Great Lakes Sea Grant Programs Awarded $425,000 to Advance Aquaculture

Multiple images of fish, people near fish tanks, and a cartoon fish logo

DULUTH, Minn. — The Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative was awarded $425,000 by the National Sea Grant Office to advance land-based aquaculture in the Great Lakes region.

The Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative, led by Minnesota Sea Grant, supports an environmentally responsible, competitive and sustainable aquaculture industry in the Great Lakes region. The Aquaculture Collaborative, begun in 2019, is one of 11 Sea Grant research projects and collaborative programs that received National Sea Grant funding totaling $4.7 million aimed at advancing sustainable aquaculture.

“The focus of Sea Grant’s Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative is on land-based aquaculture that is environmentally responsible and does not negatively impact waters of the Great Lakes or inland waters of the region,” said project principal investigator and Minnesota Sea Grant Fisheries and Aquaculture Extension Educator Amy Schrank. “We will use this continuing funding to help strengthen the aquaculture community in our region, provide legislators in each state with science-based aquaculture information and help clarify how aquaculture regulations are implemented in Great Lakes states.”

Great Lakes states are not keeping pace with increases in consumer demand for fish and seafood which contributes to a $17 billion national seafood trade deficit. Starting in 2019 and continuing today, the Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative has held regionwide workshops and training opportunities, created an aquaculture farm tour video series, funded and published research on consumer demand for aquaculture products and created a dedicated website.

Project deliverables:

  • Link aquaculture producers to state and national aquaculture organizations and support producers, students, and researchers from historically marginalized communities to attend and present at state and national aquaculture meetings.
  • Continue collaborations with aquaculture industry advisory groups from Great Lakes states to solicit feedback on progress and outcomes and understand state-specific industry needs.
  • Inform Great Lakes legislators about what aquaculture is and the elements of a sustainable regional aquaculture industry.
  • Compare aquaculture laws and regulations among states within the Great Lakes region to determine how agencies interpret and implement these rules.
  • Foster synergies among private, state, and tribal organizations to jointly address seafood supply-chain challenges in the aquaculture and commercial fishing industries. 
  • Develop research questions that address priority areas of need for aquaculture producers that may be funded by Great Lakes Sea Grant programs.

“These investments demonstrate Sea Grant’s commitment to sustainably growing U.S. aquaculture throughout coastal and Great Lakes communities,” said Jonathan Pennock, director of NOAA’s National Sea Grant College Program. “The funded projects, which address a variety of challenges, will ensure that growth of the aquaculture sector will be informed by the latest science and community needs.”

The University of Minnesota Sea Grant program is one of 34 federal (NOAA)-university partnerships that brings science together with communities for solutions that work. Sea Grant is a network of 34 Sea Grant science, education and outreach programs located in every coastal and Great Lakes state, Lake Champlain, Puerto Rico, and Guam.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

CONTACTS:

Minnesota Sea Grant

  • Amy Schrank, Fisheries and Aquaculture Extension Educator, Minnesota Sea Grant, University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Duluth, aschrank@umn.edu, 612-301-1526
  • Donald Schreiner, Fisheries Specialist, Minnesota Sea Grant, University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Duluth, schr0941@d.umn.edu, 218-726-7375
  • Marie Thoms, Communication Manager, University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota Sea Grant, methoms@d.umn.edu, office: 218-726-8710

Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant

  • Stuart Carlton, Assistant Director, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant, carltons@purdue.edu, 765-494-3726
  • Amy Shambach, Aquaculture Marketing Outreach Associate, ashambac@purdue.edu, 765-496-4085

Lake Champlain Sea Grant

  • Theodore Willis, Aquaculture Education Specialist, theodore.willis@uwm.edu, 207-894-4537

Ohio Sea Grant

  • Nicole Wright, Aquaculture Extension Educator, wright.1128@osu.edu, 614-292-8949

Michigan Sea Grant

  • Lauren Jescovitch, Extension Educator, jescovit@msu.edu, 570-687-6818
  • Elliot Nelson, Extension Educator, Michigan Sea Grant, Elliotne@msu.edu, 906-322-0353

National Sea Grant Law Center

  • Stephanie Otts, Director, sshowalt@olemiss.edu, 662-915-771

New York Sea Grant

  • Emma Forbes, Aquaculture Specialist, ef375@cornell.edu, 914-285-4620

Wisconsin Sea Grant

  • Emma Hauser, Aquaculture Outreach & Education Specialist, ehauser@uwsp.edu, 715-779-3262;
  • Titus Seilheimer, Fisheries Outreach Specialist, tseilheimer@aqua.wisc.edu, 920-683-4697

Image credits: Left to right: MNSG, Northern Aquaculture Demonstration Facility (NADF), MNSG, MNSG, MNSG, NADF, MNSG.

 

Departments

Programs and Outreach Projects
Great Lakes Aquaculture Collaborative