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Orange is the New Black for Gulf Fishermen

April 17, 2018 — In the  fashion world “orange is the new black,” but for the Gulf seafood industry “orange” is helping those affected by hurricanes the previous year, and others, put their businesses back into the “black.”

The Gulf Seafood Foundation’s orange “Helping Hands” gloves are starting to appear everywhere across the Gulf of Mexico. The gloves are turing up on shrimpers, oystermen, crabbers, processors, James Beard Award winning chefs, politicians and seafood aficionados determined to keep Gulf seafood on the plates across America, and around the world.

“It’s a simple concept,” said Gulf Seafood Foundation Chairman Jim Gossen. “A mere $5.00 buys a pair of work gloves used every day in the seafood industry.  The organization continues to distribute the first 900 pair, and a second order is in the works.  Every dollar we collect in donations goes to buying these gloves.”

Read the full story at Gulf Seafood News

 

New Film Highlights Fishing Industry from Fishermen’s Point of View

April 4, 2018 — “The family fishermen are going the way of family farmers,” says one man interviewed in “Dead in the Water,” the new documentary film by Southern California filmmaker David Wittkower showing at Harbor Theater in Boothbay Harbor on Monday, April 9. Shot in New England coastal towns, the film chronicles the struggles of New England fishermen to remain viable in an age of what some might deem excessive federal regulation of the ground-fishing industry.

“It’s a film from the point of view of the fishermen,” Wittkower said in a recent phone interview from his home in Woodland Hills, Calif. “The government regulations have been so tight on fishermen … that they can’t make a living anymore.

“I wanted to show this industry from the human side.”

Increased regulations have driven up costs for fishermen so much that “a three-man boat went down to a one-man boat,” he said. “The amount of work that one man has to do is amazing.”

Running a one-man boat in the ocean can be dangerous. “In the film, someone says that 87 percent of fishermen in the U.S. are suffering from PTSD,” said Wittkower.

“This film opens the door for the world to see how difficult and dangerous the life of a fisherman is. On top of that, the impact of misguided federal regulations on fishermen has never been presented as powerfully as it is in ‘Dead in the Water,’” said John Bell, the former mayor of Gloucester, Mass., in a recent press release for the movie.

“Dead in the Water” was released last November in Rockport, Mass., Wittkower’s hometown, and has since shown in other Massachusetts coastal towns – Cape Cod, New Bedford, and Gloucester, whose declining fishing industry is chronicled in the film.

Read the full story at the Lincoln County News

 

Pic of author in front of ship fuels fish oil photo flap

March 26, 2018 — REEDVILLE, Va. — A group that works with commercial fishermen is questioning why an author posed for a picture while sitting on a jet ski near a vessel in the Chesapeake Bay, rather than ask to come on board.

Paul Greenberg has written a new book, “The Omega Principle,” about omega-3 fatty acids. He tweeted the picture Friday in front of a vessel used by Omega Protein, the Atlantic’s largest menhaden harvester. Menhaden are small fish used for omega-3 fish oil supplements.

D.C.-based group Saving Seafood works with Omega and other harvesters on government and public relations. It says there was no reason for Greenberg to “endanger himself or the crew.”

Read the full story at the San Francisco Chronicle

 

This halibut hook is an innovation for the past, present and future

March 19, 2018 — The Alaska Innovators Hall of Fame recently inducted its first indigenous tool. Few people still use the hand-carved halibut hook, once popular with Southeast tribes. But there’s a push to make sure the tradition sticks around for future generations.

Standing on a stage with his grandson at the Juneau Innovation Summit a few weeks ago, Thomas George accepted an award.

“I’ve been trying to get help to keep this part of our heritage alive for years or decades,” George said.

The Alaska State Committee on Research gives credit to people and inventions which have made a lasting impact in the state.

George accepted the honor for a collective achievement: the halibut hook, which has been used by Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people for thousands of years.

Even though the technology is old, George says it isn’t a relic.

“Over the years everybody thought it was decoration for the wall,” George said. “But my hooks never did hang on the wall. They hung out on the porch.”

George only knows of one other person — in all of Southeast Alaska — who fishes with the traditional halibut hook, and he’s a big proponent for bringing them back. He’s taught classes at the Sealaska Heritage Institute on how to make them.

Growing up in Klawock, he says carving the hooks was part of his childhood. His grandmother was one of the people who passed on the knowledge, and he remembers some advice she gave him: All of the measurements you need to know are in your own hand.

“And if you got small hands you don’t need a big fish,” he said.

Typically, people jig for halibut on their boat using a metal circle hook. But the traditional design and method is different. The hook itself is shaped like a V, with a more buoyant wood like yellow cedar on one side and a denser wood on the other. This makes it float in a certain direction.

Read the full story at KTOO

 

Seafood Icon Northern Wind® Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary in Business

February 16, 2018 — NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — The following was released by Northern Wind: 

Northern Wind, an industry leader as a direct off-loader, processor and distributor of fresh and frozen scallops is proud to announce that the company is celebrating its 30th year in business. Since its founding in 1987 by Ken Melanson and Michael Fernandes, Northern Wind has established itself as one of America’s fastest growing seafood processing and distribution companies, providing its customers with a wide variety of premium scallops and seafood from across the globe. Northern Wind prides itself in providing their customers with the freshest seafood products that have been responsibly harvested using sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. With three decades of business relationships throughout New England and across the globe, Northern Wind is a top direct-off loader, processor and distributor of fresh and frozen scallops.

“Over the last thirty years, Northern Wind has not only remained strong throughout many economic ups and downs, but we’ve grown the business and we now serve well over 500 customers across the globe,” said Ken Melanson, Founder & Chairman of Northern Wind. “First, our expertise at delivering top quality, responsibly sourced and sustainable scallops and fresh seafood is paramount in our success. Secondly, is our employee’s hard work and dedication to providing superior customer service which has enabled us to attract and retain hundreds of loyal customers.”

Northern Wind’s seafood products include fresh and frozen scallops, Ahi tuna, North Atlantic lobster, monkfish, headfish, skate and value-added seafood offerings. Northern Wind’s 70,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility is certified by the U.S. Department of Commerce Seafood Inspection Program for packing of USDC Grade A fresh and frozen scallops. Northern Wind was the first scallop producer in the nation to receive Fair Trade™ Certification and during the 2017-18 fishing season purchased over 1 Million pounds of Fair Trade scallops. In addition, Northern Wind’s start-of-the-art processing facility is BRC and MSC certified.

The company has also launched a new line of high quality premium scallops under the Five Star Premium Scallop brand name which was introduced at last year’s Seafood Expo North America in Boston, Ma. The company has also redesigned its Captain’s Call, Mariner’s Choice and Sea Spray scallop product lines to better portray Northern Wind’s leadership position in the seafood industry.

“The first 30 years have been an incredible ride. We’ve been blessed to have employees who are dedicated to quality and providing excellent customer service. I can’t wait to see what the next 30 years bring,” stated Michael Fernandes, Founder & President of Northern Wind.

Since the beginning, the Northern Wind team has always dedicated themselves to consistently supplying their customers with the highest quality seafood products and providing them with superior customer service and competitive prices.

View the release in its entirety here.

 

Two bears were badly burned in wildfires, and fish skin helped heal them

January 26, 2018 — When Jamie Peyton first examined the bears’ paws last month, she figured they might take six months to heal.

Peyton, a veterinarian at the University of California at Davis, had treated cats and dogs with burns before, and she knew these were severe. The two female black bears in her care had survived the Thomas wildfire that swept through Southern California in December, but both suffered third-degree burns that had caused their paw pads to slough off. They could hardly stand due to pain.

Instead of six months, the bears’ injuries healed in a matter of weeks — a quick recovery Peyton attributed to a treatment never before tried on human or animal burn victims in the United States: fish skins applied as bandages.

Using fish skin wasn’t Peyton’s first instinct when state wildlife authorities enlisted her help. They had found one bear huddling on Dec. 9 in a backyard aviary near the town of Ojai and the other two weeks later in a nearby wooded area. A third patient, a 5-month-old male mountain lion with burned paws, was discovered in the woods shortly before Christmas. Kirsten Macintyre, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, said officials determined the three were candidates for rehabilitation, which meant transferring them to a state wildlife investigations lab near Sacramento. A vet there suggested calling on Peyton, chief of the Integrative Medicine Service at the UC Davis veterinary teaching hospital.

Peyton said she first tried the usual care: cleaning the burns, removing dead tissue and applying ointments. But she knew two very important steps — covering the burns and providing pain control — would be tricky with these unusual patients, which needed to stay a safe distance from people when not sedated.

There was no guarantee they’d gulp down pain pills hidden in their food, Peyton said. “And we couldn’t put on any type of bandage material they would eat,” because that might cause intestinal obstruction. Also, she said, “if a bandage comes off, you can’t really go into the cage to get it.”

A fast recovery was imperative, especially for the second bear. Peyton’s team had discovered the bear was pregnant during an ultrasound exam, and they feared the stress of giving birth in captivity would cause her to reject the cub.

Then, the veterinarian said, she remembered a news story she had read about scientists in Brazil successfully using sterilized tilapia skin on human burns. Like the pig and human tissues that have long been applied to burns, the fish skin is moist and transfers collagen, a protein that helps healing. But it’s cheaper and widely available, because it’s a byproduct of tilapia sold as food. The Brazilian researchers told Reuters last year that it hastened recovery in their patients and reduced the need for pain medication.

Read the full story at the Washington Post

 

$300K Tuna Sold at Final Tsukiji Fish Market Heads to NYC Sushi Chain

January 19, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The 890 lb. bluefin tuna sold for $323,195 at the final New Year’s auction at Tokyo’s famed Tsukiji fish market has made its way to New York City.

The fish was bought by the Onodera Group, which has 11 restaurants in seven cities around the world, including London, Paris, Shanghai and Los Angeles. Sushi Ginza Onodera, located on 5th Avenue in New York City, is the lucky restaurant to score the fish for its diners. This week they’re serving sushi made from the massive bluefin tuna – and at no extra charge. However, there is a catch. The restaurant only offers its sushi in an “omakase setting,” which means that the course selection is in the hands of the chef. And it can get pricey. While the restaurant does not list prices online, guests on yelp say that lunch can range from $100 to $150 per person, while dinner can reach $400 per person.

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

 

Wandering seal pup rescued at Yarmouth pizza shop

January 2, 2018 — YARMOUTH PORT, Mass. — A harbor seal pup seemed to have her heart set on an anchovy pizza when she wandered a couple of miles inland Friday night and wound up in the parking lot of Yarmouth Pizza by Evan.

Brian Sharpe, manager of Marine Mammal Rescue and Research for the International Fund for Animal Welfare in Yarmouth Port, said it appeared the 6-month-old pup had followed winding White’s Creek inland from Grays Beach through a marsh and crossed Route 6A near Weir Road where the creek goes under the road.

“This does happen, especially with the younger ones,” said Sharpe. He and a veterinarian from IFAW responded to the pizza shop’s parking lot where the 3-foot-long, 40-pound seal had been placed into a box, then transferred to a pet crate by passerby who were concerned the animal would cross Route 6A again and get hit by a vehicle.

Although they were well-intentioned, Sharpe cautioned the public against approaching or handling marine mammals. The National Marine Fisheries Service guidelines ask people to remain at least 150 feet from seals.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

 

The Oyster Bed Partners with Gulf Seafood Foundation on Donation Program

November 27, 2017 — Two brothers in Louisiana are giving a whole new meaning to the term “Surf and Turf.” A new product launched by their company, The Oyster Bed, will not only benefit steak lovers at the dinner table, but also oystermen across the Gulf who have suffered through the two devastating hurricanes.

With the launch of a new steak plate able to withstand extreme thermal shock called “The Steak Bed,” Tommy and Adam Waller are teaming with the Gulf Seafood Foundation to assist oystermen across the Gulf devastated by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

“In the wake of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, hundreds of us reserve Marines were mobilized to help the citizens of Florida and Louisiana,” said Tommy Waller, a Marine Major Reservist and the outgoing Executive Officer at 3d Force Reconnaissance Company. “As recent oyster seasons opened across the Gulf, a large number of oyster fishermen are still struggling to recover from the damage they sustained during the storms. We felt it imperative to find a way to help.”

Read the full story at the Gulf Seafood Foundation

 

Fish fleet film earns thumbs-up

November 22, 2017 — ROCKPORT, Mass. — John Friedrich drove down here from Amesbury on Saturday afternoon for the sole purpose of attending the premiere of the fishing documentary “Dead in the Water” at the Rockport High School auditorium.

Friedrich had read a story in the Newburyport Daily News about the documentary that chronicles the demise and unceasing challenges faced by the once-mighty Gloucester groundfish fleet and thought it was something he should see, to gauge for himself the true extent of the problem.

“I thought the film was very well done,” he said of the 15th documentary from veteran filmmaker and Rockport native David Wittkower. “But it was also very disturbing, just emotionally disturbing. It’s such a tragedy. The problem is so much more huge than I imagined.”

If Wittkower and producers Angela Sanfilippo and John Bell were looking for a template for the response they sought from Saturday’s packed house, that was it.

From the day he first envisioned the film in 2013, the mantra that has driven Wittkower has been to spread the story of Gloucester’s fishing crisis beyond the rocky shores of Cape Ann, to bring to the rest of America the tale of a disappearing American legacy and one of its first industries.

The showing on Saturday drew almost 300, most of them from Cape Ann and most with at least a nominal sense of the regulatory, environmental and market pressures faced by America’s oldest commercial fishing fleet.

Read the full story from the Gloucester Times at the Salem News