The Regenerative Standard: Why "Sustainable" Seafood Is No Longer Enough | Willapa Wild
Sustainability is Maintenance.
Regeneration is Restoration.
The new standard for the Pacific Northwest.
For twenty years, the industry goal was "Sustainability"—simply doing no harm.
That is no longer enough.
We believe the future of food isn’t about maintaining the status quo. It’s about leaving the water cleaner, the habitat richer, and the ecosystem more resilient than we found it.
The 3 Pillars of Regenerative Aquaculture
1. Off-Bottom Co-Habitation
The Method: We don't clear the bay floor; we farm above it. By using flip-bags and longlines, we lift our oysters off the substrate.
The Result: Native Eelgrass (Zostera marina) spontaneously regenerates underneath our gear. We stack nature and commerce vertically.
2. Active Filtration
The Engine: Oysters are nature's kidney. They actively remove nitrogen and turbidity from the water column.
The Scale: With a standing inventory of over 24 million oysters, our farm filters approximately 500 million gallons of seawater every day.
3. Native Species Return
The Heritage: We are stewards of the Olympia Oyster (Ostrea lurida), the only oyster native to the PNW.
The Work: We cultivate distinct beds of "Olys" not for harvest, but to re-establish the genetic bank of Willapa Bay.
The Hard Truth: Impact Data
Filtering 500M+ gallons of seawater daily.
Locked in shells and eelgrass roots.
Off-Bottom Culture: Growing above, restoring eelgrass below.
Restoring the endangered Ostrea lurida.
The Standard: Sustainable vs. Regenerative
| Feature | Sustainable (Old Standard) | Regenerative (Willapa Standard) |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Goal | Maintain resources (Net Neutral) | Restore resources (Net Positive) |
| Ecosystem View | "Minimize Impact" | "Partner With" & Heal |
| Carbon Strategy | Lower footprint / Offsets | Active Sequestration (Blue Carbon) |
Join the Restoration
We don't ship oysters in boxes; we serve them fresh at the source and supply the region's best chefs. Choose how you want to experience the standard.
About the Author
Antony Barran
Founder & Oyster Farmer at Willapa Wild. A steward of the historic Oysterville Sea Farms (est. 1854), Antony leads the region's largest private eelgrass restoration project and advocates for regenerative aquaculture practices in the Pacific Northwest.
- Carbon Sequestration: Data derived from standard seagrass carbon capture rates (3.6 MT/acre) as cited in Patagonia: The Power of Eelgrass (2024) and verified against local substrate density.
- Water Filtration: Calculation based on standing farm inventory of ~24 million oysters (wild + hatchery) filtering an average of 20–50 gallons per day depending on tidal flow. Source: Willapa Wild Farm Logs, 2025.
- Native Species: Olympia Oyster (*Ostrea lurida*) restoration zones are managed in accordance with Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife recovery goals.