Harvesting of shellfish
Shellfish placed on the market for human consumption must come from a classified production area. This helps to control the risk of illness.
Some species of live bivalve molluscs such as oysters, mussels, cockles and razor fish are filter feeders. This means they can pick up sewage contamination and toxins from the water around them. Contaminated products can cause illness if consumed.
Shellfish beds are classified depending on the species found there and the results of water monitoring. You can only place shellfish from Class A waters straight on the market. Food Standards Scotland takes regular samples to check safety.
Classified areas
There are several waters classified for shellfish harvesting within Dumfries and Galloway:
Production Area | Species | Classification | Boundaries | Site Name |
Kirkcudbright Bay Razors |
Razors |
2024 = A : April to June, Nov& Dec B : July to October 2025 = A : January to March | Area bounded by lines drawn between points NX5814948907, NX57694802, NX65414270, NX68704354 , NX67454640, NX65784725 extending to MHWS |
Brighouse Bay (DG-809-2375-161) |
Kirkcudbright Ba Razors (DG-809-2132-16) | ||||
Loch Ryan |
Native oysters | 2024 = A : April to June B : July to November A : December 2025 = A : January to March | Area bounded by lines drawn between NX 0417 6796 and NX 0727 6711, NX 0828 6200, NX 0502 6200 to MHWS |
Leffnoll Point (DG-191-174-12) |
Loch Ryan (DG-191-175-12) | ||||
Loch Ryan West Side |
Sand gapers |
2024 = A • April to December 2025 = A . Januarv to March | Area bounded by lines drawn between NX02557280, NX03257298, NX05506745, NX04806770 |
Loch Ryan West Side (DG-885-2418-18) |
Wigtown Bay: Islands of Fleet |
Razors |
2024 = A • April to December 2025 = A • January to March | The subtidal seabed extending south from a line drawn between NX 4687 5400 and NX 4909 5400 to a line drawn between NX 4950 4672 and NX 5768 4800 and extending to MLWS |
Wigtown Bay (DG-305-182-16) |
Fleet Bay Razors (DG-305-1880-16) |
Contact us if you wish to apply for a new area to be classified.
Shellfish traceability
You have to send a registration document with each batch of shellfish going to a dispatch or purification centre. This means we can always trace back to the source of products.
Request registration documents if you want to gather shellfish from a classified area:
There is no need to harvest Scallops and Gastropods (like Periwinkles or Whelks) from classified areas but registration documents are still required.
Shellfish should be labelled with an identification mark to show their unique approval number before they are sold for human consumption.
