BlueTrace wins NOAA grant for shellfish tagging and traceability

Funds will enable BlueTrace to add new features to the app and accommodate additional species

Maine-based shellfish technology company BlueTrace has been awarded a $500,000 Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to expedite their innovative shellfish tagging and traceability efforts.

Founder and CEO Chip Terry and his partners started Oyster Tracker after identifying a need in the shellfish market for a more effective way to manage and track harvests. That product quickly evolved into the BlueTrace tool for shellfish harvesters to print tags and digitally record the harvest logs required by law.

BlueTrace’s pioneering iOS app allows shellfish growers to input data through their phones (or iPads) in the field, simplifying required financial and harvest reporting. Buyers can then print harvest and dealer tags with an embedded QR code, recording all the necessary information for tracking and selling. BlueTrace tags cost less on average than preprinted tags, without the more cumbersome and error-prone labor of handwriting data.

“We started this company because we had friends who were struggling to manage the regulatory compliance involved in fast-growing aquaculture businesses ­– especially shellfish farms,” said Terry. “As demand grew, we secured funding from the private sector, who share our belief that, in order to grow and prosper, the seafood industry needs a system that easily tracks products from the tideline to the table.”

In 2021, BlueTrace won a NOAA Phase I grant to accelerate the development of its Tide to Table Traceability and Marketing System. This new Phase II grant will enable the company to add new features to the app and accommodate additional species. They will also build out the company’s business development/sales team, hire more engineers and marketers and attend more industry events. The company’s mission is to create an affordable and reliable means of complying with state and federal shellfish documentation and reporting requirements.

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