WRITTEN BY: Matthew Burkhart (mkburkha@ncsu.edu)

Four faculty members from the Technical University of Moldova (TUM) recently spent a day touring NC State’s Pamlico Aquaculture Field Laboratory (PAFL) in Aurora, NC, as part of a two-week visit aimed at understanding how research and extension programs collaborate to support agriculture and rural communities across North Carolina.

The Moldovan delegation, consisting of Radu Cosalic, Eugenia Covaliov, Andrei Zbanca and Corina Mardari, joined Ben Reading, associate professor at NC State, and Robert Clark and Mike Hopper for a comprehensive tour of the PAFL facility, learning about its research, outreach and industry partnerships. This visit is part of a broader collaboration between NC State and TUM, supported by both the North Carolina and Moldovan governments, to help Moldova develop its own agricultural extension system. 

 The PAFL stands out as NC State’s only field laboratory entirely dedicated to aquaculture research, supporting the hybrid striped bass farming industry in North Carolina and beyond. Located on the Pamlico Sound, the facility offers access to fresh, brackish and seawater, and features sixteen 0.1-hectare ponds, a hatchery with recirculating water systems, a 300-foot pier and a boat ramp. The PAFL is the world’s sole source of domesticated striped bass, and it plays a central role in the National Program for Genetic Improvement and Selective Breeding for the Hybrid Striped Bass Industry. This unique program is a collaboration between the United States Department of Agriculture, NC State, commercial striped bass farmers and other research laboratories.

During their visit, the Moldovan group observed striped bass at nearly every stage of their lifecycle, from fry to mature adults.

“All of our work, we might be looking at genetics and traits and things like that, for scientific research, for papers to publish. But at the end of the day, it’s to create a product that folks can raise and generate money. The farmers have to make money and so they are able to raise the fish,” Reading said.

The PAFL supplies fingerlings, fry and broodstock to farmers and commercial hatcheries, supporting a thriving industry that exists primarily within a 30-mile radius of the facility in Beaufort, Craven, Hyde and Washington counties. The farm produces about 20,000 pounds of fish annually, much of which is sold to recoup production costs. 

“We do sell the fish here—20,000 pounds a year of production. And really, what those are is the rejects,” Reading said. “So when you run the breeding program, you always have fish that you don’t select for the next group to breed. Instead of destroying those fish, we send them to market, because then we can get a return on investment for the cost of production, which then helps to continue.”

The Moldovan delegation’s visit was not just observational; they were able to feed the striped bass and see firsthand the different developmental stages of the fish. The PAFL staff also prepared a special lunch for the group, featuring bass harvested from the farm that morning, giving the delegation a taste of the fruits of their aquaculture research.

Reflecting on the experience, Zbanca said he was impressed by the university’s commitment to aiding private farmers.

“For me, it was interesting how they work the extension with the university, and how they help a farmer—a private person—to develop this idea in the future, to do business from this idea. I was impressed because for the professors and the workers from this extension, the idea is to help — It’s not to make money from this.”

After the PAFL tour, the group traveled to Carolina Fisheries, a commercial operation that receives male striped bass from PAFL for breeding. This visit allowed the Moldovan delegation to see the extension process in action, witnessing how research and university partnerships directly support industry needs and help farmers succeed. At this farm, the group learned how PAFL’s broodstock and technical expertise are shared with private companies to promote sustainable aquaculture and economic growth in the region.

Mardari, head of TUM’s Agrotek Park, was particularly interested in how PAFL and other NC State programs connect academia, industry and students.  

“It makes the connection between university professors, partners, private companies and students to help them to find work in these private companies and to develop the ideas of their private companies, how to develop and more technologies that implement to develop their technologies, by professors from the university,” Mardari said. “So this is the connection bridge between all of them. That’s why this is interesting for me to try to implement.”

Throughout their North Carolina visit, the Moldovan faculty met with a wide range of NC State researchers and extension professionals, visited research station

s and labs and learned about the funding and management of extension programs.

The group plans to use their experiences to inform both strategy and practical steps for developing Moldova’s extension system. 

“During these two weeks, we will have some brainstorming,” Zbanca said. “During this brainstorming, we will discuss comparing the structure and extension services in NC, but at the same time, we will discuss how it’s to manage the structure of extension services at TUM.”

This visit marks the fourth Moldovan delegation to NC State in two years, underscoring the ongoing commitment to international collaboration for agricultural development. This partnership is aimed at not only advancing research but also fostering the exchange of ideas and practical solutions that benefit both universities and the broader agricultural community.