East Coast Shellfish Research Institute

East Coast Shellfish Research Institute is a non-profit organization registered in SAM.gov since 2008, with a current registration valid through April 29, 2025. The organization specializes in shellfish research and biosecurity programs, focusing on supporting the shellfish industry's health and regulatory compliance. As a non-profit entity, the institute works closely with federal agencies to develop and implement strategic programs that protect and advance shellfish aquaculture across the United States.

The institute has consistently secured cooperative agreements with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), a civilian federal agency, to conduct critical shellfish hatchery biosecurity and pathogen surveillance work. Their primary services include developing regional shellfish seed biosecurity programs, performing comprehensive hatchery audits, and establishing frameworks for shellfish hatchery certification and compliance. Specifically, their recent federal grants have involved auditing approximately fifty shellfish hatcheries along the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, monitoring potential disease risks, and generating quarterly surveillance reports on shellfish pathogens. The grants, ranging from September 2022 to September 2024, aim to support USDA APHIS's mission of protecting U.S. agriculture and natural resources by collaborating with regional veterinarians, collecting pathogen samples across different shellfish size classes, and working with diagnostic laboratories like Kennebec River Biosciences to identify and quantify notifiable shellfish pathogens.