The Oyster Company of Virginia (“OCVA”) was founded September 2, 2010 in response to Louisiana’s Deep Water Horizon oil spill where Virginia had been importing oysters for the last 30 plus years due to the collapse of the Chesapeake Bay oyster & seafood industry. Virginia aquaculture technology, however, is emerging as a promising solution for reviving the native oyster. OCVA saw this as a positive accelerator for water quality and other fish and reef habitat while helping to save the Watermen families culture and heritage. The OCVA mission provides positive environmental and commercial programs that are sustainable and creates jobs. OCVA believes its programs will have global impact. Learn more about Our Programs.

The Oyster Company of Virginia has also acquired exclusive worldwide rights to Reeftek, Inc.’s “Oyster Eco Reef Module” (a Virginia engineered product) for accelerating the benefits of its’ proprietary design to propagate oysters, hooked mussels and other “Filter Feeding” organisms. This serves as an incubator for reviving a sustainable eco reef system. OCVA has branded this innovative reef as a sentinel for protection of sanctuaries, wave attenuation, and as an accelerator of fishing reef habitat. The “Sentinel” is being offered to the public through the “Living Memorial Oyster Reef”[link to menu] Program and through state, federal and NGO restoration projects, for the health of our Chesapeake Bay, and other watersheds (such as the Gulf) and throughout the world.