Sustainable Fisheries

Sea Urchin Ranching Project

We are collaborating with the Bodega Marine Lab and Urchinomics to test methods for ranching starved purple sea urchins to turn them into a tasty sustainable seafood product. When sea urchins overpopulate people wonder why divers just cant turn them into a fishery. Without any kelp the urchin are empty inside and the sea urchins are worthless to the seafood market. Thats why Urchinomics and other companies have been exploring the development of algal diets and ways to feed starving urchin so they once again develop tasty gonad (roe). But how long does it take, how much do you have to feed them, what densities are best and how about the water flows required for ranching ? These are just a few of the questions this use inspired science is trying to address.