Saving Seafood

Keith Decker to lead American Aquafarms

October 28, 2021 — American Aquafarms, a Maine-based aquaculture company with plans for ocean-based salmon operations, a hatchery, fish farm and processing plant, announced Wednesday that 30-year industry veteran Keith Decker will join the company as chief executive officer.

Decker has extensive experience in seafood production and processing, with particular experience guiding and directing fast-paced organizations through substantial change and development. He is currently CEO of Blue Harvest Fisheries, which he joined in 2018 as the firm moved from start-up to growth phase.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

 

MASSACHUSETTS: Investigation continues into fisherman who went overboard on New Bedford scalloper

August 24, 2021 — Blue Harvest Fisheries CEO Keith Decker told the Standard-Times last week that crew members met with Coast Guard officials when they returned to port on Tuesday. He said they were waiting for the investigation to determine what happened.

There were seven crew members on the vessel, including the captain and the man who went overboard. Decker said the man was a first-time crew member with Blue Harvest who had never fished with them before. However, he had heard the man was an experienced fisher.

The man was woken because he had the next watch, but never showed up, according to the Coast Guard. The agency said the man was not wearing a life jacket, which is only required under federal law for children under 13 years of age while the vessel is underway.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

Quinn Fisheries, Blue Harvest sue Rafael trustee for blocking vessel sale, lawsuit says

April 28, 2021 — Quinn Fisheries and Blue Harvest Fisheries filed a lawsuit last week against Carlos Rafael’s trustee and three arbitrators, alleging they are blocking a multimillion-dollar transaction of vessels and permits that was scheduled to happen April 16.

The permits are for scallops and multi-species fish. The fishing seasons have already started or will soon start and because the transaction cannot be finalized, Quinn Fisheries and Blue Harvest state they will experience serious and irreparable financial harm.

According to the 19-page complaint, Quinn Fisheries planned to transfer certain vessels and permits to Blue Harvest, and then purchase vessels and permits from Blue Harvest.

The companies state the transaction will not “significantly dilute or otherwise jeopardize” the Rafael trust. The trust was established in 2019 to hold certain assets that, if not for a settlement agreement, would be held by Rafael, according to a document.

Rafael was convicted in 2017 for conspiracy and falsifying federal records, but was recently released from prison. As part of his settlement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), he was required to leave the fishing industry and sell his commercial fleet and permits.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

MASSACHUSETTS: COVID-19 federal relief funds for SouthCoast fisheries topped $5 million

February 11, 2021 — Keith Decker, CEO of Blue Harvest Fisheries, said federal relief funds made a “big difference” in minimizing the impact of the pandemic. The company received just over $510,000 last year for its processing facility and four of its fishing vessels, according to state records.

Decker said they used the funds for production line modifications to allow for social distancing and improved worker safety. The company also adopted a temporary wage increase for “hazard pay” for workers who were able to continue working during the height of the pandemic, he said.

SouthCoast commercial fishermen, charter boat owners, aquaculture farmers and processors like Blue Harvest received about 18.5%, or $5.1 million, of federal funds allocated to Massachusetts last year for economic relief for fisheries.

The 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, known more commonly as the CARES Act, authorized over $2 trillion in relief to individuals, businesses, hospitals, loan programs and other recipients to help ameliorate the economic impacts of COVID-19.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

MASSACHUSETTS: Blue Harvest Relaunches Blue Water, Company’s Latest Upgraded Vessel

December 2, 2020 — The following was released by Blue Harvest Fisheries:

Blue Harvest Fisheries has relaunched the Blue Water, the latest vessel in the company’s fleet to undergo extensive refurbishment and restoration. Another significant investment in the company’s future, Blue Water now features many state-of-the-art improvements that set the standard for safe, sustainable fishing.

As one of eight scalloping vessels purchased from the Peabody Corporation in 2015, Blue Water has undergone two years of extensive upgrades to improve efficiency and safety. Blue Water rejoins Blue Harvest’s fleet of 15 scallop vessels, which fish out of Fairhaven, Massachusetts, and Newport News, Virginia.

“Over the last year we’ve made major investments in the long-term future of our company and the fisheries we work in,” said Keith Decker, President and CEO of Blue Harvest. “Blue Water is just one more example of these investments, which will help make Blue Harvest a leader in the scallop fishery for years to come.”

The restoration process included updating the vessel’s electronics, generators and hydraulic systems, as well as rebuilding two 400 horsepower engines. These upgrades allow Blue Water to operate far more efficiently than older vessels, lowering operating costs and reducing the vessel’s overall carbon footprint. The upgrades also include significant safety improvements, and the vessel’s interior was completely refitted to include quieter, more spacious rooms for the crews, to improve the workplace experience.

Read the full release here

Massachusetts lawmakers press Perdue for more Section 32 Atlantic seafood purchases

October 23, 2020 — A group of Massachusetts lawmakers in Washington wrote to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue on Wednesday, 21 October, to say they were thankful the Department of Agriculture has included Atlantic seafood in its purchases for public food programs. Now, they want to see more of it.

Since announcing a USD 20 million (EUR 16.9 million) Section 32 program solicitation for Atlantic pollock, haddock, and redfish in May, the USDA has made just once purchase agreement from that opportunity, and that came last month when the department purchased USD 4.4 million (EUR 3. million) worth of groundfish from New Bedford, Massachusetts-based Blue Harvest Fisheries.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Blue Harvest to supply $4.4 million in seafood for schools, food banks

September 25, 2020 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture is buying more than $4.4 million in Northeast groundfish from Blue Harvest Fisheries, which will process the products for distribution to schools and food banks across the country.

The $4,425,480 purchase award from the USDA Commodity Procurement Program to will buy haddock, ocean perch and Atlantic pollock, with deliveries from the Blue Harvest facility in New Bedford, Mass., to begin Oct. 1 through Dec. 31.

It’s the first time in decades that East Coast seafood has been included in the commodities program, which buys farm products for distribution to institutions, nonprofit groups and needy households.

“Given the uncertainties surrounding the seafood market during the ongoing pandemic, this order will help ensure that the groundfish industry at the New Bedford waterfront can continue working, while providing food security for those who need it most,” Blue Harvest CEO Keith Decker said in a prepared statement announcing the purchase.

Company officials credited the Trump administration and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue for bringing East Coast fisheries in the program. They thanked members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, Sens. Edward Markey and Elizabeth Warren and Reps. William Keating and Seth Moulton, all D-Mass., who in May asked Perdue to include East Coast seafood when making purchase agreements funded by the special Coronavirus Food Assistance Program and the USDA’s longstanding Section 32 program.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Blue Harvest Fisheries scores $4.4 million groundfish contract from US government

September 23, 2020 — Blue Harvest Fisheries has been granted a $4.4 million (€5.9 million) award from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to supply a total of 115,200 cases of frozen haddock, ocean perch and Atlantic pollock to child nutrition and other related food assistance programs around the United States.

Deliveries will start on Oct. 1 and run through Dec. 31.

All of the fish utilized for the program will be harvested by American-flagged vessels from Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified fisheries in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank, according to the company.

The products will be processed at Blue Harvest’s facility in New Bedford, Massachusetts, before being distributed to recipients nationwide.

Read the full story at IntraFish

USDA Will Purchase $4.4 Million of Blue Harvest’s Sustainable, New Bedford Groundfish

September 22, 2020 — The following was released by Blue Harvest Fisheries:

Blue Harvest Fisheries is pleased to announce that it has been granted a $4,425,480 purchase award to supply local, sustainably harvested haddock, ocean perch and Atlantic pollock to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The purchase, part of the Department’s Commodity Procurement Program, will be used to distribute Blue Harvest’s all-natural, IQF groundfish  to schools, food banks, and households across the United States.

According to the USDA, the Commodity Procurement Program is “a vital component of our nation’s food safety net” that provides “wholesome, high quality products” to communities across the country.

Deliveries will start on October 1 and run through December 31. All of the fish utilized for this program will be harvested by American-flagged vessels from MSC-certified fisheries in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank. They’ll be processed at Blue Harvest’s dock-side facility in New Bedford, Massachusetts before being distributed to recipients nationwide.

“We are delighted that the USDA has selected Blue Harvest to bring high-quality seafood to deserving Americans across the country,” said Keith Decker, CEO of Blue Harvest. “Given the uncertainties surrounding the seafood market during the ongoing pandemic, this order will help ensure that the groundfish industry at the New Bedford waterfront can continue working, while providing food security for those who need it most.”

Blue Harvest thanks Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, USDA staff, and the Trump Administration for expanding the Commodity Procurement Program to include East Coast seafood for the first time in decades.

The company is deeply grateful to Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Congressmen William Keating (D-MA-09) and Seth Moulton (D-MA-06) who first took the initiative on this issue. In May, they wrote to Secretary Perdue to ask that the USDA include East Coast seafood in purchasing agreements funded by the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) and the Section 32 program.

“I am pleased that the USDA is supporting fishermen by purchasing seafood from the Port of New Bedford, the nation’s top commercial fishing port, during a pandemic that has affected every sector of the economy,” said New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell. “I am grateful to Secretary Perdue for his support of the seafood industry, and to our congressional delegation for their advocacy on behalf of our port and our state’s commercial fishermen.”

The USDA Commodity Procurement Program has long been vital in supporting U.S. agriculture, as well as seafood producers in other parts of the country. We hope that the program’s expansion to include East Coast seafood is the start of a productive, long-term relationship with the USDA.

MASSACHUSETTS: Blue Harvest brings second former Carlos Rafael vessel online

August 31, 2020 — Blue Harvest Fisheries, based in New Bedford, Massachusetts, announced the launch of the Carrabassett, a vessel purchased in February from the family of Carlos Rafael, a.k.a the “Codfather.”

The Carrabassett is a 78-foot trawler that was previously known as the Cowboy, according to a release by Blue Harvest. It joins the Allagash – formerly the Southern Crusader II – which was launched in July. Blue Harvest added that it plans to launch the third vessel, the Schelvis – formerly known as the Glaucus – later this fall.

Read the full story at Seafood Source