About Oysters Tasmania

The formation of Oysters Tasmania, and the establishment of the Executive Officer position, is recognition of four main needs: to reduce the increasing workload being shouldered by volunteers within the sector; to improve the level of industry representation to external stakeholders; and to provide executive support and coordination for the parent bodies and the Tasmanian Aquaculture Council. In addition, Oysters Tasmania will assist TSIC in the development and management of projects involving the wider Tasmanian aquaculture and seafood industry.

The Executive Officer role was filled through public advertisement, with short-listed applicants interviewed by a panel of representatives from TSIC, TSEC and TORC. The panel is pleased to announce that the successful candidate is Dr Tom Lewis, supported by Raymond Murphy and colleagues at Rural Development Services. Tom is well known around Tasmanian aquaculture circles, having been involved in oyster, abalone and salmon activities since the mid-1980s.

TSIC’s Chief Executive, Neil Stump, has been elected to chair the Oysters Tasmania management committee, and is pleased to see this initiative get off the ground – "TSIC is very supportive of this new organisation and position. While the parent organisations – TSEC, TORC, TSIC and TAC – will continue to operate in their own spheres as usual, Oysters Tasmania will provide additional governance, representation, communication and project development/management services."

"The management committee will work closely to guide and support Oysters Tasmania, to ensure activities and projects make effective use of our tight budget. A priority will be to identify and secure additional, external funding to gain leverage from this industry investment" Neil said.

"An initial focus for Oysters Tasmania will be to identify our main challenges in areas such as profitability, product quality and the environment. With industry input and support, the aim will be to secure additional funding to help us meet these challenges."