Christmas oyster sales shaping as best in years for NSW south coast farmers
Oyster farmer Shane Buckley hopes this Christmas will be the best since 2017. (ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
In short:
Some New South Wales oyster farmers believe it could be their best Christmas in almost a decade.
It has been a challenging few years for farmers navigating bushfires, COVID-19 and rainfall events.
What's next?
Prices will vary, but a dozen Sydney Rock oysters are fetching about $25-$30.
Oyster farmers on the New South Wales south coast believe this could be the biggest and busiest Christmas in nearly a decade.
They are in the thick of harvesting oysters from their estuaries and grading them ready for sale.
Shane Buckley, who is based in Wapengo, expects to sell about 300 dozen a day to local customers and major cities over the peak festive period, and that is being conservative.
"The two weeks in the lead-up to Christmas are just nuts. Whatever you've got, you can sell," he said.
"There's people having Christmas parties and end of year parties, so there's a lot of oyster demand."
Shane Buckley expects to sell up to 300 dozen oysters a day at the peak of the Christmas period. (ABC South East NSW: Adriane Reardon)
Mr Buckley runs one of 239 oyster businesses in NSW, which operate across 33 estuaries.
The last few years have been tough for many farmers after the Black Summer bushfires and COVID-19 pandemic hampered sales.
There were also big rainfall events leading up to previous Christmas periods, which forced many estuaries to close.
Farmers harvest as many oysters as they can before the rain comes, but the limited supply is less than ideal given consumer demand.
Sydney Rock oysters are the most produced type of oyster in NSW. (ABC South East NSW: Adriane Reardon)
But Mr Buckely said this Christmas was shaping up to be the best in seven years.
"We haven't had a good Christmas since 2017," he said.
"So it would be nice to have an uninterrupted harvest for the whole season."
Ideal season's greetings
Those thoughts have been echoed by Sue McIntyre and Greg Carton, who have been operating their oyster farm out of Broadwater in Pambula Lake for nearly three decades.
"It's probably the first summer in seven years where everything is lining up," Mr Carton said.
"We have had the run of bushfires and COVID and floods, so we really are looking forward to having a smooth run," Ms McIntyre said.
Sue McIntyre and Greg Carton have been operating Broadwater Oysters near Pambula for more than 26 years. (ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
Seasonal conditions are ideal as well.
"We've just had a little bit of rain and that helps to push food into the lake so the oysters are fattening up beautifully coming into Christmas," Ms McIntyre said.
"The weather has been really kind to us this year."
Broadwater Oysters is expecting to sell 15,000 dozen between Christmas and the end of January. (ABC South East NSW: Adriane Reardon)
Seafood staple
The interruption to harvesting in previous years had a ripple effect on restaurants, which are hoping for a steady supply this Christmas.
Merimbula chef Ashleigh Cotter has been operating his restaurant for nearly four years and said local oysters were a signature dish for tourists.
Ashleigh Cotter says oysters are vital to have on the menu this time of year. (ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
"It's really important to have on the menu because the amount of people that do come for the oysters is actually pretty amazing," Mr Cotter said.
"We're probably going to go through 40 to 50 dozen a day.
"We sell a lot of oysters and a lot of people come from Canberra, Sydney or Melbourne."
Restaurants like Valentina in Merimbula are relying on a steady supply of oysters this Christmas. (ABC South East NSW: Floss Adams)
Joy to the world
People purchasing oysters fresh from the farmgate this Christmas can expect to see prices similar to those in previous years.
Greenwell Point oyster farmer Sally McLean said cost of living pressures meant she would not be putting her prices up.
Sally McLean is the owner and manager at Jim Wild's Oysters at Greenwell Point. (ABC News: Romy Gilbert)
She is selling shucked Sydney Rock oysters at $25 a dozen and Pacific oysters from $26 a dozen, depending on their size.
"The cost of living is going up and I'm trying to keep it a reasonable price for people," she said.
"It's important that the people can come out, enjoy and afford oysters."
Prices will vary based on type, size and grade at the Sydney Fish Market, according to seafood educator Michael Huls, with Sydney Rock oysters selling for about $30 to $35 a dozen on average.
Pacific's will sell between $25 and $34 a dozen and Jumbo Pacific's will be the same price for about half a dozen.
Michael Huls from the Sydney Fish Market expects 70,000 oysters will be sold during their 36-hour marathon. (ABC News: Timothy Ailwood)
Seafood sales peak on the two days leading up to Christmas, with oysters, prawns and rock lobsters anticipated to be the top sellers.
"We are expecting over 100,000 people to walk through our doors between 5am on the 23rd to 5pm on the 24th," Mr Huls said.
"We're expecting to trade almost 70,000 dozen oysters during our 36-hour seafood marathon.
"As soon as those Christmas lights and ornaments went up around the place, everyone started having a little more pep in their step."
Prices for oysters will vary at the Sydney Fish Market. (ABC News: Timothy Ailwood)