Tom Haward with a locally caught lobster at The Company Shed, Coast Road, West Mersea, Colchester.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
9:55 AM
Shekha Vyas talked to The Company Shed’s assistant manager
Tom Haward about life and what water means to him and his family
The Company Shed has been long established, providing local and completely natural seafood from its base in West Mersea. With water being such an integral part of East Anglian heritage and landscape, we often take for granted the rare advantages of this which are right on our doorstep.
The unique environment is a haven for wildlife and local produce, and one of its most famous exports are Mersea oysters.
Now in its 25th year, The Company Shed was started off by Heather Haward. The eponymous building It had first been used as a purifying shed by her husband Richard, a seventh generation oysterman.
The business was at first a weekend project, selling cockles and prawns to local people out of the window.
This grew as Heather placed old pews and benches in the shed for people to sit on while they ate. The business expanded over the years as The Shed started taking more fish from local boats.
Tom emphasises how important the community has been to them. “Dad [Richard Haward[ was instrumental in helping find fish and giving local boats a place to sell. There are a lot of people that read about us and come and eat here but it’s the fishmonger side of the business, when the season’s quietened down, and the local community, that keep us going.
“My eldest brother Bram is an eighth generation oysterman, and the Hawards have been here since the 1700s so the community has always been fundamental.”
Indeed water has been part of the family’s lifestyle for years, but the business could have gone either way for a while.
Tom says: “Dad originally went to university to study economics. He was 19 when his dad died so he left to take on the family business.” Despite unfortunate circumstances the Hawards have seen the business evolve and grow. “We are selling 20-30,000 oysters a week and now our eldest brother works on the boat. I work in the shop, my sister runs The Shed herself – we’ve grown up with it and I’m really proud of my family.”
Water is instrumental
in all aspects of oyster harvesting. The wild oysters are native to the River Blackwater and are dredged up in a boat.
The Hawards have their own tide beds, where they place the oysters which are too small to sell.
These depend on the nutrients that the tide brings in to fatten and after about three years they are picked, washed and graded.
The purification process takes 42 hours. Seawater is run through and a UV light purifies the oyster by killing potentially harmful bacteria. They are then taken out, packed and sent all over the world.
So what is so special about these oysters? Tom explains that the rock oysters are native to North Europe and ours gain a distinctive salty taste due to living in the second saltiest stretch of water in England.
The Colchester Natives, however, are what Mersea is truly famous for. These are only found in this area of the world and simultaneously delicate but meaty with a firm texture.
Due to high zinc content they also have a slightly metallic aftertaste. “They are not very good with extreme weather conditions and have to be cared for.”
Tom considers this for a moment: “I think that’s key for why we’ve being doing it so long, you have to work with nature. The thing about an oyster is that it’s completely natural.
“Nature runs its course and we do our bit to bring the product to shore.”
History is important to the Haward family, and their passion for the business is clear: “I love the history and the heritage that we have, I’ve gone and worked in other things but somehow always get drawn back into the family business” says Tom.
“I’m very proud of my parents for what they’ve built. We’re a shed! We have shower curtains used to cover our lobster tanks - it’s not exactly classy, you come here for good food, you eat fresh from the sea, it’s very authentic, we work hard and we hope that people enjoy it.”
The future however, especially with the changing coastlines and climate, is never far from their minds.
“Ultimately what my dad and other people are doing is understanding nature and working with it because it is our livelihood.
“We are always talking about what the future looks like, how the community can work together and talk to the government, ensuring that we can protect this legacy.
“We fell on really hard times in the late 80s so we never get complacent about The Shed. Things can change very quickly.
“I think without water we wouldn’t have the business we have and ultimately wouldn’t have a roof over our heads.
“Water is part of our livelihood.”