USDA invests in Maine’s growing oyster industry

WALPOLE, Maine (AP) - A Maine shellfish grower is receiving more than $600,000 from the federal government to increase its production of oysters.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Small Business Innovation Research Program is providing the money to Maine Shellfish Developers of Walpole.

The business’s website states that its model can “produce market size oysters year-round and insulated from major weather and environmental risks.”

Maine Sens. Susan Collins, a Republican, and Angus King, an independent, said the aid will “foster cutting-edge research and help strengthen Maine’s oyster industry.”