Coral Farms or Chop Shops?

[clover128]

Anyone else wonder how many of all the online coral "frags" are just wild colonies cut up into frags and allowed to heal a week or two and then sold?

I've been in the reef hobby for a little less than 30 years and have seen a lot of changes. I've noticed this proliferation of coral farms online (WWC, Tidal Gardens, PacificEastAquaCulture, etc.) as well as local places. I am all for fragging captive raised mother colonies to support the reef hobby. But lately, I've been wondering about the business types that seem be constantly "getting in" new corals yet selling "frags". I suspect this is the bulk of what these online vendors are doing... Maybe not places like WWC (just due to the scale they have) but I suspect it is most of them just due to the economics.

When I naively think of frags I think of a fragment that comes from a captive grown colony. I guess you only know this for sure by keeping it local and buying or trading with local friends.

 

[PSU4ME]

I think it’s a business model thing. Homegrown takes time but results in a quality frag that keeps its color (sps).

Easier to buy colonies and chop.

It’s a spectrum of maturity I think.

Now, shadiness of chopping a coral and saying it’s been aquacultured for 2 years is another thing. Sometimes it’s not been out of the ocean for 2 weeks!

I just like to know what I’m buying.

 

[gobyvin]

I think the only way you can ensure you are getting aquacultured frags from captive reared mother colonies is by buying local from fellow Reefers and from shops that can back up their sources by providing proof. It is easy to fully stock a tank with beautiful corals reared in Massachusetts now, and fast!

 

[clover128]

I think the only way you can ensure you are getting aquacultured frags from captive reared mother colonies is by buying local from fellow Reefers and from shops that can back up their sources by providing proof. It is easy to fully stock a tank with beautiful corals reared in Massachusetts now, and fast!

Agreed. And it is what we all should aspire to.