A new Griffith University scientist has revealed plans to potentially save the struggling Queensland oyster industry.
With the pressure of supplying sustainable food to a growing population, Dr Carmel McDougall of Griffith’s Australian Rivers Institute has plans to revolutionise aquaculture by developing a new species of edible oyster.
Dr McDougall has a history of working with oysters and, more specifically, with pearl development. Now she has set her sights on feeding the masses by developing a disease-resistant species known as the Blacklip Oyster.
This species can be used to replace the Sydney Rock Oyster which is extremely susceptible to QX disease, making it difficult to farm.
The Blacklip Oyster has a much faster growth rate than the Sydney Rock Oyster which helps farmers to distribute their product more quickly.
Being a tropical species it will also open up Queensland’s northern coastlines to the potential of oyster farming.
Oyster aquaculture in Queensland has been in a downward