Business and Marketing for Aquaculture Products

Assisting oyster aquaculturists to prosper by encouraging an oyster half-shell revival

Relevance:  According to Mark Kurlansky in The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell, at the beginning of the 20th century, oysters “were food for gourmets, gourmands, and those who were simply hungry; tantalizing the wealthy in stately homes and sustaining the poor in wretched slums; a part of city commerce and a part of international trade.” Back then, we ate millions of bushels of oysters; today, consumption is down because oysters aren’t as easily available and their popularity with the general public has waned. Wild oyster populations have been decimated by despoliation of the environment, oyster disease, and overharvesting. Whether wild stocks will ever come back is debatable, but now — because we have learned to hatch and grow oysters — oyster aquaculturists can grow them in advantageous locations. These oysters can help clean our bays and tributaries and restore their environment. But in order for oyster aquaculture to increase, the demand for oysters must increase. One of the best ways to do this is by encouraging the safe consumption of half-shell oysters. Half-shell oysters can be differentiated in the market because it is relatively easy to taste the difference between half-shell and shucked oysters, and the half-shell sell for a higher price. Educating consumers about these differences can increase demand. Aquaculturists can learn new ways to use the taste varieties as a marketing tool.

Our response:  Faculty members organized an oyster-tasting event sponsored by the Tidewater Oyster Gardeners Association on Nov. 29, 2010. More than 100 attendees were given a presentation on how to taste an oyster and what flavors they were likely to identify. They received cards listing the six oysters featured and were asked to identify flavors on a scale of one to five for qualities like saltiness and umami. One person said, “I never knew oysters had so many different tastes.” Also at the event, a champion oyster shucker showed how she opens oysters, and ideas were shared on how to host a home oyster party. After the oyster tasting, the local newspaper printed a letter to the editor in which a participant wrote, “I’m writing to let you know how wonderful Gloucester’s Virginia Half-Shell Oyster Tasting was. Everyone we spoke with agreed with us that the afternoon was a great success. I can’t wait for the second annual oyster-tasting event.” The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Virginia Tech, and the Virginia Marine Products Board assisted with the tasting event. VDACS is considering using this event as a model for other events around the state. Staff members at the Virginia Seafood AREC are in the process of training an oyster taste panel that will profile oysters from different parts of the state. A workshop being developed will bring in successful oyster marketers from elsewhere in the country to speak about their programs. This workshop will include a discussion on whether an organization of Virginia oyster growers could expand markets for half-shell oysters.

Expected results: The confluence of these multiple educational events will nudge half-shell demand upward and may lead to a marketing organization for Virginia half-shell oysters.

Extension specialists: Daniel E. Kauffman, Michael Jahncke, M. Oesterling, and V. Clark