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Issue link: https://seafoodbusiness.epubxp.com/i/112398
Top Species Photo courtesy of Acadia Aqua Farms ���avor and has a denser shell that makes it stronger and easy to ship, she says. Canada is the biggest producer of live mussels and the chief competitor for Acadia, says de Koning. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Acadia Aqua Farms was founded in 2010 and harvests 600,000 pounds of blue mussels per year. Administration���s Fisheries Service, Canada in 2012 exported 32.8 million pounds of live mussels to the United States. Te 2011 landings total of blue mussels in the United States was about 4.6 million pounds. Acadia has focused on the top end of the market, de Koning says, selling into 36 SeaFood Business March 2013 Boston for distribution to companies along the Eastern Seaboard and west to Illinois and Ohio. Very little product stays in Maine, she says, because Maine already has rope-grown mussels that are popular among Portland���s restaurateurs. Having come from the Netherlands where businesses work collaboratively, de Koning would like to see more mussel producers in Maine, and has become involved with various state agencies to develop the industry. ���We don���t feel threatened by competition,��� she says. ���Rather, you just concentrate on what you do best. ���Tis is a great part of the world to grow seafood; the water is so nutrient-rich,��� says de Koning, who adds that they are very careful to ���t in alongside the existing ���shing industries. Te mussels are grown in about 10 feet of water, she says, and choosing the lease sites is the critical part of the business. Finding those key spots are part science, she says, but also come from years of having worked with mussels and knowing what is best. Imports offer consistency Another big part of the U.S. mussel business is imported frozen product from another key producer, Chile. In 2012, the United States imported 10.6 million pounds of mussels (frozen, dried, salted and brined) and another nearly 4 million pounds of prepared mussels from Chile. Only New Zealand sent more frozen product to the United States ��� 22.9 million pounds. Tom Sunderland, VPmarketing and communications for Ocean Beauty Seafoods in Seattle, says mussels are trending upward among the seafood o���ered by Ocean Beauty. ���I think in two to three years, mussels will be one of our top items,��� he says. Recently, the company introduced breaded mussels in a 1-pound retail bag under the St. Andrews brand. Te audience for this product, says Sunderland, is a bit di���erent, as it appeals to the chicken-nugget crowd as well as the bar-food audience. With supply good and available at steady prices, Sunderland says mussels will continue to gain popularity. He describes Chilean blue mussels as ���very mild tasting, sustainably harvested��� and a product that doesn���t require a lot of education. Chile is a good source, he says, because producers there o���er a superior frozen mussel. ���It comes down to supply,��� he says, and then they can look to develop new products, such as the breaded mussels and possibly a smoked item. Ruggiero Seafood in Newark, N.J., also buys mussels from Chile, says VP Frank Ruggiero. Tus far this year, he says, supply has been consistent and prices competitive, ���uctuating 5 to 10 cents a pound in the early part of the year. Farmed blue mussels have been steady in the $1.50-per-pound range, f.o.b. New York. Frozen green-lipped mussels from New Zealand are steady in the low-$2 range. Much of what Ruggiero Seafood sells goes beyond the Long Island area, he says, because of competition from fresh product. Te Midwest and South are key markets for the farmed product, which Ruggiero says is harvested ���when they have the most meat and the shells are hard.��� Ruggiero sells frozen 10-pound vacuum packs to foodservice operators, but also o���ers half shells and mussel meat in bulk and retail. ���I love fresh mussels, but it���s hard to keep it consistent,��� he says. ���With frozen, the quality is always good.��� Contributing Editor Joanne Friedrick lives in Portland, Maine Visit us online at www.seafoodbusiness.com