-5 million oyster seed of 13-37 mm shell length to other growers. Dr. Robert Rheault, who was one of the early pioneers the Rhode Island oyster industry and now leads the East Coast Shellfish Growers Association, notes that, “Rhode Island growers saturated local markets years ago, and now compete with hundreds of other oyster farmers in the national marketplace. East Coast oyster production has doubled in just the past five years and appears poised to double again in the next five years. We hope we can continue to develop markets at a similar pace.” Vertical Integration: Pond to Plate and Farm to Table To accommodate its expanding shellfish growing operation, in 2009 MOF bought a piece of land adjacent to the oyster farm with the only commercial docks available on the pond. This property also included a run-down restaurant, representing a new opportunity for vertical integration of the oyster farm. After renovation of the restaurant, the Matunuck Oyster Bar (MOB) was opened, uniting fresh, locally grown produce with farmraised and wild-caught seafood. The restaurant features a raw bar offering a wide selection of local shellfish, including the on-site grown Matunuck oysters, alongside other Rhode Island varieties, crisp cherrystone clams, littleneck clams and lobster. The MOB philosophy for customer dining experience is: “fresh products, food simply prepared, fairly priced, and making sure everybody leaves happy.” Widespread appreciation for locally-sourced, highquality and fresh seafood makes the MOB one of the busiest restaurants in Rhode Island, employing over 200 people in the peak season. To increase the farm-to-table and pond-to-plate appeal of the restaurant, Raso started a vegetable farm on two 2.4-ha fields located within a few miles of the restaurant in 2011. The farm follows rigorous green agricultural production standards and received U.S. Department of Agriculture organic certification in Workers from the Matunuck Oyster Farm heading to the production site to maintain oyster bags. This consists of sorting oysters by size with a mechanical tumbler, removing any mortalities, and restocking bags at a specific stocking density according to oyster size. The Matunuck Oyster Farm and Matunuck Oyster Bar, located on Potter Pond in southern Rhode Island. Matunuck Oyster Farm, Potter Pond, Rhode Island. Alternating rows of floating cages and bottom tray systems. Workers maintain the farm and harvest oysters year round with the use of different barges and a mobile work platform.
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