Posted on June 1, 2026
We are restoring oyster reefs! Last week, we placed 2,000 natural stones in a protected marine area in the Belgian North Sea. These stones were seeded at Universiteit Gent by the laboratory of Aquaculture and ARC with 400,000 young oysters that we have grown ourselves in our mobile oyster reef restoration unit: a modular container-based installation.
Oyster reefs are highly valuable habitats: they increase biodiversity, support fish production, and strengthen the natural functioning of marine ecosystems. This is precisely why we are committed to reviving this habitat.
This type of marine restoration is complex and can only be achieved through collaboration. This operation is therefore part of the European research project BLUE CONNECT. The Belgian pilot is carried out together with Universiteit Gent, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, VLIZ – Flanders Marine Institute, FOD Volksgezondheid, Veiligheid van de Voedselketen en Leefmilieu.
