On a quiet stretch of Santa Barbara's Gaviota Coast, where craggy cliffs dip into the surf, a slow and ancient rhythm pulses within fiberglass tanks. The Cultured Abalone Farm—one of only two red abalone aquaculture operations in the United States—isn't just producing seafood—it's resurrecting it.

Orchard Point Oyster Co. founder Scott Budden left his corporate financial analyst position in Washington D.C. to start a career on the Chesapeake as an oyster farmer. Budden and his team persevered through new statutory enactments and competing private interests to become a Chesapeake oyster farm giant with a massive distribution platform.