October 25, 2019 — Imagine a vessel gliding through coastal waters, heading for Wanchese in Dare County. Upon arrival, the captain, mate and team at the fish house hustle to unload the day’s catch: baskets of blue crab.
North Carolina’s most harvested commercial species by pound, the blue crab will be sold in nearby seafood markets or trucked to farm-to-table restaurants in Raleigh or Charlotte. Other days, depending on market demands, it may be packed on ice, bound for New York, Boston or Washington, DC.
North Carolina’s commercial fishing industry is a complex economic puzzle with many pieces. In 2017, $97 million of wild-caught fish and shellfish were landed, over $16 million to Wanchese alone.
“These fisheries support local communities by providing important sources of employment, business income and food,” explains Jane Harrison, North Carolina Sea Grant’s coastal economist.
Harrison is leading a new research project to consider commercial fisheries’ impacts on state and local economies. The one-year study, which includes partners at three universities, is funded by the N.C. Commercial Fishing Resource Fund. The fund is jointly overseen by the Marine Fisheries Commission’s Commercial Resource Fund Committee and the Funding Committee for the N.C. Commercial Fishing Resource Fund.