May 26, 2026 — Surging food costs and fuel prices are pummeling Maine’s struggling groundfishing industry. But a pandemic-era program is helping to keep it afloat as inflation worsens, while also aiming to create a new generation of seafood lovers.
Fishermen Feeding Mainers began in late 2020 and raises money to buy locally caught fish, process it and donate the frozen fillets to schools and food banks in Maine. So far, it has spent more than $4 million on the purchasing and processing of about 1.3 million pounds of locally caught fish.
“Before this [program], chances were you could get down to some really scary-low prices,” said Boothbay fisherman Devyn Campbell of the amount he could earn for his catch.
That’s in part because the market for local fish dried up early in the COVID-19 pandemic when restaurants closed to in-person dining. “COVID destroyed all fish prices,” Campbell said.