2020-2025 Strategic Plan for the Australian Oyster Industry
Oysters Australia IPA: development of a national Pacific Oyster Mortality Syndrome (POMS) response plan
POMS affects all Pacific Oysters growing states. there is a need for a coordinated national response plan.
Final report
Oysters Australia IPA: Australian edible oyster RD&E investment via Oysters Australia strategic plan 2014-2019
This project is needed to:
1. Manage project development between and within OA's member states. Pre Seafood CRC, the Australian oyster industry invested via the FRAB system and often in isolation to each other. The operation of the Oyster Consortium within the Seafood CRC was testament to the ability for states to co-ordinate their investment. But a co-ordinator and industry consultation budget is needed to facilitate this process.
2. Manage and co-ordinate access to most suitable funding sources for R,D&E goals. The R&D funding environment is a complex mix of business, R&D provider, industry and public funds. A portion of the industry's R,D&E needs can be addressed via the straightforward route to FRDC leveraged industry funds. With dwindling funds available, co-ordination and management is also required to access partnerships within and outside the FRDC framework.
3. Maintain cohesive and strategic direction of the Oysters Australia R&D group. Formation and execution of a strategic plan is vital to maintaining agreement and forms part of this project. Time spent consulting and communicating with member states is also needed to maintain cohesion.
4. Communication. Good project design contains a commercial partner and commercialisation path. A commercialisation path is an efficient form of project uptake and can reduce the 'push through' approach to communicating R&D results. But communication is still needed to a) set strategy in consultation with growers, b) update on investments as they are made and c) report on results to the grower's business.
Final report
Seafood CRC: safe spat rearing experiment
A FRDC funded University Sydney/EMAI project investigating the biological behaviour (epidemiology) of POMS has identified an additional need that falls outside its original project aims.
The recent incidence and subsequent loss of the industry in the Hawkesbury River, NSW also devastated test stock placed in the water by ASI. The industry must invest in all options to safeguard national production; breeding resistant oysters and alternate husbandry.
The objective of this project is to provide scientific evidence that water treatments can be applied to enable safe rearing of spat in holding tanks in a POMS affected area until the window of infection closes. There is evidence to suggest that a similar approach is used in the French oyster industry to cope with POMS.
The project objective is to treat water in land-based tanks holding spat to interrupt putative transmission mechanisms. If successful, this can be used by hatcheries to hold stock in safe rearing conditions adjacent to a potentially infected estuary until the window of infection closes, and then they will be stocked out into the estuary. This is of use for growers with leases in infected waters who require a method for rearing/conditioning hatchery spat on-shore from the time of receipt until it is safe to put them in the estuary. If POMS spreads to affected waters near hatcheries in Tasmania, they will also require a solution for safe spat production.
Final report
The production cycle of Pacific Oysters in Australia currently depends on hatchery production of spat, mainly in Tasmania. Experience in France and other European countries is that OsHV-1 affects mainly hatchery spat and juvenile oysters, with near total losses of affected batches being common. However, the observations in Australia and New Zealand are that oysters from spat through to adult stages are susceptible. The results from trials conducted in FRDC projects 2011/053 and 2012/032 have already revealed that mortality in adult stock can be kept below 50% by placing stock in cultivation structures 300 mm above standard growing height. The trials described in this report are the first to examine strategies to enable survival of spat and juvenile oysters.
The objective of this study was to obtain information about simple and practical methods to treat/disinfect water so as to develop a method for hatcheries to safely produce and rear spat in infected estuaries during the risk period for disease expression, and for hatcheries or farmers to hold spat in land based facilities during the seasonal window of infection.
Seafood CRC: National oyster R & D – strategic R & D project commissioning, management and path to commercialization
Seafood CRC: Oyster consortium - communication, extension and management of R&D results
Value for money
The industry comprises around 970 small owner operator businesses throughout Australia. Each state has an industry council to coordinate a strategic approach to its R&D priorities. The Seafood CRC has provided a unique opportunity for the oyster industry by providing an opportunity for future growth but it is contingent upon coordinated investment in industry development at the whole of industry level.
The oyster consortium is a collegial group of Industry bodies and private companies and represents the cutting edge or Research and development in the oyster industry. By forming the consortium the oyster industry has become a core participant in the Seafood CRC and will deliver a strategic approach to R&D to maximize returns.
This proposal will provide the resources to ensure that the outcomes of the research and development undertaken through the CRC are adopted and commercialised quickly and extensively throughout the Australian Oyster industry. Without this coordination it will be very difficult to achieve the change at the extent and rate necessary to achieve the growth targets for the industry.
Level of Impact
The Oyster Consortium will be pivotal in achieving the CRC objective with respect to the Oyster industry and will be responsible for meeting two distinct needs involved in their national R&D strategy;
1. The strategic issues of R&D prioritization, funding and the linkages to (and support for) both industry development plans and Government objectives of industry development.
2. The operational issues of facilitating effective communication and coordination at all levels (industry/researchers, among researchers, among industry, FRDC/researchers etc).
Final report
CRC project 2007/715: “Seafood CRC - Oyster consortium - communication, extension and management of R&D results” was needed to ensure return on investment in oyster R & D, was seen as essential for industry change and to achieve the growth targets for the industry.
The Oyster Consortium formed in 2007 to become a core CRC participant but consisted of state based industry councils and commercial entities. The state based councils represent 970 small owner operator businesses throughout Australia. Strategy, co-ordination and facilitating effective communication were identified as crucial to ensuring that CRC research outcomes were adopted and commercialised quickly and extensively throughout the Australian Oyster industry.