Oyster farmers rebounding after taking covid-19 hit

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY)–It has been a constant whirlwind of events over the past few years for oyster farmers in the Cape Fear. They have had to deal with everything from major hurricanes to a world-wide pandemic, which slammed the breaks on what was shaping up to be a successful season.

“We got a new planting in after Dorian and then we’ve got a pandemic on our hands,”says Cape Fear Oyster Company owner Scott Burrell. “No ones purchasing oysters because all the restaurants are closed right now.”

Most of the locally owned farmers don’t supply their oysters directly to restaurants. Their product is distributed by dealers from up and down the coast. Many of those distribution companies cut back their work during the ongoing pandemic.

“Some of us really rely on distributors to come in and purchase oysters from us,”said Burrell. “They’re the ones that are taking it in big refrigerated trucks to the actual restaurants and to the chefs.”

The farmers say these last few months and years for that matter have taken a toll on the industry. They are confident though things will around, but their main priority right now is the health and safety of everyone.

“They’re a lot of people that know that you can eat these oysters year round,” Burrell says. “So, not having the summertime it definitely hurts and especially the spring as well, but again we want our clients safe first and foremost.”

They say in the recent weeks there’s been a slight uptick in orders with some restaurants opening back up. That trend gives them hope as we headed into summer and fall.

“Hopefully the worse is behind us on this and that we can start to see it change,”says Burrell. “With restaurants beginning to open up even at a smaller capacity we’re seeing the orders come in now, which is nice.” 

The Cape Fear Oyster Company says it plans to plan nearly 200 thousand oysters this week alone in preparation for a fall spike.