State grants $3 million to aid North Fork oyster farmers after freeze

Four North Fork oyster farms will share a state rescue package meant to get a battered working waterfront back on its feet after February’s severe freeze left shellfish growers facing damaged gear, blocked access to beds and steep repair bills. Gov. Kathy Hochul said the state awarded $3 million to 14 small aquaculture businesses, including Peconic Gold Oysters in Cutchogue, Oysterponds Shellfish in Orient, North Fork Big Oyster Corp. and Little Ram Oyster Company in Southold.

The money is meant to do the unglamorous but essential work that determines whether a farm can make it through the next season: repair infrastructure, replace boats and gear, streamline operations and increase production. State officials said the winter conditions damaged boats, racks, lines and other equipment, and ice and snow made it hard for growers to reach harvesting areas across Long Island waterways.

The grant round matters because the losses were not abstract. The Long Island Oyster Growers Association shared data with the governor’s office and state agencies showing average crop losses of about 33 percent and roughly $2.4 million in gear repair and replacement costs. In the April 6 request for a USDA Secretarial Disaster Designation for Suffolk County, state officials said the combined industry loss was estimated at $2,396,500. If federal officials approve that request, eligible producers could apply for USDA low-interest emergency loans and other disaster assistance.

Aquaculture has become an important part of Suffolk’s farm economy. The most recent USDA Census of Agriculture cited in the county showed 155 aquaculture operations in Suffolk and 15 in Nassau, with more than $14.5 million in sales in 2022. That makes the North Fork’s shellfish industry more than a niche business; it is a piece of the region’s economic base, feeding local restaurants, supporting dockside jobs and keeping small waterfront operations alive in places like Cutchogue, Orient, Southold and New Suffolk.

The new award brings the Long Island Aquaculture Infrastructure Grant Program to $4.2 million across two rounds. The first round, announced last fall, distributed $1.2 million to 17 small businesses and included support for Hampton Oyster Company in New Suffolk to buy digital grading technology that can automate oyster sorting and nearly double throughput without adding labor. The second round opened Nov. 3, 2025, and applications were due Jan. 5, 2026.

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said the funding is aimed at preserving working waterfronts and keeping the region’s seafood sector moving. Long Island Farm Bureau executive director Bill Zalakar said the aid should help farmers recover and build a stronger, more sustainable aquaculture industry. For North Fork growers still digging out from the Big Freeze, the grants are a bridge back to production, and a test of how quickly the local shellfish economy can recover if more help does not arrive.