Stranraer Oyster Festival returns this September!

Marine experts have revealed that Scotland’s native oyster bed has experienced a marine heatwave this summer that could deliver the best native oyster breeding season in decades, ahead of Stranraer Oyster Festival 2025.

Water temperatures in Loch Ryan, in south west Scotland, reached an unprecedented 17.8°C at the start of July, more than a full degree above normal summer temperatures, creating ideal conditions for native oyster reproduction and baby oysters, known as spats.

Tristan Hugh-Jones, Director of Loch Ryan Oyster Fishery Company, said:

“We’ve been monitoring these temperatures closely and this extra degree of warmth should lead to the most successful breeding season in decades. The conditions are exceptional. We could be looking at a bumper spatfall year which will support the growth of this important oyster bed.”

The marine heatwave has implications far beyond Loch Ryan. Due to the importance and high health status of the Loch Ryan bed, its native oysters are used to seed restoration projects from the Firth of Forth to continental Europe. Loch Ryan oysters are a crucial genetic reservoir for a species that has declined by 95%, making it now one of Europe’s most threatened marine habitats.

The news comes as Stranraer Oyster Festival, which takes place from 12-14 September, unveils a marine science programme to complement the popular celebrity chef programme of events. The new events include cutting-edge research, science talks and hands-on experiences that will bring the hidden world beneath Loch Ryan’s surface to festival audiences, alongside celebrity chefs, live music, a huge artisan market, and the Scottish Oyster Shucking Championships.

 Marine and oyster science events

New for 2025, as part of the festival’s marine science programme, is an evening of ‘song and science’ from the Solway Coast Marine Project (SCAMP). This ambitious marine ecosystem restoration programme was recently awarded £1.4million in lottery funding to plan a ‘whole seascape approach’ to protecting and developing the Solway coast’s natural and cultural heritage. The native oyster bed in Loch Ryan is an important focus of the project’s work, and the Friday evening blend of marine ecology talks and traditional sea songs performed by folk singer Emily Smith, will create a poetic bridge between Scotland’s maritime heritage and its sustainable future.

The oyster festival’s new Speakers’ Corner venue will host “Secrets of the Oyster Bed” on Saturday 13th September, featuring researchers from Heriot-Watt University and Edinburgh University’s Roslin Institute sharing their latest findings about what makes Loch Ryan’s marine ecosystem so special.

Meanwhile “Marine Robot Lab” will see six scientists and researchers from the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) demonstrate their ingenious custom-built monitoring machines, everything from remote-controlled paddleboards equipped with underwater cameras to sophisticated drones.

Nick Chisholm, SCAMP Landscape Connections Programme Coordinator, said:

“We are thrilled to be taking over the festival’s Speakers’ Corner on Friday evening with our unique blend of marine science and traditional songs. Working with partners like SAMS allows us to showcase both the cutting-edge technology that’s revolutionising marine research and the cultural connections that link communities like Stranraer to the sea. Stranraer Oyster Festival has proven that marine ecology and inspiring food events are a winning combination, and we are looking forward to sharing our enthusiasm for marine science with visitors to Stranraer.”

 Celebrity chef events see unprecedented demand for tickets

The marine science programme sits alongside an exceptional chef lineup featuring Saturday Kitchen’s Matt Tebbutt and beloved TV chef Rosemary Shrager. They are joined by festival favourites Tony Singh and Julie Lin, plus Bake Off star James Morton and six local chefs. The festival’s Kitchen Marquee events are already seeing unprecedented demand for tickets, with a waiting list in operation for many of the cookery demonstrations.

The real stars of the festival are the native oysters themselves, which will appear in several of the chef demos. Visitors can also try them at the huge oyster bar and watch the experts in action at the Scottish Oyster Shucking Championships, which will see competitors race to open native oysters with speed and precision. The winner will go on to represent Scotland at the World Championships in Ireland in late September.

A full programme of live music, food, drink and entertainment runs across the three-day event, creating the vibrant atmosphere that has made Stranraer Oyster Festival one of Scotland’s most popular food festivals.

Romano Petrucci, Chair of Stranraer Development Trust, said: “Eight years ago we started this festival to tell people about our oysters and the warm welcome people can enjoy in Stranraer, but the festival has transformed into something truly extraordinary. We’re now welcoming world-class marine scientists, celebrity chefs, and visitors from across the globe to our stunning harbourside – all because we refused to let our town be written off.

“What visitors will experience here is absolutely unique – where else can you watch underwater robots being launched into waters containing 23 million native oysters, then enjoy world-class cookery demonstrations with Saturday Kitchen’s Matt Tebbutt, all while traditional Gaelic sea songs echo across a loch that’s been protected by Royal Charter for over 300 years?

“What makes me proud is that people are choosing to come to Stranraer because we’re offering experiences they simply can’t get anywhere else. Our town has ambition, it has confidence, and this festival proves that when a community believes in itself, extraordinary things happen.”

Researchers emphasise that Loch Ryan’s unique geography, clean water and long-term sustainable management practices make the oyster bed uniquely resilient. The circular water movement in the sea loch means the oyster larvae are retained in the loch for the first two weeks of their life, which allows them to settle onto the oyster bed to grow and create reef-like structures comprised of clusters of oysters. Careful harvesting practices, taking only the largest 5% of each catch and leaving oyster structures intact, ensures that the breeding population remains robust.

Stranraer Oyster Festival 2025 takes place from Friday 12th to Sunday 14th September, celebrating the start of the native oyster season. Tickets are available with early bird weekend passes from £18. Additional charges apply for selected events, such as celebrity chef demos.

Stranraer Oyster Festival 2025 is sponsored by Lactalis UK & Ireland, alongside Rock Island whisky from Douglas Laing, Stranraer Skills Station and Loch Ryan Oyster Fishery Company. The festival is supported by Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Signature Events programme and the Coastal Benefit Fund, and the work of Stranraer Development Trust is also supported by South of Scotland Enterprise and The Holywood Trust.

For more information and tickets: www.stranraeroysterfestival.com