2015 Aquaculture report shows growth despite harsh winter

March 3, 2016, WAKEFIELD –The aquaculture industry in Rhode Island experienced growth in 2015 despite the long and difficult winter, according to the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council’s annual status report, “Aquaculture in Rhode Island.”

In 2015, the farm gate value (the value for the product paid to the farmer) of the state’s aquaculture products increased 7 percent, from just over $5 million in 2014 to $5.4 million, a much smaller increase than last year’s 24 percent.
The number of farms increased from 55 to 61, and acres farmed grew by 35.18 acres, a 17 percent increase, to a total of 241.38 acres farmed. Oysters remain the aquaculture product of choice in the state, with more than 8.2 million sold for consumption, up 725,040 from last year. Oyster seed sales from Rhode Island aquaculturists were valued at $162,500, down from last year’s value of $184,150.

Six new farms were permitted in 2015, including one shellfish hatchery – the first in Rhode Island – and their harvests should be noted in the 2016 and 2017 reports. The number of aquaculture farm workers also increased 20 percent, from 142 to 171.

Of the five South Coast (Point Judith, Ninigret, Quonochontaug, and Winnapaug) coastal ponds with aquaculture, a total of 118.05 acres of the 4,708.96 acres of the ponds are utilized, 2.5 percent of the total area. Of the total, 49 percent of the state’s aquaculture is in the ponds; 51 percent resides in Narragansett Bay, Sakonnet River, and off Block Island. The full report is available at the CRMC’s web site, www.crmc.ri.gov, or under Aquaculture.