TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Oyster farmers in Chiayi are concerned that they will not be able to keep up with demand this Mid-Autumn Festival after successive typhoons have slashed production by more than 50%.

Barbeques and oysters are a common sight during the holiday in Taiwan, but the Chiayi County Oyster Breeding Production and Marketing Association said on Tuesday (Sept. 5) that oysters will become scarcer and more expensive as it approaches, per UDN. According to Chiayi County’s agricultural department, about 35% of the area’s floating oyster farms, and 25% of hanging oyster farms, suffered some damage by either Typhoon Doksuri or Tropical Storm Haikui.

Tai Tse-wen (戴澤文) of the Chiayi Fishers’ Association said that because of the recent storms, the price of shucked oysters has reached up to approximately NT$315 (US$9.86) per kilogram, an increase of about NT$32. Oyster farmer Li Chung-ching (李重慶) said large waves had destroyed swathes of oyster crops, and that 10 newly opened restaurants offering barbequed oysters in the area were also putting pressure on demand.

The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, is a holiday that falls on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar, when a full moon can be observed. The practice of barbequing to celebrate the festival is a local Taiwanese custom, that came about after an advert for barbeque sauce popularized the idea in the mid-1980s.