The clusters of oysters dotting Gulf Coast's waters began dissipating after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, but Jennifer Jenkins, whose family owns the Crystal Seas processing company in Pass Christian, Miss., says it started years before. The family has seen the supply of oysters to continue to dwindle and prices climb. Some restaurants have stop selling oysters because of cost and inconsistent supplying. Ben Posadas, a Mississippi State University economist who studies the seafood industry, documented America’s declining oyster harvest since 1930. Oyster harvesting in the Gulf of Mexico peaked in the mid-1980s and has fallen steadily. New Orleans native and restaurateur Justin LeBlanc has noticed friends no longer buy sacks of oysters for parties. The price has gotten too high. A number of reasons for the decline: Pollution; coastal development; and hurricanes that destroy reef. Too much fresh water disturbs the brackish balance oysters need - heavy rains or diversion of the Mississippi River to prevent flooding. In his study, Posadas showed that supply was leveling out in 2010, and then declined sharply after the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. (Source: The Advertiser 06/20/11) ‘Oysters are in trouble’ - The Tuscaloosa News (newsmemory.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment