How are local chefs handling ban on raw BC oysters?
Posted August 23, 2015 8:05 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – If you’ve gone to a restaurant any time recently, you may have had a hard time getting a certain seafood that’s native to these parts. But there is a workaround for local eateries.
Ian Tostenson with the BC Restaurant and Food Services Association says many are spending a bit more money to get raw oysters from either Washington State or Atlantic Canada until the ban is lifted and it’s unclear when that will be.
“Because of the dollar it’s going to have an impact. I think you’ll find East Coast is probably a pretty competitive market so by and large I’m sure it’s always in the best interest of restaurants to keep prices as stable as they can so if they have to take less margin temporarily they will do that,” he explains. “It’s unfortunate because most of the oyster farmers in British Columbia are small. I mean this is a time when they are harvesting….it is tough for the small producers no question.”
There have been illnesses linked to eating the oysters.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued the recall last week because some of the shellfish may contain unacceptable levels of bacteria.
