Strategies for the Cultivation of European Oysters (Ostrea edulis) in the Maritime Provinces of Canada: Preliminary Analyses

Abstract

Eight Nova Scotia Companies have been producing and marketing the oyster Ostrea edulis on a pilot scale. They have obtained seed oysters from pilot hatcheries at Dalhousie University and Pleasant Point, Nova Scotia. Calculations of net present values show that plausible scenarios can be produced in which the hatchery would be commercially viable, but they require important technological and market targets to be reached. These targets pertain not only to the production of seed oysters, but also to the sale of mature oysters by aquaculturists.

Production economics of shellfish aquaculture in Atlantic Canada: a preliminary analysis

“…A detailed but non-empirical discussion of aquaculture economics in Atlantic Canada, including the microeconomics of European oyster and blue mussel aquaculture, has been prepared by Ridler & Kabir (1989). Cross, Newkirk & Johnson (1987) developed a net present value model to examine the use of hatcheries in oyster aquaculture development, analysing a variety of hypothetical scenarios based on variations in discount rates, oyster growth rates and the likelihood of catastrophes (due to disease, etc. )…”