Nearly all wild fisheries are now closed and there is currently no coordinated plan to bring them back. There are no hatcheries. No reseeding programmes. No farming. No alternative fishing methods in place — just stranded quota, degraded habitats, and growing reliance on imported product.
We’re here to change that.
Scallop aquaculture, whilst common globally, has never been deployed in New Zealand. Save Our Scallops is developing scalable methods for scallop aquaculture to supply markets and give back spat to assist in restoring wild scallop populations.
We innovate across industries with a goal to develop aquaculture that contributes to restoration and rehabiltates wild stocks. We are targeting R&D to advance hatchery, farming, restoration, and low-impact fishing methods to build a sustainable scallop industry.
Save Our Scallops is seeking grant funding of $3 Million NZD, with $1.5m already committed.
We restore wild scallop beds and biodiversity through scalable, restorative aquaculture from hatchery to release.
We validate scalable grow-out methods to support commercial scallop aquaculture, trialling international best practice in equipment and methods.
We have outplanted cultivated scallops into depleted beds to maximise survival and refine methods for wild population recovery.
We're assessing and reporting on the technical and economic feasibility of low-impact harvesting methods for integration into NZ fisheries.
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• Restore a collapsed fishery
• Rebuild local scallop supply for NZ consumers
• Create regional jobs and co-op farming models
• Protect and regenerate marine ecosystems
• Enable sustainable, non-destructive fishing
