NSW oyster farmers optimistic ahead of Christmas season

ABC NEWS (Australia)

After being forced to scale back December harvests due to bushfires, the pandemic and ill-timed rain events NSW oyster farmers are busier than ever... and ready to embrace this year's Christmas rush.

Transcript

00:00It's been a challenging few years for oyster farmers on the New South Wales far south coast.

00:10The 2019-2020 black summer bushfires and subsequent COVID-19 pandemic really impacted their ability

00:17to sell and harvest oysters.

00:20We've also seen repeated ill-timed heavy rainfall events in the lead up to Christmases over

00:25the past few years.

00:27What that does is it forces estuaries like this to close.

00:31Oyster farmers are very organised.

00:32They pull out as many oysters as they can ready to sell in the lead up to Christmas

00:36but it still impacts their ability to sell more if they can.

00:40That's why this Christmas is looking so good and so promising.

00:43There's an air of confidence in the oyster farming industry this year because seasonally

00:49things are turning out perfectly.

00:51Touch wood.

00:52We've certainly heard that from oyster farmer Shane Buckley.

00:55He was based here at Wapungo Lake and his business is just there behind me, Wapungo

01:00Rocks.

01:01The lead up to Christmas, so all of the back end of November and then through December,

01:07you've got a lot going on in the city.

01:09So there's people having Christmas parties and end of year parties.

01:14So there's a lot of oyster demand even in the lead up to Christmas because people are

01:21out and about, the weather's nice again and a very festive time.

01:26So a lot of people eating oysters through that time and then Christmas itself, the two

01:31weeks in the lead up to Christmas are just nuts.

01:34Whatever you've got, you can sell.

01:36There's certainly a lot of oysters to be sold and a lot of interest amongst consumers not

01:42only here locally in Wapungo and along the far south coast but in the cities like to

01:47restaurants in Sydney and Canberra and Melbourne.

01:51Christmas is certainly one of the busiest time of year for oyster farmers but Easter

01:55is around the corner so it's going to be a very busy few months ahead for oyster farmers

02:00in this region.

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