West Island Oysters from Nasketucket Bay, MA

Harvest location: Nasketucket Bay, Fairhaven, MA

How they’re grown: Oysters are grown in floating “oyster condos”; wire mesh cages that contain multiple bags of oysters in racks within the cage. Floating encourages fast growth while supporting a solid shell and a deep cup, and they’re harvested after 18-24 months. They’re processed on-site resulting in a quick farm-to-table transition.

Why they’re unique: Blue Stream Shellfish is located on a 10-acre plot in Nasketucket Bay, Fairhaven, MA. The highly productive waters of the Bay are perfect for growing oysters, as well as kelp, which Dale also plans to grow. Dale says Nasketucket Bay is as near to a pristine body of water as you can find in the northeast.

Story: Prior to owning Blue Stream Shellfish, Dale was a professor of Marine Biology at Roger Williams University, where he taught various classes on aquaculture, including an applied shellfish farming course. Over the years, he showed the shellfishing ropes to aspiring new farmers as well as seasoned, experienced vets, many of whom have gone on to start their own operations. Outside of the classroom setting, he trained start-up farms on the ins and outs of running a shellfishing business and provided technical assistance to farms in the US and Australia. In his free time, he spends his time in RWU’s Marine and Natural Sciences Building where Rhode Island’s only hatchery lives, does research on shellfish disease and biology and conducts studies on new farming methods like using clay pellets in lieu of sand. Something tells us Dale doesn’t like to sit still…

Consuming this product can expose you to chemicals including lead, which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov.