Oyster farmers harvest 'monster' mollusc at sea

The oyster weighed the same as Autumn Haward when she was born, said the three-year-old's father Tom, who runs an oyster company

A "monster" oyster weighing 2.5kg (5.5lb) has been harvested off the coast of Essex.

The 31cm (12in) by 13cm (5in) mollusc was discovered by a sub-contractor working for Richard Haward's Oysters on Mersea Island.

Tom Haward said it had to be the largest his company had ever harvested, but he was certain there were more "massive" molluscs waiting to be found on his oyster bed.

"Even for us, who are used to handling oysters, there is something special about this one that fascinates us," he told the BBC.

The eighth generation oysterman said there were certain areas where it was not so easy to scoop up all of the oysters.

"Over the years they then keep growing and growing, so we need to go back and see if we can find any bigger ones," he said.

Some people might find the oyster too big to eat, Mr Haward said

The Haward family has been farming the molluscs at their 14-acre (5.6 hectare) oyster bed on the River Blackwater since the mid-18th Century.

They sell about one million oysters per year, including at Borough Market in London.

Mr Haward said the "fascinating" oyster "must be 20 years old - it's incredible".

"That oyster was about the same weight as my daughter was when she was born," he added.

However, it was just 4cm (1.5ins) shy of the largest recorded oyster, as detailed by the Guinness World Records.

"We'll have to see if anyone is interested in eating it, because sometimes it is just too big," Mr Haward said.