Cooley Oysters Ltd
Membership Status:
Approved until 31 May 2022
Sector:
Seafood
About the company
Cooley Oysters is a family owned business based in Greenore, Co. Louth on the East Coast of Ireland. Established in 1984 by the Ferguson Family, Cooley Oysters has been proudly farming premium quality oysters, grown using the traditional 'Trestle and Bag' method, from Carlingford Lough for over 37 years. Cooley Oysters are grown in the crystal clear Class A waters of Carlingford Lough, the highest grade available and classified by the European Union. Cooley Oysters specialise in Irish Rock Oysters, also known as Pacific Oysters (Crassostrea gigas), Standard and Specials. Newly developed purification facilities and state of the art packing room are fitted with the latest innovations and modern technologies to ensure the company provides a safe working environment and high-quality product. Using a combination of seawater, UV light and optimum temperature, salinity and oxygen levels, the oysters are purified to the highest standard.
Key Sustainability Commitments
Committed to Reducing Waste:
Cooley Oysters reuses all empty oyster shell to maintain access routes and plan to investigate the feasibility of supplying shell to local farmers as a calcium supplement for chicken feed,
Focus on Health and Nutrition:
Oysters are a naturally healthy source of protein rich in nutrients and minerals required for healthy growth and maintaining a strong immune system. Ensuring the health and safety of their oysters is one of the most important aspects of Cooley Oyster's company. They carry out a number of different sampling regimes to ensure that oysters are virus and disease-free (e.g. sampling for E. coli and Noro virus). They depurate their oysters to the highest standards and only harvest during open season.
Exemplary Performance Target Areas
Minimum Origin Green Targets Required Annually = 4
Spotlight Target Area: Water
Cooley Oysters became a member of the Origin Green programme in 2015 developing their sustainability plan for the 5 year period covering 2016 to 2020. Appreciating that all their company’s operations depend on a clean environment, the business respects the environment they work in, supports sustainable development and are committed to environmentally sound business practices.
Leading the Origin Green plan implementation is Nadia Ferguson. Cooley Oysters pride themselves on running a progressive company that pairs an age-old natural product with modern techniques.
Rainwater Harvesting & Water Usage Awareness
Prior to the plan, freshwater was used for canteen and toilets and supplied through the mains metered system. As part of their plan, Cooley set a target of only using water from the mains on site for canteen/drinking water and reducing water use by 5% in m3 consumption, or 10% reduction in m3/t used. In 2019 Cooley achieved and exceeded these targets by 41% Water consumption from the mains for 2019 was only 0.443 m3/t versus target of 0.74 m3/t.
The targets were reached by establishing a rainwater harvesting system to supply toilets and wash down of the yard facilities. They also have a water usage awareness plan in place to encourage staff to reduce water usage and continuously look for ways to reduce water on site (i.e. monitoring tap/hose fittings, conducting leak tests etc.)
“We are privileged to have been presented with the Origin Green Gold Member Award acknowledging our ongoing sustainability efforts. We will do our utmost to continue our work towards a sustainable future.”
Donal Ferguson, Director
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