Not since 2003 did the Mississippi oyster fisheries have had such a proud comeback as 2024 with its double fishing openings. 

After a 5-year hiatus to preserve dwindling catches, the state decided to open fisheries twice this season. 

The first opening was on November 13 for ten days, while the second on December 9 for eleven days.

During the November run, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MDMR) authorized 8 fisheries in Areas I and II.

The department specified the maximum catch as ten sacks per commercial boat daily, through the tonging and dredging methods. 

Tonging pulls oysters out of the sea through tongs while dredging scoops the mollucs from the mud. Both methods employ ropes and metallic prongs attached to the fishing vessel to do the catching.

For the December 9-19 harvest, the commercial dredging maximum has increased to 15 sacks a day. This is even as commercial tonging remains limited to a maximum 10 sacks. Licensed recreational fishermen can access 3 sacks per week, same as it was on the November 13 opener. 

Fishermen have previously welcomed the ten-day double season, citing it a surprise gift after waiting half a decade. 

MDMR owns that the twenty one days are quite few but allows that they could revive the struggling sector.

The reopening could revamp supplies and bring prices down given that the entire American oyster production has been down by 34%.

Reviving Old Oyster Glory

Between 1996 and 2003, the Mississippi oyster industry was large-scale and averaged 2 million pounds in annual landings.

Then an oil spill on the Gulf Coast affected even interior waters and brought the fisheries down to their knees. By 2018 when MDMR instituted a ban on dredging wild oysters, the annual landings had fallen to below 500,000 pounds.

It therefore goes without saying that the surprise comeback of official fishing has brought smiles to seasoned oystermen. It also spells a return to steady income and overall economic benefits, as the statistics below illustrate.

Mississippi Oyster Statistics

Oysters are the leading molluscs in the United States by economic value. In 2018, for instance, they represented 64% of all mollusc catches worth $284.9 million. This value effectively beat clams to the second position with a 31% share. Although oysters thrive from the East Coast to the West Coast, the Gulf Coast, which includes Mississippi, is also a key source. The state’s peak production year was 2008, harnessing 2.6 million pounds of the critters. Ten years later, however, in 2018, this value had fallen to a meager 31,832 pounds, prompting the dredging ban. 

Does the oyster sector in Mississippi impact personal income? 

According to the Mississippi State University, local fishermen earned a cumulative $3.02 million in 2009 from oyster harvesting.  Sales also generated over $9.77 million in 2009 while 199 jobs came from the sector in Mississippi alone.

How much revenue do oysters bring MS per year? 

In terms of oyster landing values without sales, the state reached its peak in the mid-1990s at over $7 million. Landing values and sales combined, however, bring Mississippi around $23.72 million per year, as of 2009. This sales turnover went on to depreciate to $13.47 million in 2011.