ABOUT SIGNATURE OYSTERS GROWING REGIONS
We are recruiting Australia’s best farmers from all regions to supply restaurants and retailers with a regionally diverse range of top quality oysters. Signature Oysters will be placing great emphasis on the provenance of the product. We will be using the Royal Agriculture Society oyster judging standards to benchmark quality and ensure we build an oyster company renowned for exceptional quality.
WHO WE ARE
Signature Oysters is changing the way oysters are marketed in Australia. With emphasis on quality, provenance and high quality branding, we aim to deliver a better oyster experience to end users as well as better prices and profitability back to farmers. We are owned by a collaboration of farmers and promoters to provide restaurants and retailers with Australia’s highest quality live oysters; available at any given time of year, delivered direct from the farm, Australia wide.
GROWING REGIONS
Our oysters are farmed in the key growing areas of South Australia, Tasmania, New South Wales and South East Queensland. Our aim is to develop more market knowledge regarding the different oyster flavours that are available across this big country of ours! Through our extensive supply chain, we can deliver premium quality oysters in commercial quantities at all times of the year.
TYPES OF OYSTERS
Pacific Oysters are primarily grown in Tassie and SA, but also of more recent times in NSW. They are characterized by a fresh, clean and salty flavour.
Sydney Rock Oysters grow naturally from SE Qld to the Vic/NSW border. They are characterised by a deep, rich and sweet flavour that is truly unique.
Angassi Oysters are a native product that have only recently become popular with farmers and chefs alike. Full flavoured, rich and textured, the Angassi is great for cooking.
The appearance and taste of the oysters we supply varies amongst farms due to the environment and growing techniques used. Knowing the origin of each oyster means that we can help chefs choose the product that best suits their menu.
TUNSTEAD OYSTER FARMS - David & Peter Tunstead
ABOUT OUR OYSTER FARMERS
David & Peter are fifth generation oyster farmers. Their father still works on the farm and the whole family is passionate about the farm and oysters of course! David loves working on the water and enjoys the satisfaction of growing a product all the way through to market. He especially gets great satisfaction out of growing a quality, highly sought after product.
ARMSTRONG OYSTERS - Brandon & Jason Armstrong Brandon grew up working the river with his father Rob and wanted to grow oysters from a young age. Brandon now partners with his brother Jason to run the fastest growing Sydney Rock Oyster farm in Australia. The brothers bounce off each others’ talents working on the river, as it’s an ever changing environment and growing great oysters means that they have to keep changing, and learning.
PRIME WATER OYSTERS - Matt Wassnig Matt’s family always holidayed by the beach and from that he developed the passion for an outdoors lifestyle by the water. Matt’s fascination with the ocean led him to study marine biology and from there get involved in research to find better ways to grow seafood. Matt loved working in the field but wasn’t suited to the laboratory, so left academia to become an oyster farmer.
MCASH OYSTERS - Ewan Mcash
LEASE 65 - Craig Lockwood
Ewan’s life as a modern oyster farmer is not just about growing great oysters, it’s about growing amazing oysters and delivering them so that they are a product you can rave about. A marine scientist, farmer and director of Signature Oysters, Ewan’s passion is using modern technology and innovation to balance sustainability & supply and also provide an experience.
Growing oysters fuels Craig’s lifelong passion for seafood. Over the years, Craig took up other careers but he was never suited to the office environment. Craig says, “I was always drawn back to the ocean”. When it comes to growing oysters Craig is a bit fanatical, as he is forever in the pursuit of growing the perfect oyster. To Craig, growing oysters is a fine art.
BLUE MOON OYSTERS - Nathanael Dodt Straight off the bat Nathanael loved the wild natural beauty of the area and therefore growing oysters was a natural fit. His oysters are grown in Great Bay off Bruny Island which is Australia’s most southerly oyster farming region exposed to strong Antarctic winds, waves and cold nutrient rich currents that impart a unique flavour and quality. It’s a remote and cold place to work but he loves it.
CAMERON OF TASMANIA - Ben & Ellen Cameron Cameron of Tasmania is truly a family operation. Ben starts his day by seeing all the babies in the hatchery and this is where he gets to do some micro-biology with his uncle and then head out onto the water where he sees all sorts of nature, including whales, dolphins & eagles. Ben really loves working on the water.
SWIFT WATER OYSTERS - Anthony Peters Anthony grew up spending school holidays on a family farm and he believes that this drew him to farming oysters. Anthony just loves the water and the challenge of growing a product in an ever changing environment. Swift Water Oysters handle their oysters every 5-6 weeks to grade them and then place them in an area that will maximise their growth. Anthony enjoys teaching his young nephew and son about oyster farming.
POWER AQUACULTURE - Dallas Power Dallas has been an oyster farmer for close to 10 years. Before that he was a commercial fisherman out of Port Lincoln. The Power Aquaculture has oyster leases on an island called St Peters, which is about a 25 min boat ride from the depot. This area produces oysters that are a clean, consistently good product with a hard shell that travels well.
CONTACT US
info@signatureoysters.com.au signatureoysters.com.au 1300 792 750
Signature Oysters supplies the highest quality oysters to restaurants, oyster bars and for specialty events in Australia.