Australia.- Premier Mark McGowan and Fisheries Minister Dave Kelly opened the new Albany seafood hatchery that will support the expansion of aquaculture and create WA jobs.
The hatchery will support the development of a South Coast aquaculture industry and is estimated to create almost 100 direct WA jobs and a further 250 indirect jobs over 10 years.
The successful commercial-scale farming of edible oysters, mussels, scallops and Akoya pearl oysters depends on a reliable supply of large quantities of juvenile seed stocks, known as spat.
At times farming has been difficult with unpredictable spat recruitment but the new multi-species mollusc hatchery, which will be fully operational in early 2018 and has substantial biosecurity features, will produce spat and fill demand.
The WA aquaculture and wild-catch mollusc sectors are worth about $75 million – the new hatchery is estimated to increase the sector’s value by up to $12 million within five years.
Growing Western Australia’s aquaculture industry is a key component of the McGowan Government’s Plan for Jobs, to create local jobs and diversify the economy.
Comments attributed to Premier Mark McGowan:
“Aquaculture is an emerging industry with huge potential in Western Australia.
“In August, my Government held a successful aquaculture consortium to strengthen relationships with industry and discuss how local operations can take advantage of rising demand for quality seafood.
“My Government will continue to support industries that diversify the economy and create local WA jobs.”
Comments attributed to Fisheries Minister Dave Kelly:
“The McGowan Government’s goal is to develop a shellfish aquaculture industry that will create WA jobs by building on our State’s existing reputation for producing high-quality seafood and take advantage of increasing international demand.
“Other large-scale aquaculture development locations are currently being explored.
“This mollusc hatchery will not only deliver on current spat demand but serve future demand as new investment is made to establish more commercial-scale shellfish operations in the State.”
Source: Government of Western Australia
