Last week I had the opportunity to visit Cape May Salt Oyster Farms. https://capemaysaltoysterfarms.com/
Brian showed us the oyster flats from raising them to cleaning and boxing them for the market. It was a very informative day and Brian’s passion for aquaculture and oyster farming was infectious. It’s exciting to see the Cape May Salts Oyster Farm team hard work in bringing their oysters to the market. The Maurice River oyster industry was incredibly important to Philadelphia’s history.
In Becky Diamond’s book -The Thousand Dollar Dinner- she has a chapter on oysters and how especially Maurice River and Delaware Bay oysters were highly sought out and cherished for their deep cup, hard shell that helped with shipping, and delicious taste. Menus at the best restaurants in Philly would mention Maurice River oysters by name.
Unfortunately, a deadly parasite wiped out most of the oyster population in the 1950s, and the whole industry crashed. But in the 1990s some regulations were put in place to save the oyster stock and curb wild harvests. It’s great to see Cape May Salt Oyster Farm farming beautiful oysters in this historic area, so restaurants can have a local connection to the Bay and to history.
