Baltic MUPPETS Deliverable 2.7: Report on Optimized Harvest System

Until today, mussel farming on the Swedish east coast has only been conducted on a small pilot/prototype scale and has mostly relied on labor-intensive and costly harvesting methods and logistics solutions. Although this way of working has been effective enough to drive development forward, it does not provide the conditions for a financially sustainable business. In Ecopelag, to make mussel farming more cost-effective, we have designed a new harvester and harvesting system through evaluation, testing and adaptation of different subcomponents. The focus of this harvesting method has been on the integration and adaptation of already existing technologies and solutions in both mussel and fishing industries. The test work and adaptations in the field have primarily been carried out by Ecopelag, while the design of components has also included external expertise, such as designers and equipment manufacturers. The development of the harvester is a result of several projects, in addition to Baltic MUPPETS, also the EU projects Baltic Blue Growth1 and Life IP Rich waters.