No Mere Feat

Tyler Niven '15 on Sustainability, Community, and Eight Million Oysters
 

Tyler Niven ’15 is up at dawn, motoring out to the clear, deep waters of the Maquoit and Mere Point Bays to tend five to eight million oysters on his family’s floating forty-acre farm. On a summer’s day, the farm is a slice of picturesque coastal Maine life, the bays dotted with wildlife and fishing and pleasure boats. But oyster farming is a year-round job, and the off -season months are often punishing aboard their open twenty-five foot deck boat, affectionately called “the floating wheelbarrow” by Niven and crew.

“Not every day is an ‘Instagram’ day—in January and February you really need to love what you are doing, and being a bit crazy helps too,” says Niven. Niven is the sales manager for his family’s aquaculture business, Mere Point Oyster Company in Brunswick, Maine, which requires days on dry land packing thousands of oysters, talking with wholesalers, or heading into Boston in the delivery truck.

“I go directly to some restaurants because chefs can be picky, and want to buy directly from us. Wholesalers are easier—they say, ‘send me 30 bags’— done!” The company does business with wholesalers and restaurants from California to Florida, Toronto, Canada, and every major US city in between.

“Monday is the hardest day,” says Niven. “We harvest what we need for our Tuesday deliveries and clean, sort, and pack it all up for the weekly drive to Boston, usually about 15,000 oysters.” They send around 1.3 million oysters to market per year, with a goal of increasing their capacity to 3 million.

Oyster farming is the darling of the aquaculture world: It’s highly sustainable and off ers many environmental benefits to the marine ecosystem. Niven says a single adult oyster filters as much as fifty gallons of seawater a day, removing excess nitrogen, for example, making the water cleaner and clearer so other marine species can thrive. “Also, they don’t take up much space! You can grow around 10,000 oysters in just 400 square feet,” says Niven.

Oyster gear also provides an excellent habitat for numerous marine species, which is beneficial to supporting a healthy ecosystem. Marine aquaculture operations also typically have a much smaller carbon footprint and require less land and freshwater than land-based farming. “In a busy waterfront area, it’s important to fit into the bigger picture and give back to the local community,” Niven says.

The staff work hard, but have a knack for making the hustle look seamless and genuinely fun. There’s an easygoing, familial camaraderie among the team— their Instagram account is a mosaic of mud-covered staff hauling heavy oyster bags under a scorching sun next to sunset shots of bachelorette parties and slick pop-up raw bars catering to customers eager for a new dining experience. The company recently posted on Instagram: “Well folks, we have our first wedding rehearsal dinner! Last year, we had a bachelorette party…Dare we do an actual wedding?” A follower replied: “I’ll get married just for the catered party!”

Mere Point Oyster Company’s processing facility is a meticulous operation, with continual improvements for better and more efficient equipment. “This is a volume game,” says Niven. “With five to eight million oysters on the farm, the fewer times we handle a single oyster, the better. We try to keep it to no more than sixteen touches before it leaves our facilities.”

Marine biologist and Farm Director Chris Hedberg understands the science of keeping the oysters healthy. “The Gulf of Maine is warming faster than any body of water on our planet,” he says. “There was a big clam die-off last summer due to the heat, and the mud flats became too hot. Then there’s rain—too much at once affects the ocean chemistry and shifts in algae.” Hedberg takes detailed notes on each tank on the farm using an iPad and notebook.

 

Oyster farming comes with substantial, often hard to- predict risks, and raising seed oysters is a highly detailed process with many opportunities for failure.

“We buy the smallest seed oysters available because they are less expensive, but also more fragile—there’s a higher risk for mortality,” says Niven. Last year, a tank pump in the land facility broke and wiped out a million oysters because they require constant water circulation. “You’re not an oyster farmer until you’ve killed a million oysters,” jokes Niven. “Sometimes you have to learn the hard way.”

 

Despite the risks, Niven is optimistic about the future of the family business. “Change is coming, but it’s a matter of how you prepare and adapt,” he says. “Our oysters are growing faster, we have a longer growing season, and people pay more for Maine oysters because they come from clean water and taste better.” Niven also credits the huge ten-foot tides that flow in and out of the bays twice daily, giving the oysters a constant nutrient-rich feast.

 

Niven says his time at Govs played a critical role in building his confidence to pursue new ventures and passions. “There is a real sense of community— dorm life was the best, and I loved Morning Meeting,” he says. “Everyone knew each other; when you saw your teachers in the dining hall, it was normal to stop and chat about not only class but life. Govs taught me how to overcome adversity on the ice and in the classroom. If I struggled, I knew I had a support network of teachers and coaches who would help me succeed.” Niven frequently returns to Byfield to visit faculty and drop off a complimentary bag of fresh oysters.

 

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Colorado in Boulder, Niven landed a summer job as a fly fishing guide in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He never imagined himself as a professional oyster farmer, never mind

working in the family business in his hometown of Brunswick; he always imagined himself living in a city after college. When his father approached him about working at Mere Point Oyster Company, Niven was circumspect: “Dad, this is a real business? I can actually make money?” Niven’s father, Doug, replied, “You’re smarter than you look!” Niven spent his first year watching and learning, focusing on the business side of the startup.

 

“I started out on sales while I learned the ropes of farming. Right now, we’re sold out for the next three years, and we’re not taking on new accounts. We need to keep our current customers happy,” says Niven, who has become a keen student of supply and demand. “Demand is crazy. We can keep a higher price point because we’re open year-round—we ensure high quality, and we’re reliable. We’re also strategic about meeting increased demand around the holidays.”

 

Mere Point Oyster Company is the brainchild of Niven’s father, Doug Niven P’15, and his partner, Dan Devereaux; both have deep roots in Maine. “When you come from a fifth generation Maine family, you’re invested in your community,” said Doug. "We got into this business because we care deeply about Maine’s

working waterfront communities and the health of the coastal resources they depend upon. We don’t just want to see those communities persist; we want to help them to thrive."

 

Tyler Niven represents a new generation of business leaders. He embraces emerging technologies to streamline operations while improving sustainability, networks with other farmers to share best practices, and seeks new opportunities to expand the business.

 

“I want to see other farmers succeed—it’s all about elevating the brand of Maine oysters,” says Niven. “We all care about protecting the environment and our local way of life. There’s no playbook. We make mistakes and learn on the fly. We also have great camaraderie among the team. My dad came from a family business and taught us that everyone working at Mere Point Oyster Company is part of the family. It’s hard work, and anything we can do to care for the family and our local community is a win.”