New Technologies May Help Oyster Farmers Increase Harvests

Florida’s oyster population has declined during the past 15 years because of overharvest, hurricanes, changing environmental conditions and more. In particular, Apalachicola Bay has seen a pronounced reduction.

“Oyster farming has been seen as a way to continue the supply of oysters because the wild population has been so overharvested,” said Roy Yanong, a University of Florida professor and Extension veterinarian at the Tropical Aquaculture Lab in Ruskin.

Oysters naturally grow at the bottom of marine or estuarine environments, but new technologies could allow oyster farmers to more efficiently grow and harvest oysters from the water column. On the bottom, they may get covered by sediment, and/or be eaten by predators. 

In a new Ask IFAS document, University of Florida experts outline three new technologies that may help Florida oyster farmers increase their harvests. None of these technologies is being used in Florida yet because they’re cost-prohibitive for now, but that might change in the future, say UF/IFAS experts.

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