Do you like fish and seafood dishes? These foods are increasingly gaining the flavor of Brazilians. There is a wide variety of seafood, from shrimp, clams to oysters. The latter is one of the favorite options of those who enjoy this cooking area. Oysters are mainly offered in commercial establishments in coastal areas and can be used in different ways in various recipes.
Like the idea of working with seafood? We have a text intended to teach how to start a shrimp farm, this is a business that becomes a great amount of money and can provide you with your expected economic independence.
Besides being an option in the menu of fish and seafood dishes, oysters is also a good business opportunity, and you can create in captivity, sell them and get a good financial return. During the last decade this activity had a considerable growth, which is due to a greater interest of the consumers in oysters.
Your intention is to go to the oyster farming branch? This fruit of the sea has salt water as habitat, so it is necessary to mount a structure totally adapted to achieve the survival of the beings and that they can develop in the correct way, with the purpose of giving place to a product of good quality to the final consumer . To help you we will bring more information and tips on oyster farming.
More information about oyster farming
Oyster culture belongs to the aquaculture activity, which is characterized by the production of aquatic organisms from areas monitored by humans, who use specific techniques to be successful. In Brazil, aquaculture gained more space in the last ten years, the main production areas located in the northeast, south and southeast.
Oyster farming is mainly carried out by fishing communities, emerging as an alternative to financial income. Oysters are characterized by being mollusks that are found inside a fairly rigid shell, which serves to protect the internal content, and popularly known as shell. Today the oysters, the most cultivated species in Brazil are Ostrea equestris, Crassostrea rhizophorae, Crassostrea gigas and Ostrea puelchana, which have a larger body and thicker shell and is suitable for culinary preparation, as the most yield.
Oysters develop mainly in regions with a tropical climate, as they need heat to grow healthily. These animals are most easily raised on rocky red coasts or near salt water with mangroves. Oysters become more sensitive outside their natural habitat, and must be created in an artificial lake or enclosed area on a sea shore, managed by the producer, who must feed the animals with adequate food and control the development of their .
Keep in mind that oyster farming is not a simple task and requires a lot of care, since it will be the breeding of a mollusk outside its natural habitat, which hinders development.
Market for oysters
Aquaculture with the aim of producing food is one of the sectors that has grown the most in the world scenario of industrial food production. Today, China is the country that produces more oysters, which has 83% of the world production. In Brazil, it can be said that oyster farming has been a success, but it is an activity that is still developing and is considered a new vein of the market for those who want to invest in the area of food.
The state of Santa Catarina is the state that produces more oysters in the country, the second rank in Latin America. Last year alone, the region reached a production of more than 13 tons of oysters, generating a gross income of R$ 30 million. This site has the greatest competition from oyster producers in other regions of the south and southeast, this market still has a large space to be explored. An oyster producer can only have a monthly income of R$5,000 to R$20,000 depending on his production capacity.
Introduction to oyster farming
In order to work with oyster farming it is necessary to take into account that these molluscs are placed in a place that is not their natural habitat, so it is necessary to build an appropriate framework to ensure their survival. Below is a list of some of the most important steps in oyster farming:
1. Location to mount the oyster raising
The location of any business is very important to its success, even when considering the breeding of an animal species. Therefore, to create the oysters it is necessary to observe the conditions in which they are best adapted. In case the business can be set up in a coastal area it can create/define areas on the coast of the same sea to monitor the development of sea products, obviously, it must have legal permits for this activity.
But if the oyster farming is carried out in a space far from the coastal region, the ideal is the construction of an artificial lake, which should be filled with salt water to promote the development of the animals. The oysters should be kept in a place with a minimum temperature of 15 ° C, below that is not recommended.
2. Legal requirements for oyster farming
To work with oyster farming one has to obtain all the necessary permits, otherwise the company can be intercepted. First, you have to go to the Board of Trade of the city to apply for the opening of the business, having all your personal documents. Then you have to go to the city to apply for the operating license, the Environmental and Health License.
In addition, you must also go to IBAMA to obtain the permit for mollusk farming, create in the port sector as an aquaculturist and request the transfer of use of aquatic space for cases of breeding installed on the coasts of the sea. All authorizations are granted after inspection by all regulators of the activity.
3. Structure to assemble the oysters
The structure for the assembly of the oyster breeding is basically divided into two parts, the artificial or sea lake for the development of the animals and a specific area to carry out the treatment of oysters, where the selection and cleaning is done to leave them ready for the commercialization process.
For the production area, it is necessary to define a space on the shore of at least 50 m² to enter the oyster headquarters and manage its growth. This process can be done by using your own nets for the activity. For the treatment of sea products we have to set up a 35 m² establishment, which must be equipped with a kitchen and boxes with water to keep oysters fresh. This investment is about R$ 60 thousand reais.
4. Raw material for the cultivation of oysters
To start creating oysters you must acquire the raw materials, which are sets of molluscs. In this case it is necessary to buy the oyster seed, being the most suitable type and the native Japanese species from Brazil, which is found in abundance in the breeding of the South. The oyster seeds are bought in “pillows”, integrated by more than 6,000 units. The acquisition should be made in the spring period when spawning animals occur.
5. Equipment for oyster breeding
The main equipment used for oyster farming are moorings, long line cables, floats, lantern, intermediate nursery lantern, end lantern, floating raft, boat, hydro wash pump and plastic boxes. These materials have an average investment cost of R$ 100,000 reais. Note that the investment to start your oyster farming is relatively high, if you have limited resources, you can choose to create other animals, as is the case of the Angola chicken.