Building Up Their Mussels
Portarlington farmers are subverting nature to counter a mussel shortage.
There’s a hole in the Australian mussel market, a substantial gap between supply and demand of which Portarlington mussel farmers Lance Wiffen and Wayne Gallop are all too aware.
Two of Victoria’s largest mussel growers, they meet much of the demand for the delicate, inexpensive shellfish in restaurants, fish shops and markets from Melbourne to Cairns. Suffice to say, when Wiffen and Gallop are feeling the pinch, so, too, are mussel lovers across Australia’s eastern seaboard.
This year, it was a late summer and cold water temperatures that upset the chain, causing late crops and a delay in harvest; like all primary industries, mussel farming is an inexact science vulnerable to the whims of Mother Nature. That is, until now.
Working in partnership with Avalon abalone farm, Ocean Wave Seafoods, Wiffen and farmers like him are wresting back control from nature. Together, they are spearheading the first controlled spawning of mussels in Victoria.
“Our natural collection has always been fantastic,” Wiffen says of their Portarlington mussel farms, “but as the industry is getting bigger and introduced species threaten the balance of Port Phillip Bay, we fear we may not have it in the future. Collection is becoming haphazard and we can’t rely on it like we used to. Whether this is a permanent situation or just cyclic, either way we need the back-up of the hatchery.”
In the wild, mussel larvae will commonly settle on ropes put down by growers around September. The spat (as baby mussels are known) will then be thinned and placed on growing ropes in late summer, with first harvests starting in winter and continuing until the next autumn. Problems arise when rough weather prevents mussels from spawning or cold waters delay the larvae’s settling. (The bay temperature must hit a balmy 14 degrees before they can settle to begin their growth phase).
Spawning in controlled climates, however, removes nature’s inconsistencies.
The above-ground, purpose-built water tanks are set at the optimal temperature, encouraging the mussels to spawn and settle; salt water is pumped into the tanks from the bay, mimicking the sea creatures’ natural environment. Controlled feeding then provides the right nutrients, at the right time, in just the right doses to speed the early growing phase. When large enough to withstand the rigours of nature, the mussels, still clinging to their ropes, are transferred back to the bay to complete their growth.
A quick tour of the tanks shows the first attempt has been a resounding success. Six 11,000-litre tanks are filled with 2000 ropes. Each rope is home to 15,000 tiny mussels, for now visible only through a microscope.
It is Wiffen’s belief the venture will rocket Portarlington mussel farmers into the big time. Increased mussel numbers will allow farmers to branch out into export and processing while meeting the demands of a national market clamouring for more. Wiffen alone expects to sell some 1000 tonnes of mussels this year, half of which, he says, are likely to end up on restaurant tables. But supply will still fall short of demand. Controlled spawning also guarantees consistency, something that until now has been only a pipe dream.
The taste and texture, we are assured, are no different. Spawned from wild mussels, hatchery spat reportedly have the same qualities.
Of course, the cost of running commercial hatcheries mean they will never completely replace natural spat collection. In Tasmania, where natural collection has proved difficult, the use of hatcheries has pushed prices above those of Victorian farmers, effectively costing Tassie products out of the market. Wiffen hopes natural spat collection will still make up 50 per cent of his total harvest.
It’s the final piece in the jigsaw of a tiny coastal town’s market dominance; near capital centres for easy transport, clean waters for delicious taste, and now the guarantee of consistency to create a winning trifecta.
“We are controlling our destiny here,” Wiffen says. “We’ve got a patch of water out there and how much we harvest all depends on how good we are. With this, we are assured of building our industry.”