CTSA# 125, Clams to Cash: How to Make and Sell Giant Clam Shell Products

CTSA# 125

Clams to Cash: How to Make and Sell Giant Clam Shell Products

Gerald Heslinga

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On actively producing giant clam farms, clam shells are produced when clam meat is harvested and when mortalities occur. Storing giant clam shells can quickly become a problem if an efficient plan is not implemented. In our travels to giant clam hatcheries throughout the Pacific, we were dismayed to find that some had unsightly piles of dead clam shells accumulating. At that point, we clearly saw that adding value to clam shells begins as soon as they are removed from the ocean or the growing tanks. If shells are simply thrown in a pile or scattered around the ground, they appear discarded and lacking in value. No one will expect to pay much, if anything, for them. Indeed, most visitors to the farm will feel free to help themselves to the shells. However, if the clam shells are cleaned, sorted by size and species and stored neatly, their value will already have begun to increase. People appreciate neatness and order, and they will pay for it.

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