Bernard Friedman
Bernard Friedman joined the board of CFSB in 2016 and is the owner of Santa Barbara Mariculture. He is known as Santa Barbara’s “Mussel Man” (owing to this short documentary). However, his latest moniker is the “Mussel Whisperer” (owing to his success on CNBC’s Billion Dollar Buyer). After 18 years of farming shellfish in open waters off the coast of Santa Barbara, he rightfully claims to be the most successful offshore shellfish farmer in the United States.
Bernard has a B.A. in Biology from UC Santa Cruz, an A.S. in Commercial diving technologies from Santa Barbara City College, and a M.Sc. in Fisheries Management, Development, and Conservation from the University of Ireland. Additionally, he has recently made trips to Nicaragua to teach oyster farming and restoration to indigenous women of El Ostional.
Since 2010, Bernard has also participated in the southern California spiny lobster fishery. You can find Bernard’s shellfish at the Saturday Farmer’s Market, the Santa Barbara Fish Market, and many restaurants throughout the region.