We recently wrapped up our Oyster Farming Resilience Index Workshop Series. The series included four workshops that we developed after oyster farmers completed the Oyster Farming Resilience Index (OFRI) and identified their needs.
The workshops were held from late August of last year through February of this year and covered the following topics:
- Business Planning (held at the Mississippi State University (MSU) Coastal Research and Extension Center, Biloxi)
- Water Quality (held at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab)
- Marketing and Social Media (held at the MSU Coastal Research and Extension Center, Biloxi)
- So, You Want to Be an Oyster Farmer? (Held at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab)
Each workshop was well attended, and we had the benefit of having great support from industry members, the regulatory agencies from both states, students, researchers and extension specialists, among others.
Some attendees traveled long distances in inclement weather at times from as far away as Florida and Louisiana, which was greatly appreciated. Feedback was generally positive with some participants pointing out some issues with our efforts to use technology for a hybrid meeting to include guest speakers from around the country.
Farmer panels were very popular despite that the participating farmers were, in some ways, educating potential new farmers on how best to compete with them.
Overall, we will make this an ongoing effort, and we are excited about the opportunity to continue to use feedback from participants to provide resources to improve resilience for the oyster farming industry. We are in the process of developing a Shellfish Farming Resilience Index based on interests from those that work with other shellfish species and have similar areas for improving resilience.
Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] or 251-229-0826 if you would like assistance in completing the OFRI or have any suggestions for additional workshop topics. Your feedback is always welcome.
Meet the author
Russell "Rusty" Grice
Oyster Aquaculture Business Specialist
Rusty joined Sea Grant in 2016. He helps oyster farmers navigate requirements for starting farms, and he helps streamline the harvest reporting process for existing farms. His focus is on... Read more
Phone: 251-229-0826
Email: [email protected]