THIS ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED IN THE PZC OF SATURDAY, 2ND MAY 2009
Musselfarmer Theo de Koning left Bruinisse in Zeeland five years ago for good to start a new adventure in Bar Harbor (ME). He now grows mussels the traditional way in America, the Acadia National Park as a gorgeous backdrop. The traditional way for the Dutch means growing them on a mussel bed, but it not so traditional for the States. Here, De Koning is a pioneer.
Theo de Koning is inspecting the mussel seed after the ice has melted.
It’s the world upside down. Americans do farm mussels, but use the fairly new technique of growing on ropes. The traditional method of farming on sea beds is new to them. “Isn’t that strange?” says Theo de Koning, while navigating his mussel ship on the waters around Mound Desert Island that are still partly frozen. Spring in the Northeast of the United States comes later than in our part of the world. It is only in May that temperatures will rise. “Farming on mussel beds is much more effective and relatively inexpensive.”
The waters around Bar Harbor are an excellent place for growing mussels, so discovered Theo a couple of years ago. Running a mussels company in Bruinisse, he was looking for a way to expand. The search brought him into contact with a biologist who was working for Great Eastern Mussels Farm in Maine. Great Eastern Mussels Farm was searching for a method to farm bigger mussels. Being a fifth generation mussel farmer, Theo could do the job. He convinced them of the Zeeuwse sustainable method of farming on a mussel bed. That was in May, 2004. In August, he visited the company again. This time his wife Fiona came along, who, being British, was very helpful as a translator. They discussed the outlines of the new company.
It wasn’t a go yet. Though they had found some very promising mussel beds, there was no guarantee it would be as fruitful as they had hoped for. Only time could tell. By the end of 2004, Theo flew again, this time alone leaving his wife home to take care of the children and the household. He was lucky. “Once the ice was gone, I could see that the seed had survived the cold, harsh winter”, Theo tells. In June he finally decided to stay and bring his family over.
Building up a new life in a far, foreign land is always time and energy consuming, and Theo and Fiona’s case was no exception to the rule. They came across all new problems they had to encounter in The Netherlands. Theo had to construct a machine on board for washing and selecting the mussels, a procedure he would do on shore in The Netherlands. “If I would do that here, according to American legislature, I would have to throw away the little ones. But that would be such a waste, because if you throw them back in the water and let them grow for a month or two; they’ll be the right size.”
They also encountered problems with the local people, who were not receiving Theo with open arms. “They were suspicious about aquaculture. So we organized a meeting, provided them with information. Growing mussels on a sea bed is a very sustainable way of aquaculture. Now that they knew, they would approve of it and even support our company.”
Not only the locals, also the environmentalists were reluctant to welcome them on the waters of Bar Harbor. Fiona: “They feared for the future of the sea grass. Fortunately, the relationship between aqua culturists and environmentalists is much better here than in The Netherlands. So we agreed to sow sea grass alongside one of the mussel beds. Mussels and sea grass both thrive in water of good quality. We share the need of balance in the waters.”
The couple found a nice, wooden house in the middle of woods near the tourist town of Bar Harbor. It is being heated entirely by a wood stove; huge fans on the ceiling in the living circulate the warm air all the way up to the quarters upstairs. Of course the little dog has found the best spot to take a nap: in front of the stove. The house is also Fiona’s office; since the day they moved to the United States she has been working full time in the company. Before, she didn’t need to.
Just when Theo and Fiona thought that things were finally working out for them, Great Eastern Mussels Farm stopped. It was May 2008, almost a year ago. “There was no warning”, Fiona says. “All of a sudden, they weren’t there anymore. We had to start all over again. Now we say: it was for the best, because we own the entire company and can manage it the way we want to. But back then, we were not thrilled at all.”
When they arrived, Theo’s unique knowledge of mussel farming on a sea bed provided for their working visas, right now it’s his marketing tool. ‘Hollander & Köning Mussels, Mussel processors’ it says on the newly designed logo of Acadia Aqua Farms. A windmill in Delft blue and description states that the mussels are ‘Dutch style’, that they use a ‘European farming method’ and that the mussels are ‘Bold…clean flavor’. De Koning‘s cheeks turn red when he explains the strategy. As a born Zeeuw, he probably thinks it’s way overdone. “I hired someone to get my mussels on the American market. We have to concentrate on the exclusive character of my mussels. The ‘umlaut’ on the ‘o’ and the name Hollander make it sound more authentic.”
The ‘un-Dutch’ marketing method seems to work: De Koning has found a couple of customers. “We transport to Boston, Ohio, Florida…Only places as far out as California we don’t cover yet. Fortunately, I would say, because we would have to send them in planes. That would generate a whole new set of logistic and packing problems.”
More information about Acadia Aqua Farms in Bar Harbor, Maine: www.acadia-aquafarms.com
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