SPECIAL REPORT: Clams
Aquaculture is the wave of the future for NJ’s iconic bivalve.
A Tale of Two States: Hard Clam Aquaculture in Virginia and New Jersey 2015
Since 2002, New Jersey has produced a Shellfish Aquaculture Situation and Outlook Report similar to one produced by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS). While numbers are based on survey responses, and it is believed that hard clam statistics are underreported in New Jersey, the chart below offers a relative snapshot in scale.
NEW JERSEY
- Aquacultured hard clams sold: 7.8 million
- Percentage sold in state: 52%
- Farm gate value: $1.5 million
- Average wholesale market price: $0.19
- Estimated aquaculture employment: 28
VIRGINIA
- Aquacultured hard clams sold: 185 million
- Percentage sold in state: 15%
- Farm gate value: $32.3 million
- Average wholesale market price: $0.17
- Estimated aquaculture employment: 325
SOURCE: NJ Shellfish Aquaculture Situation and Outlook Report 2015 Production Year. Rutgers Agricultural Experiment Station, 2017; Virginia Shellfish Aquaculture Situation and Outlook Report 2015 Production Year. Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences, William & Mary, 2017.
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