Oysters of Chatelaillon : our guide ! Office de tourisme Châtelaillon-plage

Step 1 - Capture

Everything starts at sea, with the installation by the oyster farmers of collectors on which come to fix the oyster larvae in Chatelaillon. Their development can begin! 4 to 8 months later, the spat are ready to be harvested. This is what we call the collection.

The spat? These are baby oysters no bigger than a fingernail. The supply of spat can also be done through shellfish farms, the hatcheries.

Everything starts at sea, with the installation by the oyster farmers of collectors on which come to fix the oyster larvae in Chatelaillon. Their development can begin! 4 to 8 months later, the spat are ready to be harvested. This is what we call the collection.

The spat? These are baby oysters no bigger than a fingernail. The supply of spat can also be done through shellfish farms, the hatcheries.

The small mollusks are then brought back to the establishment where they are unhooked with the help of a machine, before being sorted and put into bags. The bags are then placed on tables at sea so that the oysters can continue their growth. Water and sun: the dolce vita!

*Pssst, you can spot tables and their pockets on Boucholeurs Beach at low tide. It’s worth a look!”

Step 2 - Breeding

Once the bags are put in the sea, they stay there between 2 and 3 years. Several operations are then necessary to ensure the good growth of the oysters.

1 – Fire the pockets

So no, we do not throw them away (we advise you to run fast otherwise) but we turn them regularly to promote the development of mollusks and limit the appearance of algae.

2 – Changing pockets

After a while, you are bound to get cramped! The oysters are then brought back to the establishment, transferred in smaller quantities into larger bags and then put back on the tables. Pampered and pampered, the oysters of Chatelaillon really have nothing to complain about.

Discover more about these two techniques and many others by booking your visit to the oyster beds!

Step 3 - Refining

Once the oysters have reached a size* suitable for sale, they are placed in seawater basins, generally shallow and with a clay bottom, called “claires”. This refining technique is a very regulated operation. It is this technique that allows us to obtain either the fines of claires or the specials of claires. Everything depends on the length of immersion.

*Did you know?

Oyster sizes, or calibers, are also regulated by a professional agreement. They range from 0 to 5 for hollow oysters and from 000 to 6 for flat oysters. The smaller the number, the higher the size!

For more explanations on the oysters of Chatelaillon, opt for the visit of an oyster shack with Laurence. She will teach you with passion the rudiments of her job.