The way in which the Dugas family cultivates its oysters relies on ancestral techniques developed and refined over 7 generations. These techniques are not only environmentally conscious but contribute to the great taste and reputable quality of the Dugas Caraquette oyster. Care for the environment is always at the forefront of the manipulation process. Each step is done with the utmost respect for the natural habitat of the Caraquet Bay. The Dugas family uses smaller size barges with little consumption and restricts its ground manipulation to further limit their impact on the natural surroundings.

Contrary to other methods, The Dugas Caraquette oyster is left to develop freely in its natural ocean habitat. The Dugas family will oversee the growth and quality of each oyster over a 5-year process at the end of which mature oysters are collected by snorkeling while younger oysters are left to continue developing. Mature oysters that are ready for clients to enjoy are stored in cages at the bottom of the bay on aquaculture leases owned by the Dugas family.

 

« L’huître, la Caraquette, qu’on eut servie dans un plat d’or aux dieux de l’Olympe, si les dieux de l’Olympe en avaient soupçonné l’existence. »

Pascal Poirier, 1884

 

The Caraquet Bay is where oysters have naturally established their habitat. Its particular properties offer an exquisite taste to the oysters that have made it home.  

The bay’s prolific yet fragile ecosystem is one that requires protection. It is the only bay in New-Brunswick that still offers profitable oyster farming.  It also provides the most important reproductive stock in the province. Annually, over 10,000 collectors are put in place which ensures seedlings to more than 50 oysters farmers.  

The Bay of Caraquet and its watershed are protected by a local partnership invested in its guardianship: the ‘Partenariat pour la gestion intégrée du basin versant de la Baie de Caraquet’. It is the view of this organization that it is our moral duty to ensure the preservation of this heritage.  Together with the municipal, provincial, and federal governments, the bay`s delicate natural habitat is well defended. 

Gaétan Dugas
Baie de Caraquet, Acadie

The delicate, yet generous taste of the Dugas Caraquette oyster is uniquely balanced by the saltwater of the Caraquet Bay and the freshwater of the two rivers that spill into it. Its plump, firm texture offers a sweet almond taste in a shell that is robust yet easy to open.

 

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