First commercial harvest of Omani Golden Abalone at Mirbat

Our joint venture in Oman has reached a milestone many years in the making: the first commercial harvest of the Omani Golden Abalone, Haliotis mariae, at the Oman Aquaculture Company farm in Mirbat, on the Dhofar coast.

The Oman Aquaculture Company — our partnership with the Muscat Overseas Group — represents an investment of some RO 5.7 million in Omani aquaculture. The Golden Abalone, known locally as As'sufailah, takes two to three years to grow from settlement to market size, so this first harvest is the reward for a long period of patient, careful husbandry by the team at Mirbat.

Fittingly, the first table it reaches is a local one. Alila Hinu Bay, located in Mirbat itself, has become the first hotel in the Middle East to serve the farmed Golden Abalone, with head chef Prakash Sundaram presenting it at the resort's Seasalt restaurant.

There is more to come. A second site at Sharbathat is under development, and at full capacity the two farms are projected to produce around 450 tonnes a year — a meaningful step for sustainable aquaculture in the Sultanate, and for our belief that the skills we have honed in Hermanus can travel well.

Read the full article at the Oman Observer.