Recipe for success

Speaking of oyster shell recycling, there are some exciting developments on that front. As noted previously, shell collection was put on pause back in March because of the pandemic. Well, we are breaking some news here: We are resuming shell collection next month, initially with seven restaurant partners in New Orleans. They are: Cooter Brown's, NOLA Creole Cookery, Peche, Red Fish Grill, Seaworthy, Elysian Seafood at St. Roch Market and Superior Seafood. You have to admit it’s a beautiful concept: Save our coast; eat some oysters! We also are in the planning stages for our fourth and fifth oyster reefs. These living shorelines help minimize coastal erosion and storm surge, and they provide the ideal cultch for new oysters to grow. And speaking of food, check out the “Coastal Cookbook” from our friends at Restore the Mississippi River Delta. Want to contribute? Send in your own favorite dish featuring Louisiana seafood. Also, as an organization, we have submitted comments to the start Department of Wildlife & Fisheries on their draft Oyster Management and Rehabilitation Strategic Plan, noting that “a thriving oyster fishery is a critical element of the future coast we wish to see.” According to our executive director, Kim Reyher, our comments “focus on the potential value of oysters for non-cultivation purposes and the use of oyster shell as a resource, and urge the expansion of oyster shell recycling to provide more oyster shell for fisheries habitat and coastal protection projects.”