Trat: Trat's best product, 'Tha Som Oysters', has been registered as a new GI product. It is a good quality product with firm, plump texture, soft and sweet taste. It is popular and widely known, creating a reputation and income for the community in the province of over 190 million baht/year.
According to Thai News Agency, the Department of Intellectual Property announced the registration of 'Tha Som Oysters' as the fourth Geographic Indication (GI) of Trat Province, following Trat Golden Pineapple, Koh Chang Chanee Durian, and Khao Barthat Monthong Durian, which were previously registered as GI.
'Tha Som oysters' were originally found in the water sources of Ao Tha Som, on the mangrove coast of Trat Province, attached to the roots of mangrove trees and rocks. Later, cement pipes were installed in the mud along the coastal area of Trat Province, and it was found that many oysters lived there. In addition, the water conditions at the mouth of the Welu River, where seawater, freshwater, and brackish water converge, create a good water circulation system and are abundant with plankton. This makes Tha Som oysters of good quality, with creamy white flesh, plump, and firm flesh that fills the shell. They have a soft, sweet, and juicy texture and have a natural aroma, making them famous and well-known among consumers. The GI-registered Tha Som oyster farming areas include 4 villages: Ban Tha Som, Ban La Mib, Ban Salak, and Ban Ang Kapong, Tambon Tha Som, Amphoe Khao Saming, Trat Province.
After the announcement of GI registration, the Ministry of Commerce, through the Department of Intellectual Property, continues to promote and support GI products in a comprehensive manner through product quality control to maintain the quality and standards of Tha Som oyster products, as well as promoting marketing to generate sustainable income for communities and farmers.
Ms. Arirat Leualai, an oyster and seafood shop owner in Ban Salak, Tambon Tha Som, Amphoe Khao Saming, Trat Province, said that in Ban Ang Kapong, Tambon Tha Som, there are as many as 80 locals who have opened fresh oyster shops. All of them are members of the Tha Som Oyster Community Enterprise, which includes oyster farmers, oyster sellers, and many oyster products. This is because the Tha Som Oyster Community Enterprise has received support from Burapha University, Tha Som Subdistrict Administrative Organization, Trat Provincial Agriculture Office, Trat Provincial Fisheries Office, and Khao Saming District Fisheries Office to promote oyster farming and set up an oyster market. Every day, locals bring oysters to sell along the roadside, allowing tourists passing by to stop and buy some to eat and as souvenirs. Fresh oysters, shucked and put in bags, are sold at a price of 200 baht per kilogram.
The standing oyster section started with shucking fresh oysters for customers who bought the shucked oysters in bags to try and see if they were tasty. When they saw that they were tasty, they would buy some to take home. Later, it became selling standing oysters for 5 baht each. They were shucked fresh from the oysters and served with side dishes such as chili paste, fried shallots, seafood sauce, and young acacia shoots, which combined the sweetness of the fresh oyster meat with the sourness of the seafood sauce, the aroma of chili paste, and the acacia shoots that added sweetness. When combined with the oyster meat, it was a delicious taste that tourists loved.
Ms. Arirat said that fresh, sweet oysters are available for purchase and eating every day because Tambon Tha Som is another large oyster farm in Trat Province. The freshwater source from the Welu River mixed with saltwater from Ao Ban Salak Bay makes the oyster meat taste good.