A three-year pilot project to harvest and explore the market potential of a sea plant called Furcellaria in the Miminegash area is yielding good results. An interim assessment, covering the past two years, has recently been completed by a research team sponsored by the PEI Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; the Western Development Corporation, and coordinated by the Marine Plants Research Station in Miminegash. Cooperators in the pilot project are Irish Moss harvesters from the Miminegash, Skinners Pond and Howard's Cove ports, as well as members of several federal and provincial departments and agencies.
As part of the project, during a four-week period in May and June, 90 people have been directly employed harvesting and processing Furcellaria. Funding assistance was provided by Enterprise PEI; the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency; Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
‘This increase in Irish Moss landings is revitalizing an industry which has brought up to $5 million per year to the West Prince economy,' said Joe McGuire, MP for Egmont. ‘The exporting of the product is bringing back wealth to the province.'
‘The four-week Furcellaria harvesting and processing component alone has provided needed employment in the West Prince area, which has resulted in an additional $200,000 being generated into the local economy,' said Robert Morrissey, Minister of Economic Development and Tourism. ‘The members of the Furcellaria Raking Project Committee are providing invaluable advice and management during the project.'
The Furcellaria, which is dried, baled, and market-tested, has met with positive response to date. Additional marketing efforts are planned for the coming year.
‘We were very pleased with the results in year two of the project,' said Donnie Jones, Marine Plant Research Station, Miminegash. ‘Landings of Chondrus Crispus (Irish Moss) in the area were up by two million pounds over 1994 levels to 17.5 million pounds. We believe this is due in large part to the activities undertaken by the Furcellaria harvesting project. Furcellaria landings were also up 320,000 pounds over 1994 landings of 1.19 million pounds. The potential looks good for the establishment of a two-species harvest.'
Gerard Ready, spokesperson for the Furcellaria Raking Project Committee, said that the harvesting project showed that raking Furcellaria off the large Irish Moss bed benefits harvesters. In addition, the Furcellaria is sold to a local buyer and provides income to harvesters and plant workers at a time when the buying plant is not open. The main Irish Moss bed is sufficiently cleaned of Furcellaria to allow moss harvesters to harvest clean Irish Moss for the full season. He also said that the project renews the spirit of optimism in the moss harvesting community.
‘We knew that harvesting of Irish Moss in West Prince was declining, but that the potential was there for a successful industry,' said Ready. ‘We are pleased that both the provincial and federal governments listened to our concerns and are working with us to find a successful solution.'
Market initiatives over the past two years indicate that there is strong interest in the quality of the raw product and extract from the Furcellaria.