Our oysters that you eat are fresh, organic and sustainable.

“As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans.”

Ernest Hemmingway, A Moveable Feast

Choice Oysters was established in 2017 and was the first woman owned and third shellfish aquaculture farm in NH. over the years, I have enjoyed supplying oysters to individuals, distributors, local and out of state restaurants. Since about 2010, with my bachelor's in marine biology at the university of NH (UNH), I have had the opportunity to work with local farmers and conduct research on the farms and have been able to include farmers in our oyster reef restoration projects in the Great Bay-Piscataqua River system. since 2019, when COVID hit my focus has been more on including local farms in restoration efforts rather than focusing on sales.

My website showcases our research and restoration efforts that include NH farmers and other organizations and partners who’s goal it is to keep our estuaries healthy.

Sustainable Farming

Growing Choice Oysters...  Is a labor of love, and oysters are a unique organism. Filtering approximately 30 gallons of water a day, oysters are an important species to our estuaries. Whether they are on a natural reef or held in "cages" on a farm they are still filter feeding which improves water clarity, making it possible for plants and other organisms to thrive. Natural oyster reefs and farms create habitat for lobsters, crabs and other estuarine creatures and spawning each summer populates natural intertidal and subtidal reefs throughout the bay. Living in and filtering our clean, cool, NH water, gives our oysters their unique flavor and firm texture that I know you will love!

Because oysters filter feed, there isn't a need for oysters to be fed like other forms of aquaculture. They naturally feed on phytoplankton in the water column. Pesticides and other pest control options are not needed and are never used.

Oyster Reef Restoration

Here at Choice Oysters... we give back to the bay that provides us the perfect conditions to bring you the perfect New Hampshire oyster. As a farmer, I have been able to restore 3 acres of natural oyster reefs back in to Great Bay. The restoration sites are located in the mouths of the Lamprey and Squamscott Rivers near 2 large historic beds that have thrived for years. Work includes placing oyster and clam shell on to the river bottom which acts as a reef base. I have also worked with the University of New Hampshire and The Nature Conservancy to remote set oyster spat (baby oysters) on recycled oyster shell which are then transferred to the reef base to give the new reef a kick-start.

Oyster shells from New Hampshire's recreational harvest, local restaurants and markets are recycled and used as cultch (hard substrate)  for remote set oysters used in restoration.