Editor’s note: Someone pointed out this article is too specific for International readers who, for example, may not even know where Vancouver Island is. There is a lack of specific information. I have written Fisheries and Oceans Canada, pointing out: “Most of The articles I see mention Tidal Area 14 (which is the little stretch of Vancouver Island coast between Comox and Parksville), but when I talk to Cortes growers they mention Baynes Sound, which is only a small part of Tidal Area 14. If it is only Baynes Sound, a lot of growers in other parts of Tidal Area 14 are being negatively impacted for something that is not even in their immediate vicinity. At the moment, a lot of Vancouver Island growers appear to be negatively impacted for something that is not in their Tidal Area.“

There was a 10 hour interval during which Erik Lyon of Rising Tide Oysters, on Cortes Island, thought he was going to reap big profits. Dozens of Californians had fallen ill after eating raw oysters from ‘Tidal Area 14’ in British Columbia. That’s on the east coast of Vancouver Island, between Comox and Parksville. Lyon specifically pointed to Baynes Sound, where there are oyster growers that sometimes ship 20,000 dozen oysters in a week. By way of contrast, he described most Cortes Island growers as ‘little mom and pop operations.’ 

“We’re a little bit removed from Baynes Sound. We tend to have cleaner water and a lot of the buyers can reliably pick up more product from us when the big guys go down,” he explained. 

That’s what seemed to be happening on Saturday, December 13, 2024. 

“All of a sudden I got a message stating, ‘can you please send 3,000 dozen a week now, every week?’ I thought, ‘Oh, this is fantastic. This must be because norovirus was traced back to those big farms. They’re all shut down! Well, my glee was short lived because within another 10 hours I got the message, ‘no oysters, no oysters, please don’t even think about oysters!’

Lyon now fears he may lose close to $60,000 in potential Christmas and New Years Sales. At peak capacity, he sometimes employs 6 people. As a result of a recent failure with the scallop harvest, Lyon was already down to a skeleton crew.

‘No Notice Saying Subarea 13-15 is closed for anything’

Kristen Schofield-Sweet and her partner, John Shook, are in the midst of  putting together an order for the high season of Christmas. This was to have gone out a week ago, but at that time it consisted of the popular extra smalls and petite oysters for raw consumption. 

“We’re having a lot of difficulty selling those because of a norovirus report about oysters from Baynes Sound. I’m not even sure it was confirmed,” she explained. 

A lab in California confirmed that some of the oysters there from Tidal Subareas 14-8 and 14-5 (around Baynes Sound, Denman and Hornby Islands) have norovirus contamination, but Canadian notices use the term ‘norovirus-like.’ 

Schofield-Sweet said 5 dozen oysters from Bee Islets are tested every week and “ there is no notice that says Area 13-15 (which includes Gorge Harbour and Whaletown Bay on Cortes Island) is closed for anything.”  

She was not aware of any local growers who have had negative tests lately, but did mention someone who sent $5,000 worth of product down to Vancouver and had to take it back even though their test was clear. (The buyers were nervous.)

“ There’s a kind of hysteria around guilt by association, that If an oyster south of us is affected, every oyster that’s affected and every lease that then has to be closed. It’s simply not true,” she exclaimed.

Norovirus Symptoms

Norovirus symptoms usually appear within two days of consuming contaminated raw oysters and consist of diarrhea, vomiting, and/or stomach pain. This generally last from 1 to 3 days. 

Phil Allen, President of the Bee Islets Growers Cooperative, compared it to a 24 hour flu bug. He pointed out that the problem is with the small and extra small oysters that are eaten raw. You do not have to worry about eating cooked oysters.

The BC Centre for Disease Control advises that when in doubt, “consume only cooked shellfish. Cooking will destroy viruses and bacteria and decrease the risk of gastrointestinal illness. To ensure adequate cooking, test shellfish with a probe thermometer and make sure the temperature reaches 90°C for 90 seconds.”  

No Restrictions on oysters for the cooked market

Julia Rendall, another local grower,  added that most of the oysters grown at Bee Islets are larger and destined for the cooked oyster market. There are no restrictions on them. 

Lyon also grows for the cooked market, but explained that small oysters are worth almost as much money as mediums and can be produced in a fraction of the time.

Schofield-Sweet and some other Cortes growers are putting together an  order for 3,000 dozen medium and large oysters for Friday December 27, 2024.

 “3,000 dozen oysters is a lot and so quite often more than one grower will come in on an order or will offer sizes we have to balance what somebody else has. That’s what we were doing,” she said. 

Josh Powers, who has been working for John and Kristen for the past six months said, their share of the order is  200 dozen mediums and 50 dozen large.

Closures for raw oysters

On Thursday, December 19, the BC Centre for Disease control reported 64 cases of people exhibiting ‘norovirus-like’ symptoms after eating raw oysters in the Vancouver Coastal Health, Fraser Health and Island Health (Vancouver Island) regions.

Recent DFO cautions about raw oysters have specifically highlighted three Vancouver Island Tidal Areas: ‘#14 (from Comox to Parksville),’ #8 (Saanich and the Gulf Islands), and #24 (Clayoquot Sound).

On Saturday, December 21, Health Canada issued a recall on some Fanny Bay Oysters, Sunseeker Oysters and Cloudy Bay Oysters that Taylor Shellfish Canada Ltd shipped to BC, Alberta and Ontario. Their press release clearly states the oysters had a ‘microbial contamination – norovirus’ and were ‘recalled due to norovirus.’ The oysters came from Subarea 14-8, which is in Baynes Sound.   

Concerns about liveaboards and mixing oysters from different areas

Lyon is nervous about the liveaboards who share Gorge Harbour with shellfish growers.

“Norovirus is a virus that I’m led to believe only exists in the human gut. It is directly a consequence of fecal contamination in the water, which of course the oysters bioaccumulate.  Some of the liveaboards might have composting toilets, but I guarantee you they certainly don’t all have them.”

There are regulations stating that, for example, shellfish destined for human consumption cannot be grown within 125 metres of a man-made dock, boat or float house. However the only enforcement is against growers, who have to cease operations if a boat anchors too close. 

Allen explained that his only recourse is to tell the boater, “Look, I can’t operate while you are here. Could you please move?’”

Lyon also dislikes the way buyers sometimes mix oysters from different areas. This increases the chances of a shipment being declared ‘contaminated.’ For example, a restaurant illness report could state that their contaminated product came from Area 14 ‘and there were some oysters from Area’s 13 and 15 as well.’”

“ I’m spending my money to try and keep other people working, taking chances on shipping product that might be contaminated. It’s a really bad situation,” he said. 

Going forward

Lyon believes  BC could be worldwide leaders in sustainable shellfish production. 

“This coastline is perfectly suited for it. We have lots of current oxygen rich water, filled with plankton.” 

He may get out of the raw oyster market altogether,  “I’m going back to specifically selling mediums and up oysters that are for cooking.”

Appendix: Select DFO shellfish advisories in our area, as of Dec 20, 2024 

Tidal Area 13 (Campbell River and Cortes, Read, Sonora,  Quadra  Islands) 

• Subareas 13-1 & 2 (Outside Campbell River, Cape Mudge area of Quadra Island) is open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters, mussels, Pink scallops and Spiny scallops only.
• Subareas 13-3 and 13-5 (Campbell River and lower Discovery Channel) – is closed to all Bivalve shellfish 
• Subarea 13-12 (Hoskyn Channel, Okisollo Channel, Whiterock Passage): is open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters, mussels, Pink scallops and Spiny scallops only.
• Subareas 13-13 and 13-14 (Eastern Coast of Quadra Island from Hyacynthe Bay to Cape Mudge) is open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters and mussels only.
• Subarea 13-15 (includes Marina Island, Gorge Harbour and Whaletown Bay on Cortes Island): is open to scallops, Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters and mussels only.
• Subarea 13-16 (South Eastern Read Island, Cortes Island between Whaletown and Carrington Bay) is open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters and mussels only.

Tidal Area 15 (Powell River, Texada Island, includes eastern Cortes) 

• Subarea 15-2 (From Lund to Powell River): open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters, mussels, geoduck and Horse clams only.
• Subarea 15-3 (Cortes Bay, Hernando Island, the Copeland Islands and associated portions of the Mainland): is open to Manila clams, Littleneck clams, Pacific oysters and mussels only.
• Subarea 15-5B (N. Lewis Channel, parts of Raza Island and West Redonda Island): is only open to mussels.
• Subarea 15-5B (S. Lewis Channel, Squirrel Cove, Seaford, Tiber Bay, the south west coast of West Redonda Island and the entrance to Desolation Sound)  is only open to mussels. 

Links of Interest

• Articles about, or mentioning, closures in Baynes Sound
• Articles about, or mentioning, oysters
• Articles, about or mentioning, Cortes Island Aquaculture
• Articles about, or mentioning, Bee Islets Growers Corperation

Top image credit: Kristen Schofield-Sweet working on the rafts – submitted photo

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