Australia's Oyster Coast, a collective of South Coast oyster farmers, is keen to put the region's finest shellfish delicacies on the map via a new oyster trail.

Travellers will be taken to oyster farms across the Shoalhaven, eating oysters straight from the farm gate while getting a firsthand look at how oysters are produced.

Andrew Wales, the collective's executive officer, is the first to admit oysters are an acquired taste but believes one slurp of a South Coast oyster will convert diners.

"Our oysters do have a really different taste and it's because they're grown in the cleanest, most pristine water in the world," he said.

"From the Shoalhaven right down the South Coast, the vast majority of oyster-growing land is surrounded by national park so there's no industry or pollution.

"The oysters we sell don't need to be cleaned or run under tap water - they come straight out of the river and on to the plate, so you can taste that there's so much more flavour.

"People don't realise what they're missing out on until they've tasted the saltiness and creaminess of our oysters."

The collective covers 300 kilometres of the coastline and incorporates the eight major growing estuaries between the Shoalhaven River and Wonboyn Lake, south of Eden.

Farmers produce three species of oyster - the Sydney rock oyster, the Pacific oyster and the Angasi oyster, which is popular for its fine-textured meat and distinctly salty taste.

The group, made up of about 40 professional farmers, is already making a mark overseas, sparking interest with Asian importers, restaurateurs and foodies.

Wales took about 20 dozen oysters to the recent Honk Kong food expo, showing them off to the 200,000 people who passed through the fair's doors.

While Asian palates are used to French oysters, Wales said many of them were shocked at the taste of the collective's wares.

"Hong Kong doesn't really have a consistent supply of Sydney rock Oysters," he explained.

"They are smaller than what consumers are used to, but that's why they're perfect for the more high-end diners. Once we educated people about the size, they realised they were tasting something they'd never tried before.

"These oysters had been in the river 24 hours before they were on the plate - they weren't deep frozen and flown from Europe, they were fresh out of the river. People were really impressed."

South Coast oyster farmers produce around 1.8 million dozen oysters annually, worth $11 million.

The collective is keen to expand its operation with plans to start exporting overseas early next year, while continuing to build its profile regionally.

Wales said he had already established a good rapport with providers in Singapore who were keen to send tourists along the oyster trail.

"We don't want to be the self-appointed spokesperson for food on the South Coast, but we see this as a way of offering something unique that really draws attention to the region and opens doors for other businesses," he said.

"So many areas have wine or beef or cheese.We want something that differentiates us.

"If we can get people coming here for the oysters, then we can get them to enjoy the cheese and wine too; this has the potential to reshape the area and make it a very targeted food industry, not just a place with nice beaches where mum and dad go in the holidays."

The oyster trail will be officially launched next month with tours of several oyster farms and a peek into the "mysterious world" of oyster production.

"One of our key objectives is to raise awareness," Wales said.

"People will eat an oyster and won't give a second thought to where it came from.

"Oyster farming is a romantic, complicated industry.

"A Sydney rock oyster can take three years to grow, so it's like nurturing a cow or sheep.

"People are amazed when we tell them about the process and the technology, so our objective is to really put a story behind the product so people understand the culture and history around it."

As for the best way to eat an oyster, Wales believes it should be natural all the way.

"Sure, you can put cheese and sauce on them, but until you've tried an oyster natural, freshly opened and straight out of the river, you haven't lived," he laughed.