Problem Statement 15-22: "Oyster tracks: Developing a reference application to track oysters from farm to table"

Background
Farmed oysters, clams, and mussels account for about two-thirds of total U.S. marine aquaculture production. Much of this is grown by “small” farmers, and when they sell to distributors, they may lose track of where their products end up. On the consumer end, oysters and clams are now being regionally identified on menus much like wines. Because site specific production characteristics are identified, there is an opportunity to use shellfish consumers to track not only the type of oysters they eat, but also where they were they are being eaten. Linking the producers to the consumers will create more value for domestic seafood, and better linkages making for a more verdant food system.

Problem Statement
We need to create an application so consumers can list restaurants along with grocery stores where they buy specific shellfish (identified to variety, farm, region, and or state). The key part of this app will be mapping interfaces to show where specific farms are selling product (value to farmer), enable consumers to find shellfish from specific farms (value to consumer) and to link consumers back to the producers (engages in a more robust domestic seafood program).

Core Category
Aquaculture; Traceability

Organization Name
New England Aquarium

Organization Address
1 Central Wharf

Organization Point of Contact (Name)
Dr Michael Tlusty

Organization Point of Contact (Title)
Director of Ocean Sustainability Science

Organization Point of Contact (Phone Number)
6179736715

Organization Point of Contact (Email Address)
mtlusty@neaq.org

Focus Area
Aquaculture

Solution Category
Internet of Things (IoT)