Western Australia-grown Sydney Rock Oysters head east as Andrew Forrest Farm ramps up production

“One of the main things we try to emphasize in selling to the East Coast is that we provide some diversification for consumers to account for the different weather conditions here and the different environmental conditions.”

Cone said the farm’s isolated location could be an advantage.

The site is 3000km west of most of the commercial rock oyster farming operations on the NSW coast, which has been hit by pests, flooding and extreme temperatures in recent years.

“That doesn’t mean we won’t have problems in the future, but the fact that we can counter supply when they have problems keeps consumers eating rock oysters, and that’s good for the industry,” he said.

Head of aquaculture Rob Michael said it was time for a new entrant into the rock oyster market and the farm’s new lease would allow it to supply oysters for more months of the year.

“The current crop will be harvested across Australia,” he said.

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“It’s debatable, but… I’ve eaten oysters all over Australia and I think they’re the best.”

The farm is located in an open estuary fed by two rivers that European settlers called Oyster Harbor because of the native species of oysters they found in abundance there.

“What this means is that every day we get a good tidal exchange of salt water mixing with fresh water, so the water quality is really high,” Michael said.

“There is no industry here that supplies anything to the system, and we have a national park behind us.

“It’s a great system.”

Albany restaurateur John Saville Wright said his customers love the creamy oysters, which feel velvety on the tongue and taste of the Great Southern Ocean.

“They taste better and taste better,” he said. “These are the best oysters I’ve ever had.”

NSW Farmers oyster project manager and Royal Agricultural Show judge Andy Myers said oyster lovers should be a “shellfisher” and treat themselves to tasting oysters collected from different estuaries.

“Like a fine wine, oysters have nuances in flavor that reflect the environment in which they are grown,” he said.

“Oyster fans call it merroir.”

Myers said the biggest oyster isn’t always the best.

“Good things come in small packages: smaller oysters tend to be a little sweeter and less intimidating to first-timers,” he said.

The Royal Agricultural Society of New South Wales also awarded six gold medals to NSW producers for their Sydney Rock Oysters at the 2024 Easter Show.

There are about 230 oyster farms in New South Wales, from the Tweed River on the Queensland border in the south to Lake Wonboyne near Eden.

AARP