Ian and Stesha Campbell established their 6-acre oyster farming operation in 2015. Photo courtesy of Ian and Stesha Campbell.
By Leila Naylor, FSA
Ian and Stesha Campbell are siblings and owners of Mooresfield Oyster Farm located in Narragansett, Rhode Island. Ian starts off every morning commercial fishing, followed by an afternoon of helping his sister tend to their oyster farm.
Learning the Ropes
Ian learned about oyster farming in 2013 by observing his boss growing oysters. After that, Ian was hooked on the idea and decided to open a business of his own, but he needed help running it. That is when he asked Stesha if she was interested in joining him with his new venture.
“At first, I thought my brother was kidding, but soon realized how serious he really was about the idea,” Stesha said.
She agreed to help her brother and in 2015, they officially established their new 6-acre oyster farming operation. They are located closest to the harbor refuge in the bay where the rip tide current remains strong, creating subtle flavor differences in their oysters.
“It’s like any other farm except this one’s underwater. You still have to worry about the weather and hope your seeds grow, make sure everything is spaced appropriately apart,” said Ian.
Dedication to Oyster Farming
Since officially starting their business, Ian and Stesha have learned how to identify and treat diseases and the importance of keeping predators at bay.
To protect their oyster operation, they enrolled in the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program through FSA. Photo courtesy of Ian and Stesha Campbell.
To protect their oyster operation, they enrolled in the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program through USDA’s Farm Service Agency. This safety-net program provides financial assistance to producers of noninsurable crops when low yields, loss of inventory or prevented planting occur due to natural disasters.
Ian and Stesha have come a long way over the past five years. While it takes dedication and a lot of labor, the Campbells find oyster farming rewarding.
“We feed people, we improve the water quality of the pond and we create a habitat for the many creatures of the sea,” said Stesha. “It’s an incredible process really, something to be proud of. I don’t know if either of us realized how big of an undertaking it would all be, but we have risen to the occasion and are applying all we have learned into keeping that momentum going.”
More Information
USDA offers a variety of risk management, disaster assistance, loan, and conservation programs to help agricultural producers in the United States weather ups and downs in the market and recover from natural disasters as well as invest in improvements to their operations. Learn about additional programs.
For more information about USDA programs and services, contact your local USDA service center.
