September 9, 2019 — If things can’t turn around for Capt. Tim Rider, the owner of New England Fishmongers, he and his business partner will be out of business at the end of this month.
During a boat tour of Portsmouth Harbor on Sunday morning, Rider and Kayla Cox told Democratic presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke about the struggles they have.
The biggest economic hurdle for Rider, who still uses a rod and reel to bring in most of his fish, is catch shares. That’s when part of a share of a species of fish is allocated to individual fishermen or groups. In most cases, fishermen or groups can buy or sell or lease shares.
“Someone owns the rights to the fish and can sell the rights to the highest bidder,” Rider explained before O’Rourke arrived.
O’Rourke had lots of questions for Rider and Cox about the system and what they are doing to make sure they survive in an industry they love but that seems to be getting gobbled up around them.