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Inside the UAE farm that grows millions of oysters

▶ Dibba Bay Oysters in Fujairah harvests millions of molluscs from the nutrient-rich waters of the Sea of Oman

- KELLY CLARKE

A stone’s throw from the Fujairah coast, millions of meaty oysters are being harvested in the Sea of Oman.

About 500 metres offshore, Dibba Bay Oysters takes pride in being the first and only shellfish farm in the UAE that produces gourmet oysters.

White and orange buoys speckled with barnacles bob in the open water and mark out the 3,700-square-metre aquafarm.

Within the next few months, it is set to expand to 4,200 square metres.

On the day The National visited, about 10 million Pacific cupped oysters of varying sizes swayed in a series of lantern nets metres underwater.

“We have an abundance of algae bloom on site and the oysters gorge on that,” said Ramie Murray, who founded the company in 2017.

“There is so much natural food and algae in the open waters here, which makes it the perfect environmen­t to harvest fat, juicy oysters.”

The lanterns look simple but they play an important role in the harvesting process.

The nets keep the oysters out of the muck so they can feed, and the extra shelter also helps keep predators such as crabs and stingrays at bay.

Typically, oysters are farmed close to shore, where there is a lot of tidal movement. Mr Murray said his stock was farmed offshore because the warmer climate made for a great harvest.

“What enables us to farm in this environmen­t? Well, traditiona­lly, people tend to think oysters can only be farmed in cold climates. That’s not the case,” he said.

“Generally, in cold climates, there’s an upwelling of water which brings food to the surface.

“Here, we farm a little deeper but have a good upwelling of cold water and a constant supply of natural food. Fujairah is one of few hot places with an abundant algae supply.”

Each month, about 70,000 oysters are plucked from the waters and sent to local and global markets.

By the end of this year, Mr Murray wants to harvest up to 500,000 each month to meet high demand, especially from Russia.

Owing to the undercurre­nt, the layered nets, which are like mesh tubes, sit at an angle and allow food and water to pass through easily.

More than 70 workers at the farm monitor the stock. Nearly every hour they are required to lift out and hose down the nets to ensure the oysters have a constant flow of food.

“We have 3,000 lanterns [nets] in the water and depending on the size of the oyster, each can hold a different capacity,” Mr Murray said.

“When they are babies, we can fit between 5,000 and 10,000 oysters in each lantern. When they are bigger, that number drasticall­y reduces to about 400 or 500.

“Each oyster starts and finishes its growing process on land.”

As filter feeders, a large oyster can suck in up to 170 litres of water a day. And from baby to fully grown, it takes about eight months to harvest. They can reach a weight of up to 100 grams and eight centimetre­s in length.

Mr Murray, a Scot who has lived in the UAE for more than two decades, said he bought baby oysters, which are only two millimetre­s long, from internatio­nal hatcheries in places such as Britain and France.

The same species of oyster can hold a different taste and texture, depending on where it is harvested.

“That is the real beauty of this shellfish – it is unique. Oysters take their characteri­stics from their surroundin­gs,” Mr Murray said.

“You’ll notice with our oysters they have a distinctly white shell. That is from the calcium in the water from the nearby limestone mountains.

“The algae is what gives them their taste and they are a vitamin and nutrient powerhouse.

“A big oyster can have up to two grams of protein in it and its full of magnesium, zinc and B vitamins, as well as some vitamin C and D.”

After passing through the offshore farm and processing platform, the oysters are washed and individual­ly weighed at the onshore sorting centre before being packed and shipped.

Dibba Bay is the only oyster farm in Middle East, and Mr Murray said he hoped it would one day be among the biggest in the world.

“We are one of the few farms in the world that is harvesting continuous­ly,” he said.

“We harvest twice a week, every week, throughout the whole year.

“Shellfish farming is one of the only environmen­tally positive forms of aquacultur­e because we create environmen­ts.

“The hanging lanterns are like a hanging reef, so all the seaweed and food grows on the outside and all the baby fish can hide in the baskets from predators.

“We are also totally organic and only use saltwater to clean the oysters and lanterns.”

The same species of oyster can have a different taste and texture, depending on where it is harvested

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 ?? Chris Whiteoak / The National ?? From left, founder Ramie Murray; buoys mark the farm boundary; and staff haul nets of shellfish from the sea
Chris Whiteoak / The National From left, founder Ramie Murray; buoys mark the farm boundary; and staff haul nets of shellfish from the sea

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