Coral Project

Why organize FFM?

The coral reefs of the world are in peril as a result of negative effects of numerous human activities. Unfortunately, included in that list is the marine aquarium trade. As a hobbyist and an avid scuba diver, I find it upsetting that I am taking part in destroying the reefs that I love so much. The hobby that we all take part in pulls ten of thousands of corals out of the oceans each year, with a focus on finding the rare and hard to find specimens. Many of these corals end up dying in collection, shipping, and acclimation. From there, many end up dead by being put into insufficient home reef environments due to poor education/training.

What is a "Frag Farmer's Market?

Inspired by the idea of the the reef club frag swap, the New England Frag Farmer's Market has become the biggest signle day coral event in the country, with over 1500 people in attendance at the 2019 FFM.. It brings together 60+ coral "farmers" from all over the country to come sell their home grown crop. The E.O. Smith Coral Project has hosted the FFM for 14 years now, allowing hobbyists, retail or online store to come in and set-up to sell farmed coral frags. With the set-up fee lower than any other show, the hobbyist can set-up next to the big names in coral. Admission is only $5, and anyone can come in and chat with the farmers, share information and get a few nice homegrown frags to stock their tanks.

Where does all the money go?

The original intention for the proceeds from the Frag Farmer's Market was to support the E.O. Smith Coral Porject, the coral growing systems and program that I started at E.O. Smith, where I teach. As we all know, keeping a successful reef aquarium can be an expensive proposition, and even with the support of the school, I did not feel it was fair to draw more funds from the school budget, taking away from other programs. The first few FFM's that we hosted provided enough funds for us to keep going through the year (more or less...). As the FFM grew in popularity, the proceeds have become more than enought to support the school project, allowing me to buy the equipment that my students need to continue their work and research. I have also been able to work with a number of other schools, who are starting up similar projects, to help them get the gear that they need to get their projects up and running. To date, I have helped 5 different schools to buy equipment, including lights, skimmers, salt, etc... I have also been able to take over one of the scholarships that E.O. Smith gives every year. I have given over $5000 in scholarships to graduating students who are going on to study marine biology, conservation, or a related field. It has been awesome to be able to give back!

Why Include Shops at the FFM?

I have been approached by a number of people who ask me, "Why let shops set-up at the Frag Farmer's Market? Isn't it supposed to be for the hobbyist?" The original intention was to create a venue for hobbyists to sell their homegrown corals. My thinking has always been that if I give the hobbyist a chance to make money on corals that they have grown, they will be more likely to spend time fragging and growing corals at home. With that focus in mind, having shops at the FFM, selling full colonies, seems to be counter to the theme of the Frag Farmer's. I think that including shops has three benefits for the hobby.

For one, I think that the local fish store is an entity that struggles to stay afloat in these tougher economic times. With more and more internet based businesses popping up, many of which are run from people's homes with low/no overhead, it is tough for the brick and mortar store to compete with them for business. I feel that the Frag Farmer's gives the local shops a chance to show off their stuff, but more importantly, to meet people who are in the hobby and develop relationships with them. The key to making this hobby continue is education and the local fish store can be one of the best places to learn, especially for the new hobbyist.

Secondly, I want to encourage the shop that does frag and grow corals. Although I would like to see the hobby go completely aquacultured, we are just not there yet. I would love to see shops work more on getting in corals, fragging them in the shop, growing them out and selling frags rather than the whole colony. By including shops, I offer them a chance to get their name out to the huge crowd at the FFM and bring more people into their shop.

Lastly, I do believe that the stores are the key to letting people know about the Frag Farmer's Market, events like it, and the clubs that sponsor them. Having more people involved in these various events is going to increase participation in the hobby but also give people, especially new ones, a base to learn about the hobby.

Special Thanks

A special thanks to CaribSea for being a HUGE supporter of the school project from the very start and continue to offer their products to the project to ensure its success.. Thanks!

A thanks to Tropic Marin for their continued support of the E.O. Smith Coral Project and for being the offical salt sponsor of the project. Thanks!