Systems and techniques used in the culture of soft-shell swimming crabs

The academic interest in the production of soft-shell swimming crabs has increased in direct proportion to the increasing demand worldwide for this gastronomic delicacy. The techniques of obtaining this product are essentially based on the maintenance of swimming crabs at premoult stage in open, semi-closed or closed farming systems, until the moment of moulting. These different types of systems reflect the biological e environmental control method evolution. To achieve industrial scale production of soft swimming crabs, the option of using closed systems has increased in recent years. This type of system offers several advantages, such as greater control over environmental variables, greater ease of installation, higher storage densities, greater ease of monitoring ecdysis occurrence and, especially, the possibility of incorporating several forms of automation. In this review, the main production systems currently used, as well as the main techniques for obtaining the animals, their management under controlled conditions, harvesting and slaughter, are presented and discussed, focusing on future perspectives for the world production of soft-shell swimming crabs.