Texas Legalized Oyster Farms →

Sometimes its better to share the news than to recreate. Source: HoustoniaMag.com by Gwendolyn Knapp

Read Full Article Here!

Excerpts: “We haven’t needed to farm oysters because we have a viable -oyster industry. The Gulf Coast—primarily Texas and Louisiana—produced 51 percent of all oysters in America in 2017, and the 2018–19 wild-oyster season was the strongest in several years.”

…over the past decade Texas has lost a good portion of its natural reefs—those in Galveston Bay alone have decreased by more than half—thanks to both acts of God and over-fishing. Restoration efforts are underway, but they’ll take decades, and hundreds of millions of dollars, to complete. Which is why in 2017 proponents from Texas A&M, the Texas Restaurant Association, the Coastal Conservation Association, and elsewhere began working with legislators and the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department to draft a bill that would legalize oyster farming.

The Harte Research Institute estimates that farmed oysters will soon bring in $2 million a year in Texas. They’ll help keep our bays clean and reduce stress on our natural reefs. They could even bring in tourists one day, like the oyster farms on the East Coast, which attract foodies seeking out new bivalves to try. “That’s an angle we’re looking at, bringing in the community and giving a tour, like a wine vineyard,” says Raz Halili, owner of Prestige Oysters, who plans to give farming a try. As for whether we’ll be able to taste the difference between boutique oysters and those dredged from public reefs? We’re certainly willing to do all the taste-testing required to find out.

Something that was not mentioned was how we have been harvesting oysters. Dredging: a dredge which is towed along the bottom of the sea by a fishing boat in order to collect oysters. Texans have been dredging oysters from the beginning which is a very disruptive method to the natural reefs and habitat species. Changing this alone will make large impact on our reefs. Get excited! We need to take care of our Texas Gulf waters. I know I would like to see cleaner waters and beaches in Texas.

Tourists!? I’d love to know what everyone thinks about that one…livelihood for some, imperative - yet, I know many search for that escape on the Texas Gulf. It will be interesting to see this development and instead of wine+oyster farm tours like our Pacific and Atlantic neighbors it will be beer buckets and oyster shooters!

Oyster Seasons

“Don’t eat oysters with months that don’t have an ‘R’ in them!”

Many of us have heard this before and it once was true. When there was no ice on the boats it was difficult to harvest oysters in the summer time. Oysters could not travel very far without keeping them at a cold, proper temperature. Sadly the warm oysters would die or pass along food borne illness. Luckily for us, now we can eat oysters year around due to ice, coolers, and refrigerated trucks delivering these beauties across the country.

Oysters are now enjoyed year around yet you have more options in the colder months. What do I mean by this? Well, warmer waters bring on frisky oysters — ya know, the time when they like to reproduce. Supply or selection is reduced due to this and we source Canadian oysters for our summer pool parties. This ensures quality and the sweet to salty flavors of the sea are still prominent. Oysters that are spawning, reproducing, will alter in flavor; edible?, absolutely, just not in its prime season. Typically this prime season is from September until April, just before the waters begin to warm. With our long summers in Texas, this season begins November 1st for our Gulf oysters.

All in all, oyster season for our bellies are year around! Just select yours from more northern waters during the summer or indulge in some buttery, grilled Gulf oysters.

Why are Gulf oysters less expensive?

For many of us reared in Texas, your first and only oyster experience may likely be from our Texas shore, the large Gulf oyster. Gone are the days of the 50 cent all you can eat Gulf oyster bars; yet these are still much more affordable than are neighboring Pacific or Atlantic oysters.

Why is that? Well, sure, Texas Gulf oysters aren’t being imported, though they are still travelling inland for most of us Texans. It majority comes down to their life span. Gulf oysters take only 6 to 12 months from spit(seed) to maturity(time to slurp down)! The smaller Pacific and Atlantic oysters which offer a huge punch of sea flavor take anywhere from 4-6 years average growth time before they come to market! Six years! I can’t even keep a cactus alive for that long.