CT Grown Seafood: Surprise!

HARTFORD — Much to the surprise of some inland residents, Connecticut boasts a thriving seafood industry, specializing in shellfish. The state is, in fact, the Northeast’s leading hard clam and total aquaculture producer, with 80,000 acres of shellfish cultivation in Long Island Sound.

According to David Carey, director of Aquaculture at the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, so much shellfish is produced in the state that the 40-plus independent harvesters/dealers in Connecticut ship most of their product to wholesalers in Boston, Rhode Island and New York.

Although the dealers in those areas repackage the shellfish with their own labels, Mr Carey says it is highly likely that clams bearing those labels actually originated in Connecticut.

Consumers across the state can purchase fresh Connecticut Grown seafood at a number of farmers’ markets, including those in Milford, Stratford, Fairfield, New Haven and Storrs.

To ensure the health and safety of every piece of seafood commercially harvested in Connecticut, the state Bureau of Aquaculture vigilantly monitors and tests the water within Long Island Sound. More than 6,000 samples from the 500 sample stations located throughout the Sound were processed in 2005.

In addition, all harvesters have specialized training in safety and sanitation.

For more information about Connecticut Aquaculture, visit the Connecticut Department of Agriculture’s website at www.ct.gov/doag and click on Aquaculture.