Washington is the No. 1 oyster-growing state in the country, and among the most celebrated and valued sources of oysters in the world. One city on Willapa Bay, South Bend, proclaims itself to be no less than the "Oyster Capital of the World." But it wasn't always so. A slump in the oyster industry began around 1955 and continued for a couple of decades, reflected by severe decreases in harvest, and it may have looked to some as if the oyster industry in Washington was fighting for survival. The successful establishment of oyster hatcheries in the 1970s marked a turning point. The same kind of tenacity, ingenuity, hard work, and know-how that got the industry started would see it through the slump and into the twenty-first century.
Low Ebb in the 1970s
Compared to the overall upward trajectory of its development in the previous century, Washington’s oyster-farming industry was at a low ebb by the 1970s. The cost of oyster seed from Japan – on which much of the local industry had long relied – was becoming prohibitively expensive. Valiant efforts to establish reliable local production of oyster seed had not been successful. Water pollution and other habitat challenges were weighing on growers as well. A game-changer was development of the first viable oyster hatcheries, with four operating in the state by the mid 1970s. But it didn’t make for an immediate turnaround. A 1984 article in The New York Times noted that only in the previous two years had notable improvements been evident. "Established growers say they are finally close to controlling their situation, having developed reliable annual sources of seed, isolated disease and worked with state and county officials to curb water pollution" ("Northwest Oysters ...").
After the industry got back on track, it set the stage for other innovations, among them propagation advances, new developments in farming practices, shifts in consumer tastes, and growing attention on ecological efforts. By the latter 1980s, Washington was among the top producers of oysters in the United States (and remains so today). The quality and variety of oysters grown here began earning the devotion of oyster lovers near and far. That appreciation has only continued to increase over the years, particularly with the growth in oyster bars across the United States, many of which offer oysters from Washington among their selections.
At the core of this now century-plus old industry is an evocative, fascinating, and delicious bivalve that remains an important contributor to the economy, and the gastronomy, of this region. Oysters’ importance to the environment cannot be overlooked as well, making a positive contribution to the waterways they inhabit as filter-feeders that support other marine creatures in their ecosystem.
Overcoming the Hatchery Hurdle
As far back as the 1920s, University of Washington professor Dr. Trevor Kincaid (1872-1970) began experiments to determine how to propagate oyster larvae, working toward alleviating the industry’s reliance on increasingly expensive seed oysters from Japan. At one point it seemed that perhaps part of the answer was large used beer barrels: "Oyster larvae were fond of beer; they danced around as though greatly stimulated," (The Immigrant, 19) wrote E. N. Steele of Kincaid’s trials. Alas, that and other efforts proved unsuccessful over many years, Steele reflecting in his 1964 book, "I still have wishful thinking, but my candid opinion is that to produce oyster seed artificially in commercial quantities, and at a reasonable cost, would be a miracle" (The Immigrant, 20), which is where we’d left things in Part One of this story.
Oysters certainly can, and do, spawn in the wild, creating what’s known as "natural set" – but in not nearly enough volume, or reliably enough year over year, to support a consistent supply to meet market demand. Growers who couldn’t afford imported seed in decades past had to make do with the vagaries of natural set, while those purchasing seed from Japan faced ever-increasing prices. Neither option boded well for the future of the state’s industry.
With the advent of hatcheries, oyster seed could be produced locally. Hatcheries work with brood oysters in land-based tanks of seawater to capture spawn, using algae to feed the offspring until they are large enough to move from the hatchery to a nursery, or directly to the farm setting. It took many years to determine the ideal conditions and processes to consistently produce oyster larvae that survive.
The hatchery environment not only allows for larger and more consistent volumes of oyster seed to be produced, it also alleviates many of the potential challenges naturally-set oysters face during the highly vulnerable larval phase, such as extreme weather and predators. The hatchery setting made it possible to "maintain favorable water environment the year around that will simulate the natural conditions in July and August, the prime breeding months" (The Lummi Oyster) as was noted in a 1973 article about one of the state’s first hatcheries, established by the Lummi Tribe at Gooseberry Point on the Lummi Reservation. There were four hatcheries in Washington by the mid 1970s, the others including Coast Oyster Company, Sea Farms, and Bay Center Mariculture.
Not long after this breakthrough came another one of great significance: the development of "remote setting." Initially, hatcheries produced seed oysters on cultch, dozens of tiny oyster spat attached to a single piece of cultch material, most often a cleaned oyster shell (replicating what most oyster larvae attach to with natural set). These cultch clusters were bulky and heavy for transport. Researchers discovered that larvae could be captured at an ideal moment shortly before they prepare to settle on a shell. At this larval stage, the baby oysters could be transported far more efficiently and economically – by one account, it could be millions in a container about the size of a baseball. After receiving these larval oysters, growers put them in tanks with material onto which they can settle (the "remote set"), and then oversee their growth until ready to be put out onto the oyster beds.
Bringing Back the Olympia
The only oyster species native to Washington waters is the tiny Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida). Its fortunes were challenged in the previous century, with populations that began dwindling due in large part to effluent from pulp mills and other environmental challenges. These little native oysters are not all that resilient to changes in their environment, particularly in comparison to the transplanted Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas/Magallana gigas) that quickly acclimated and has proven to be more impervious.
Closure of the Rayonier pulp mill in Shelton in 1957 was seen as at least one step in turning the corner toward hopes of reviving populations of Olympia oysters. Not long after, growers saw improvements, one 1958 article noting "the rare oysters are more plentiful today than almost any time in the past 30 years" ("Olympia Oysters Staging ...").
The situation had improved enough by 1964 that the oysters merited attention in a New York Times article, praising Olympia oysters as among the "world’s choicest delicacies." The article was sharing news that one could purchase shucked Olympia oysters to be shipped "air express" to the New York area, those sampled by the writer deemed to be "sweet and tender, with a flavor that seemed the peer of the world’s finest" ("Food News: Olympia Oysters ...").
The Olympia oyster still had challenges ahead, though. Even after a reception the Northwest Culinary Alliance held in February 1983 at Ray’s Boathouse "honoring the comeback of the Olympia oyster after several decades of decline to the point of near extinction" (NW Oyster Growers), the beloved oyster still had some rough years to weather. In 1998, populations of the native Olympia were found in 5 percent or less of the acreage where the oyster had flourished decades before.
The Puget Sound Restoration Fund (PSRF), founded in 1997, works with a network of partners to help achieve its mission of restoring native marine species (Olympia oysters key among them) and supporting a healthy marine ecosystem. Among the organization’s recent goals was to restore 100 acres of Olympia oyster habitat in 10 years, a project that began in 2010, with the goal achieved in October 2020.
Another effort toward restoring healthy populations of Olympia oysters is a conservation hatchery established in 2014. The Kenneth K. Chew Center for Shellfish Research and Restoration was created in part to help meet goals expressed in the 2011 Washington Shellfish Initiative. It is located on the Kitsap Peninsula on the property of the Manchester Research Station operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which since the 1970s has focused on aquaculture research. This new state-of-the-art hatchery is a partnership between NOAA and PSRF and is named in honor of University of Washington fisheries professor Kenneth Chew (1933-2022), who contributed to shellfish aquaculture in the region through his teaching, research, and mentorship. Among the center’s stated goals is that of culturing Olympia oysters to help preserve their local populations.
Olympia oyster restoration efforts are intent on replenishing populations of the culturally and ecologically important species. But such restoration has a delicious side benefit as well. As a 2019 article put it, "Ecological and gastronomic goals could eventually intersect, giving more people a chance to experience a forgotten part of our culinary heritage" (Success). Though because these prized oysters are a challenge to grow (they mature slowly and can be finicky to deal with), Olympias are likely to remain in relatively limited supply compared to other species.
Other Oyster Species in Play
The Pacific species, transplanted from Japan in the early 1900s, quickly became quite comfortable and prolific in its new home. Fast growing and much larger than the Olympia oyster, Pacifics have essentially become naturalized and are by far the most significant portion of production in Washington. Pacific oysters are seldom sold by their species name, instead taking a name with geographical reference (such as Eld Inlet or Penn Cove) or other name chosen by the producer (such as Blue Pools or Chelsea Gems).
Another transplant from Japan came along – at least in small doses for early test-runs – beginning in the 1940s. At first glance, Kumamoto oysters (Crassostrea sikamea) look like they’re just smaller Pacifics, and for a time were considered to be a sub-species. They do resemble Pacific oysters, though are more slow-growing and remain small (a few years to a market size of about 2 inches, where Pacifics can grow to 4 to 6 inches in a few years). Kumamotos are less enamored of cold waters here, so don’t spawn naturally, growers needing to rely on seed from hatcheries. The extra care to raise these oysters is appreciated by many oyster bar patrons, particularly novice slurpers, who relish the small size, plump meat, and relatively mild flavor.
The Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) was introduced to Washington waters in the late 1800s, in hopes of helping supplant the diminishing harvest of Olympia oysters. They fared okay for a couple of decades, but a massive die-off in the late 1910s put an end to their cultivation for some time. They were returned to local production in the early 2000s, after Taylor Shellfish Farms spent a decade working to rebuild stocks (the company has familial ties back to growers who were among those raising Eastern oysters the first time around). The Eastern oysters took particularly well to beds in Totten Inlet, their Totten Inlet Virginicas a popular expression of that East-Coast-meets-West-Coast oyster.
Long prized in Europe as a premium half-shell oyster, European flat oysters (Ostrea edulis) were introduced here in the mid 1970s. Among early successes with the transplant was the Westcott Bay Flat grown by Bill Webb on San Juan Island beginning in the late 1970s. This oyster takes particular care to grow, as well as rather specific growing conditions, so just a handful of growers over the years have produced these flat oysters. Far fewer are doing so in recent years, due to a parasite taking a toll on the species worldwide. Locally-grown European flat oysters may show up sporadically.
Triploids and Tumbling
Cracking of the hatchery code to provide locally-sourced seed had a significant impact on the state’s oyster industry, with production nearly doubling from 1980 to 1987. Coupled with increased research in oyster biology and continued efforts to manage water quality, the industry could turn its attention to innovation in other aspects of farming oysters.
One key consideration when rearing oysters (especially Pacifics) is the nature of their spawning cycle. During the summer, an increase in water temperature induces spawning in the oysters. With energy and resources spent on reproduction, the oyster’s flesh becomes soft and milky. The process also alters the glycogen content of the oyster, diminishing its flavor. To help local growers manage propagation to limit impact from spawning oysters, research began at the University of Washington School of Fisheries in the early 1980s. Professor Kenneth Chew led the research, with contributions from graduate students Sandra Downing and Standish Allen, based on some initial experiments conducted earlier at the University of Maine.
The result was a triploid oyster that has three sets of chromosomes instead of two. This process renders the oysters generally incapable of reproduction (though a small percentage of triploids may manage to do so). These non-spawning oysters remain plump, firm, and more desirable than their spawning counterparts. A plus for growers is that they grow a bit more quickly as well. Triploidy is found among fruits too, such as seedless watermelons.
Looking ahead to the following year when the triploid oysters would be debuting, one writer quipped that "the oyster lover’s 1987 calendar will read MayR, JuneR, JulyR and AugustR” ("New Oyster"), playing off the familiar advice to avoid eating oysters during the months that have no 'R'. The oysters were in production that first year at Coast Oyster Company’s Quilcene hatchery, and at Westcott Bay Sea Farms on San Juan Island. Floyd Bagley, vice president of Coast's parent company, Hilton Seafoods, was quoted as saying of the triploids, "This is the biggest thing that's ever happened to the oyster business" ("Neutered Oysters ...").
Triploid oysters were deemed a significant advance with profound potential value to growers, many of whom embraced triploids. Over the years, however, they’ve proven to have some practical limitations, particularly related to die-offs. Growers may be reducing use of triploids more recently, or limiting them for oysters intended to be harvested during the summer months.
Another innovation allowed growers to tailor their oysters with the half-shell market in mind. The tumbling technique creates oysters that have greater uniformity of shape and size that makes them prime for gorgeous platters of half-shell oysters. The agitation of tumbling gently chips off the thinnest outer edge of the oyster’s shell, which prompts the oyster to produce more shell, resulting in a more deeply-cupped oyster and plumper meat. The process also wears away the frilly surface of many Pacific oyster shells, creating a distinctive smooth finish. Early on, the process was manual, growers shaking oysters in their rigid mesh bags by hand. An even more time-consuming option is bringing the oysters to shore and tumbling them in long metal cylinders before returning them to the bags and back to the oyster beds.
Chelsea Farms in South Puget Sound is credited with implementing a system by which natural tidal activity does the work instead, modifying the manual agitation technique. For these tide-tumbled oysters, floats are attached to one side of the rigid mesh bags filled with oysters, the other side of the bags secured to a horizontal longline set above the intertidal part of the beach – between the low and high tide marks. As the tide rises and falls, so do the floats, creating an agitation effect, shaking the oysters against each other as the bags flip with the tides.
Evolution of the Oyster Market
Given the popularity of half-shell oysters today it might be hard to imagine a time when it was rare for individual oysters to be sold in the shell. For much of the twentieth century, most oysters were sold pre-shucked, packed in containers to be kept refrigerated and sold fresh, or canned for longer shelf-life. Both options allowed companies to more efficiently ship their oyster harvest than was possible with bulky clusters of in-shell oysters. There wasn’t much of a public appetite for consuming oysters raw anyway. Aside from fancy little oyster cocktails, most oyster-related newspaper advertisements and articles touted cooked dishes such as pan roasts, baked oysters, and oyster loaves. For these and other cooked preparations, pre-shucked oysters were an ideal and easy option for home cooks.
Before availability of top-quality half-shell oysters began to grow, the options a local diner could be rather grim. In one 1976 restaurant review, the writer told of ordering "Hoodsport oysters 'on the half shell' ($5.95) and we got bottled oysters plopped down on shells ... They had been cleansed of any hint of their own juices before being served" ("Restaurant Review"). And as noted in The New York Times, "As recently as the late 1970s, almost no oysters were served on their own half shells in Seattle except at Canlis" ("The Oyster Is ...").
In the 1980s, people began to learn that not all oysters are the same, that different species, growing areas, and farming approaches could result in varying characteristics among all the region’s oysters. This helped set off a wave of increased interest in oysters, particularly on the half-shell, where their distinctions are far more evident than in cooked form.
Oysters grown in clusters, as they had been for many decades, were not well suited to this growing half-shell market, prompting a shift in hatchery practices. The tanks in which oyster larvae are ready to settle would contain finely ground oyster shell rather than whole oyster shells. One larvae could attach to a single miniscule piece of ground shell, setting solo to grow as an individual, unclustered oyster.
As one writer put it in 1989, "Oyster aficionados [in Seattle] discuss the charms of favored varieties with the fervor of wine zealots comparing chardonnays" ("Oyster Sampling ..."). This is one among many comparisons made between oysters and wine. For both, different growing conditions, climate, and geography can product quite distinct results for the same species/varietal. So much so that the term meroir may be used to reference distinct characteristics taken on by oysters from specific inlets and bays, the marine version of terroir long associated with viticulture.
By 1996, it was reported that "Taylor United, one of the state’s largest growers, now sells half its harvest live – a testimony to how new production techniques at the half-dozen local hatcheries are changing both the industry and oyster-eating habits." ("Mad About Oysters"). That proportion has changed quite a lot in recent years; Taylor Shellfish Farms (as the company is now known) and many other growers who used to sell the bulk of their harvest in shucked form now sell most of the oysters live in the shell.
This shift in public demand for more in-shell oysters, fewer pre-shucked, is one example of significant market shift for the state’s oyster industry. Another is the degree to which people can now enjoy oysters well beyond the traditional restaurant and retail environments. Immersive experiences such as farm visits, oyster-centric events, and festivals have been building community engagement and enthusiasm around all things oyster. Such activities are both educational and delicious, elevating consumer awareness of the variety of local oysters and what it takes – such as a healthy marine environment and the dedicated oyster growers – to assure supplies of these oysters for generations to come. One such event is the West Coast Oyster Shucking Championship and Washington State Seafood Festival. OysterFest, as it is more commonly known, has been held in Shelton the first weekend of October for more than four decades, put on by the Shelton Skookum Rotary Club. There are plenty of oysters and other seafoods to sample, plus music, educational offerings, and activities for kids. The highlight of the festival is the shucking championship, the winner of which moves on to the national competition in Maryland.
Oyster Olympics brought oyster enthusiasts and oyster professionals together with an annual event both fun and informative, to increase awareness about the local oyster industry and raise funds to support the healthy environment in which oysters thrive. On the more serious side, restaurants (local and not) participated in challenges such as oyster identification and a shucking competition, and on the more playful side were the oyster-themed fashion show and celebrity slurp-off. Held from 1989 to 2007, the event sponsored by Anthony’s HomePort at Shilshole raised nearly $500,000 for Puget Soundkeeper Alliance.
Beyond special events, oyster aficionados have an increasing array of opportunities to connect directly with oyster growers throughout the year. Some growers offer retail sales at their farms, perhaps with on-site dining (often beachside-rustic) and occasional tours or special events. And for restaurant dining, a couple of growers offer oyster-farm-to-table options featuring their oysters among the menu selections. They include Taylor Shellfish oyster bars in Seattle, and the Chelsea Farms Oyster Bar in Olympia.
Ecological Perspectives
Oysters themselves are beneficial to the environment. As voracious filter feeders, passing as much as 40 or 50 gallons of water each day to extract nutrients, oysters do their environment the favor of providing clearer waters, benefitting countless other creatures in the habitat. Of the myriad forms of aquaculture around the globe, oyster farming is among the most sustainable.
Water quality was a significant concern to the oyster industry last century, with effluent from pulp mills considered a key culprit. The closure of some mills along with increased pollution-control processes implemented by other businesses helped curb that problem. But as effluent issues began to subside, a new wave of water quality concerns arose. An increase in population growth and urban development added problems such as agricultural and residential run-off, and occasional sewage malfunction, to the picture.
In 1984 a state Department of Ecology shellfish expert was quoted as saying that, due to pollution concerns, the shellfish industry was "more threatened now than at any time in the last 50 years" ("Shellfish Crisis ...") and in 1986 nearly 45,000 acres of commercial shellfish beds were closed or in limited production due to water-quality concerns. A decade later, with some credit going to education of the public about water quality and stricter laws, conditions had begun to improve. At that time, a representative of the Pacific Coast Oyster Growers Association was quoted as saying, "The oyster industry is more prosperous than ever. It also has a more uncertain future. It’s all about the water" ("Mad About ...").
Early in the 2000s another environmental concern arose in the form of ocean acidification. Initially it was a mystery as to why, for a few years beginning in 2005, Northwest oyster hatcheries were experiencing disastrous die-offs of oyster larvae. Later that decade, researchers began to consider a possible link between lowering levels of seawater pH and the demise of oyster larvae. "By the time scientists confirmed it early last year, the region’s several hundred oyster growers had become a global harbinger – the first tangible sign anywhere in the world that ocean acidification already was walloping marine life and hurting people" ("Oysters Dying ...").
This acidification of the ocean is caused, in large part, by carbon dioxide (most of which is from emissions) being absorbed into the water, which in turn releases carbonic acid into the water. Acidic waters impede development of the calcium carbonate needed for production of oyster shells, critical for ensuring viability of new oyster hatchlings (many other marine species in this region rely on calcium carbonate for development as well). Concerns about ocean acidification prompted Governor Christine Gregoire to create in 2012 the Washington State Blue Ribbon Panel on Ocean Acidification, under the auspices of the Washington Shellfish Initiative, to better grasp the situation and provide guidance regarding steps to limit acidification’s harmful effects. Among their recommended strategies and actions was to "increase our ability to adapt to and remediate the impact of ocean acidification" with a range of tactics to help bolster the long-term health of shellfish.
The Blue Ribbon Panel recommendations prompted creation of the Washington Ocean Acidification Center in 2013. The center is a member organization of EarthLab, a climate-focused institute at the University of Washington. Included in the center’s multifaceted work are monitoring of acidification conditions and related biological responses in the laboratory and in the field, and water quality monitoring at shellfish hatcheries and rearing areas. The center also hosts an Ocean Acidification Symposium biannually to bring together a range of stakeholders, including researchers, industry, and government agencies, to support collaborative efforts to deal with the issue.
Hatchery operations have learned to adapt their processes to help ensure that conditions are ideal to allow larvae to establish a viable initial shell within their first few days. With a strong shell to begin with, young oysters stand a better chance of survival when transferred to oyster beds. A few hatcheries have opted to move part of their operations to Hawaii, where water conditions allow them to more efficiently produce the oyster seed, which are shipped to Washington to grow.
Growing oysters is a challenging, complex business. Growers must contend with a range of issues that include, but aren’t limited to, weather extremes, pest management, permitting issues, urban development, and climate factors. And there are continual innovations as well, such as new gear development and advances in breeding practices.
The issue of ocean acidification seems to echo the mix of ups and downs growers in this state have long faced. On one hand, ocean acidification is a significant concern that isn’t likely going away any time soon. On the other, researchers, the industry, and other partners are discovering new approaches to farming and exploring potential mitigation strategies – reflecting the resilience and ingenuity that has been evident in the industry for generations.
Note: This article is part of Cultivating Washington, The History of Our State’s Food, Land, and People, which includes more agriculture-related content, videos, and curriculum.
