Three key NSW Government agencies have joined forces and launched a high-tech operation to tackle oyster thefts and address the growing black market that is hurting oyster farmers and could be potentially unsafe to consumers.
To help scuttle the black market, the NSW Department of Primary Industries, NSW Food Authority and NSW Police Force have launched Operation Trident, a three pronged initiative to stamp out the illegal theft and trade of oysters.
"Last year alone an estimated 55,000 Sydney rock oysters were stolen from farms up and down the coast, most were mature and ready for eating," NSW DPI Fisheries compliance manager, Glenn Tritton, said.
"The value of the oysters runs into the hundreds of thousands and, like many primary producers, farmers were unable to insure their crop against loss."
Oysters are slow growing taking around three years to mature; this makes oyster theft even harder to swallow for an industry already struggling to recover from QX disease.
"A large proportion of oyster thefts are never reported, so 55,000 is a fairly conservative estimate," Mr Tritton said.
Not only is it ripping off someone's livelihood, but stolen oysters can be unsafe to eat.
"Stolen oysters that have not been covered by the NSW Shellfish Program pose a potential health risk if consumed, as they had not been depurated or filtered to flush out potentially dangerous toxins," Food Authority director general George Davey said.
Operation Trident will be a long term operation involving both covert and overt operations up and down the NSW coast.
"NSW Police Force and DPI will use state of the art surveillance equipment, including lasers, infra red cameras and high tech equipment to gather intelligence during Operation Trident," Superintendent Terry Dalton of the NSW Police Force, Marine Area Command said.
"If you are ripping off someone else's livelihood and selling potentially unsafe oysters to the public then you are on notice that the full resources of these three agencies are now ranged against you.
"The three agencies will share and review intelligence so the net is going to tighten around these thieves."
Apart from ongoing overt and covert intelligence and surveillance activities, police liaison officers and Fisheries officers will distribute an information poster to hotels, pubs and clubs up and down the coast.
The poster urges members of the public to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 if they have any information about oyster theft and the black market trade.
A copy of the poster can be downloaded at www.dpi.nsw.gov.au or www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au or www.police.nsw.gov.au
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