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Earliest freeze 'in nearly 30 years' is causing problems for P.E.I. oyster farmers

An early freeze is causing havoc for oyster farmers in P.E.I., where more than 1,000 people are employed in the industry. We spoke to one oyster grower about the challenges they're facing.

More than 1,000 people are employed in province's oyster industry

CBC Radio ·
An early freeze meant oyster farmers had to break through ice to sink their cages. (Robbie Moore)

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An early freeze off the coast of Prince Edward Island has left many oyster farmers worried about their future harvests.

Every year before the waters freeze, farmers and divers lower their oyster cages to the bottom of the ocean floor so the shellfish do not get trapped in ice. 

This year inclement autumn weather prevented crews from sinking cages in time.

"The stuff was on the surface we didn't have it all put away because everybody got behind," explained Shawn Cooke, a Cape Wolfe oyster grower and head of the Island Oyster Growers Group.

The impact of the early freeze will not be known until spring when the ice thaws and the cages are pulled back up. (Robbie Moore)

Some growers had to leave their equipment frozen in place at surface level, he added, while others had to break through thick ice to submerge the cages.

"If it lands improperly, if the cages land on edge or upside down, with the oysters towards the bottom ... they'll not winter very well, and you'll get into cases where you'll have quite a bit of mortality." 

The oyster industry employs over a thousand people in the province, and the impact of the early freeze will not be known until spring when the ice thaws and the cages are pulled back up.

Even then, oysters take three to four years to grow to a mature size, so the results may not be felt for some time.

Cooke talked with The Current's Anna Maria Tremonti about the severe weather challenges the oyster farmers have been facing.

Listen to their full conversation at the top of this page.

Produced by The Current's Kristin Nelson.

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