CranGo

Crangon crangon, also known as sand shrimp or brown shrimp, is a popular, high-priced and regional product, but fishing along the German coasts is under threat as the EU wants to restrict bottom trawling and ban it completely in protected areas in order to protect the seas. The current fishing methods are causing considerable damage to the seabed and destroying biotopes. There are no alternative sustainable fishing methods for this species! The C. crangon is an established product, but prices have continued to rise in recent years due to decreasing catch volumes.

In order to continue to offer this regional speciality and to protect the marine ecosystems of the region, the idea of cultivating the species may well make sence. To date, there have only been a few studies on keeping the sand shrimp in aquaculture, which is why it is currently not possible to make a meaningful assessment of cultivating and profitability.

The project CranGo aims to investigate the potential of breeding the species in closed facilities for food production. The procurement of stocking material, initial husbandry and feed trials and the determination of relevant key parameters should make it possible to assess the potential of the species and develop sensible concept for further steps.