Development of Oyster Culture Industry in Korea

우리 나라 굴양식업의 발상과 발달과정

The author investigated the history of oyster culture in Korea through examining old books and reports dealing with the fishery. Oysters have been produced in the all coastal areas in Korea, especially the center areas of production were the Hwangupo (Hamkyongbuk-do), Younghungman (Hamkyongnam-do), the estuary of Nakdonggang (Kyongsangnam-do), Kwangyangman, Haechangman, the estuary of Yongsangang (Chollanam-do), Yonghoto (Hwanghae-do) and the estuary of Uprockgang, where the large size oyster (more than 40cm in shell height) inhabited in form of groups. It was called by nine different names in the old times, Gul, Seukhwa and Moryeo were the most common names. The oyster was used as 46 kinds of medicinal stuff. The habitat forms of natural oyster can be distinguished to two types; one is that oyster is exposed to the air during the period of low tide (A-type), another is that oyster is not (B-type). The first oyster culture by the old books in Korea was started about 530 years ago as the bottom culture method derived from the A-type of oyster. After long years, the hanging culture method might have been started from the hint of the habitat form of B-type. The oyster culture in Korea developed based on the habitat forms of natural oyster at the biginning of 1900s. After World War II, the Korean government strongly recommded the laver farmers to culture oyster as relief measures. At that time, the stone culture method was mainly adopted. The quantity of oyster production is now about $15{\times}10^6{\sim}19{\times}10^6\;\frac{M}{T}$, and the half of oyster production including seed oyster is exported to the foreign countries.