Most Marylanders probably don’t realize that 90 percent of the
shrimp sold in this country is imported. “People really don’t
know much about shrimp farming,” says Scott Fritze, one of three
owners of Marvesta Shrimp Farms in Dorchester County. “They are
farmed in traditional ponds on coastal areas in Third World
countries.” What that translates into is significant
environmental damage as the dirty water from the ponds is
returned to the ocean. And, as shrimp are highly susceptible to
disease, some of that water contains the chemical preservatives
and antibiotics used by shrimp farmers. All in all, not a good
situation. Along with Guy Furman, who did his college thesis on
shrimp agriculture as a biological-engineering major at Cornell
University, and Andy Hanzlik, Fritze’s roommate at Bucknell
University, Fritze began tossing around ideas for a shrimp farm
that would use water that is 100-percent re-circulating and be
as environmentally sustainable as possible. “We were developing
and pioneering an industry th