Cumbrae Oysters signs port deal

Shellfish farmer Cumbrae Oysters has signed a new lease with the owners of Hunterston Port and Resource Centre, doubling the size of its site at the part.

Peel Ports, the owner of Hunterston, on the Clyde coast in the west of Scotland, launched a plan late last year to develop the 320-acre Hunterston site, as a hub for a number of sectors, including aquaculture.

Cumbrae Oysters director and owner Alan Forbes said: “I am very pleased to have this deal in place. Our oysters are in great demand in places like China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Macau, as well as here in the UK and in Europe, and the South Annan Sands at Hunterston have all the conditions to produce the kind of seafood most wanted in the Far East especially… with this expansion, we will be able to double production and we will be looking to create a further two jobs on site, with additional seasonal opportunities.”

In addition to year-round oyster production, Cumbrae also produces razor clams and other species of clams, king scallops, brown crabs, lobsters and blue mussels on a seasonal basis.

Jim McSporran, Peel Ports’ Clydeport director, said: “Hunterston PARC has great potential to be at the heart of the fast-growing Scottish aquaculture industry.

“Hunterston provides the natural development choice for business in the aquaculture sector to invest. The key attributes, which include the combination of marine infrastructure, energy and access to cold and very deep salt water in which the best shellfish flourish, provide an attractive opportunity to support the growth of the industry.

“This announcement is only the beginning and we welcome enquiries from businesses within the sector looking to explore opportunities.”