Cherrystone: A long shellfish tradition

摘要

Cherrystone Aqua Farms may only officially trace its existence back to 1983, but that would short-change the Ballard family, who started Cherrystone as a division of Ballard Fish and Oyster Co. Ballard has been in the oyster and seafood distribution business since 1895, so it is no stretch to say the folks at Cherrystone bring generations of shellfish experience to the business. Located on Virginia's eastern shore in Cheriton, Cherrystone produces roughly 90 million clams annually, making it the largest producer of farmed littleneck clams in the world. In many ways, the company couldn't be more ideally situated, both in terms of the locations of its clam beds and proximity to a variety of markets.