Breeding Better Oysters
A pearl of a project for Eastern Canada’s oyster industry
The oyster industry in Eastern Canada is expanding rapidly, registering revenues near $31 million in 2017, a 25% increase from 2016.
$3.8 Million research project
L’Étang Ruisseau Bar (ERB), a New Brunswick oyster seed producer, is teaming up with Genome Atlantic, Genome Canada, Génome Québec and scientists at Université Laval to develop Canada’s first strain of selectively-bred Eastern Oyster – a potential game changer for the industry.
A faster-growing oyster
Selective breeding with genomics will produce an oyster strain that could grow up to 20% faster and have more disease resistance – while maintaining the outstanding taste that make Eastern Oysters so desirable. Genomics could increase ERB’s production by 60%.
Q&A with Project Partners
To get a better picture of this undertaking from the standpoints of the industry and the science involved, Genome Atlantic contacted the co-leads of the project, Dr. Martin Mallet from ERB, and Dr. Louis Bernatchez at Université Laval, for Q&A interviews.
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