Shellfish Harvesting Closure - March 3rd - 24th, 2026

Written By Mark Seymour

Drayton Harbor Oyster Company
Blaine, Washington

Clarifying the Recent FDA Advisory Related to Drayton Harbor Shellfish

(that’s the Harbor, not our Restaurant)

Drayton Harbor Oyster Company appreciates the opportunity to clarify recent [over-the-top and misconstrued] reporting related to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration Advisory involving shellfish harvested from Drayton Harbor in Whatcom County, Washington.

If you read no further, simply know that the FDA Advisory was issued 5 days after any and all public health risk related to these shellfish had been removed from the supply chain and peoples fridges, and that National and International news coverage of week-old news that is a) no longer relevant and b) related to a product that literally made it less than half-way across the county it was harvested in, is not “National News”. This experience has now made us question literally everything we read in the national news — but thank-you for the free Press. Local news, like Bellingham Herald - you did a great job. Sincere Thank-you.

Drayton Harbor Oyster Farm (DHOF) is a small father-and-son family farm located in Drayton Harbor. The farm’s oysters are sold exclusively to its single sister restaurant, Drayton Harbor Oyster Company (DHOC), located less than a mile from the farm in Blaine.

Distribution is extremely limited — Oysters associated with the advisory were sold only within a ~30-mile radius of the harbor, either at DHOC between Feb 13th - 23rd, or direct to consumers at the Dockside Market in Bellingham on Feb 21st.

The FDA Advisory addresses two totally separate businesses, with two completely different products, with two entirely distinct distribution chains:

  • Oysters harvested by Drayton Harbor Oyster Farm, distributed only within ~30miles of Farm

  • Manila clams harvested by the Lummi Indian Business Council, distributed to nine states

Two illness reports involving four individuals total were potentially associated with the consumption of raw oysters harvested from Drayton Harbor before February 23rd.

There is no routine commercial norovirus test used for shellfish safety programs, so shellfish harvesting is simply closed and shellfish recalled as a stopgap.
Norovirus is extremely resilient and transmissible; while oysters can filter out norovirus if it’s in the water a) norovirus first enters the water through human inputs, and b) it’s very easy to pick up from someone else with the virus. It is possible to confirm a person has norovirus, but the shellfish themselves are never tested for norovirus - shellfish harvesting is simply closed and shellfish recalled as a precaution.

The FDA Advisory was issued on March 9th after the FDA investigation concluded. By that time, absolutely no ongoing public health risk related to these shellfish existed - the Advisory was therefore not intended to prevent any illness; it simply notified that something had happened (a week before). The Washington State Department of Health noted in its recall issued March 4th that distributors had contacted retail establishments and that it was likely all shellstock had already been consumed.

Well before the shellfish recall and harvesting closure, DHOC had already suspended sales of all raw product when the first illness report was received in mid-February; harvest of “cooking oysters” continued, as no closure was issued, and the oysters were perfectly safe to consume when cooked. Unfortunately, the second illness report was related to persons that had been gifted these “cooking oysters” and, unfortunately unaware that they were for cooking only, had eaten them raw. It still counts. This illness was reported on March 3rd. State and Federal agencies therefore used March 3rd as a precautionary bookend for the harvest recall window.

As is standard practice, commercial and recreational shellfish harvesting in Drayton Harbor was thus temporarily closed as a precaution to allow any potential norovirus in the waters to be moved along. Harvesting will reopen March 24 after a standard 21-day harvesting closure, per Whatcom County Health and Community Services.

“We appreciate the strong cooperation from Drayton Harbor Oyster Company throughout this process,” said Tom Kunesh, Food Safety Program Supervisor for Whatcom County Health and Community Services. “The company has been proactive in discontinuing the sale of potentially impacted oysters from their restaurant and retail store.”

Shellfish farming in Washington is inherently tied to water quality along the coast. Because oysters are filter feeders and Farmers depend entirely on clean water to maintain harvestable product, they have a strong incentive to monitor and protect the health of the watersheds in which they operate. Shellfish farmers routinely work with federal, state, tribal, and local agencies, as well as researchers and community groups, to monitor water conditions, understand pollution sources, and address upstream inputs that can affect coastal ecosystems. These collaborations support both safe shellfish production and broader efforts to maintain clean water and healthy marine environments throughout the region.

Shellfish Farmers bust their asses keeping upstream activities from negatively impacting downstream water quality, and everyone benefits from that. What you and others do upstream really matters!

We look forward to returning to harvest in Drayton Harbor once the closure period concludes on March 24th. Raw product served at Drayton Harbor Oyster Company Restaurant will continue to be sourced from deeper waters elsewhere until norovirus potential is nonexistent.
We don’t serve our oysters raw unless we are eating them raw ourselves - we will let you know when that is :)

Steve Seymour & Mark Seymour
Owners & Farmers
Drayton Harbor Oyster Company
Blaine, Washington

Mark Seymour