Selective breeding of shellfish is not a trivial undertaking. A large number of animals are involved, each individual needs to be identifiable and each generation of animals goes through all stages of the complex shellfish life cycle including the grow-out under typical farm conditions. Some of the pitfalls are of a scientific nature (e.g. inbreeding), while other practical issues can be solved by good collaboration with industry.

We are among the world leaders in shellfish selective breeding. We have demonstrated yield gains of up to 20% per generation for mussels and oysters. Much of New Zealand's commercial oyster spat is produced from our improved broodstock. The first commercial mussel crops from improved parents are on the water.

Our expertise:

Quantitative genetics: The design of the breeding programme is based on established principles of quantitative genetics. Production gain is optimized through sound science.

Family production: A ‘family’ is the offspring from two known parents. Each family may consist of several thousand siblings grown together until they are large enough for transfer to the farm. 50-60 families per cohort make an effective breeding programme.

Logistics, project management: The generation cycle of mussels and oysters is typically 2 years. In this time, a wide range of individual steps need to be carried out correctly to complete a successful generation.

Other species:

Much of our expertise is transferable to the selective breeding of other broadcast-spawning invertebrates, be it marine or freshwater species.