While navigating her oyster farm in western P.E.I., Kaila Richard often reflects on her late father, the former owner who tragically passed away in a 2021 accident.
“Being out here, I feel my father close,” shared Kaila, who now manages the farm in Dock River near Alberton alongside her husband, Bruce Richard.
“[When] we make mistakes, I can hear my dad saying, ‘What are yous doing?!’ … and when things go right I’m like, ‘Oh, he’d be so proud,'” she revealed during an interview with CBC Radio’s The Current.
The Richards invested significantly in upgrading their farm by acquiring loans, purchasing new equipment, and investing long hours in crop care. However, their hard work faces uncertainty due to the impact of two diseases devastating the oyster industry in the region.
Millions of dead oysters have been unearthed by farmers, with shells strewn across P.E.I.
“The whole island is just a massacre at this point,” Bruce lamented.
“There’s about a dozen farmers in this little section of river back here, and we’re all in the same boat. Everybody’s seeing upwards of 90 per cent, 95 per cent dead loss.”
Numerous oyster growers in western P.E.I. are reporting a 100 per cent mortality rate in their cages post-winter. The region is grappling with the impact of two oyster diseases, MSX and dermo. CBC’s Nancy Russell provides insights.
The diseases, multinucleate sphere unknown (MSX) and dermo