Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Boston Seafood Festival takes over the historic Fish Pier this Sunday

September 10, 2023 — In a momentous celebration of Boston’s rich seafood heritage, the iconic Fish Pier in the Seaport will close to the public on Sunday, Sept. 10, to be used exclusively for the annual Boston Seafood Festival.

According to Chris Basile, president of the Boston Fisheries Foundation and founder/CEO of Seawitch Inc., the festival is a year-round labor of love. There will be food vendors, kid activities, an oyster shucking contest, fish cutting demonstrations and more.

“It’s to celebrate the seafood industry in Boston,” said Basile on Boston Public Radio. “As you know, Boston is the hub of the universe when it comes to seafood. More fish is shipped in and out of Boston than almost anywhere.”

One of the key players helping to keep Boston’s seafood industry alive — and located right on the pier — is Denarius Trading Co., founded by Paul Vincent Hagan III.

Read the full article at WGBH

MASSACHUSETTS: New legislation aims to bolster the blue economy. Here’s how it will impact New Bedford.

February 21, 2023 — Coastal lawmakers presented several pieces of legislation Thursday that would advance Massachusetts’ marine industries while also focusing on wildlife conservation and habitat protection.

The state’s blue economy entails a wide spectrum of jobs from fishermen to tech workers. It’s currently valued at $8.2 billion, according to lawmakers, and between 2009 and 2019, Massachusetts’ blue economy grew by 38%.

The legislation was introduced with the support of the New England Aquarium in Boston, indicating a slightly new and involved role in state policy for the 54-year-old institution.

“Right now, the commonwealth is at a pivotal moment where the blue economy is projected to grow even further,” said Vikki Spruill, president and CEO of the Aquarium, at a press conference to unveil the legislative package. “But the growing industrialization of the ocean combined with the warming waters in the Gulf of Maine is threatening, and in some cases causing significant changes, to our coastal ecosystems.”

Read the full article at South Coast Today

2023 Boston Seafood Show Exhibit Hall Space Currently 25% Bigger Than Last Year

February 3, 2023 — Seafood Expo North America, also known as the Boston Seafood Show, may be nearing a return to pre-pandemic times.

Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, and the subsequent cancellation of the event in 2020 and 2021, the Boston Seafood Show had attracted more than 22,000 seafood industry professionals from around the world. While the event finally made its return last year, it was a different experience than previous years. Some companies chose to attend but not exhibit, others cut down on full culinary and demo booths, and some, who were still under strict travel restrictions, decided not to attend at all. Less than two weeks out from the show, event organizers Diversified Communications reported that they were at 70% of the size of the 2019 event with 830 exhibiting companies in over 180,0000 sf of exhibit space.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

MASSACHUSETTS: Gordon Carr selected as the New Bedford Port Authority’s new executive director

August 26, 2022 — Gordon Carr, current deputy director of Real Estate Strategy and Policy at the Massachusetts Port Authority, has been selected as the next executive director of the New Bedford Port Authority.

Carr has more than 25 years of experience in the public and private sectors in the areas of public policy, economic development, and enterprise strategy, including on projects related to the city, according to a press release. As an independent consultant in 2014-15, Carr conducted a comprehensive assessment of both the New Bedford Economic Development Council and the City’s Harbor Development Commission, which has guided the strategy of both organizations in the years since.

At Massport, Carr has worked in a variety of capacities and leadership roles, each of which closely involved and supported the diverse operations of the Port of Boston. Importantly, he served as the primary lead on a range of topics advocating for the working port, maritime industrial/seafood interests, and freight networks, including leading an in-depth study and analysis of the future of the seafood cluster in Boston.

Read the full article at South Coast Today

MASSACHUSETTS: 2022 Boston Seafood Festival: Monkfish, local seafood and how Tommy Lee Jones came up

August 10, 2022 –It was a banner day at the Boston Seafood Festival Sunday.

I suspect the sultry 95-degree temperatures kept some of the crowds at bay, which was nice because while the event, sponsored by the Boston Fisheries Foundation, was well attended it wasn’t a swirling mass of humanity.

Vendors were set up in a long, large horseshoe anchored by the Harpoon beer garden at the water end of the pier. There was also a small stage and a handful of performers while we were there, activities for kids, cooking demonstrations, and thankfully free, cold water everywhere. It was a happy, if not sweaty, crowd.

And there was plenty of both food and information. The event was equal parts education and ingestion. NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, The New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center, the Seafood Nutrition Partnership, and several other organizations were all namely there for two reasons. One was to remind people that eating local isn’t just about vegetables and craft beer, it extends to seafood as well and two, to be mindful of the preservation of that seafood.

I briefly chatted recipes with a guy from NOAA, when I picked up a recipe card for monkfish. Monkfish is just one of those, frankly frightening-looking fish I’ve yet to try but according to NOAA, it’s a good option.

Wild-caught monkfish are sustainably managed and responsibly harvested according to NOAA. It’s also a good source of protein and rich in other nutrients — just don’t Google a photo of it

Read the full article at WickedLocal.com

MASSACHUSETTS: Boston Seafood Festival Returns this Sunday

August 4, 2022 — The following was released by the Boston Seafood Festival

 

Event:                          Boston Seafood Festival

Date:                            Sunday, August 7, 2022 from 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Location:                     Boston’s Fish Pier, Boston MA 02210

About:   The 9th Annual Boston Seafood Festival will open its gates to thousands of visitors to enjoy culinary demonstrations, learn about the fishing industry, and enjoy seafood from some of the region’s best restaurants. Hosted on the historic Boston Fish Pier, the event occurs in the heart of the New England fishing industry.

 

Website:                                                         www.bostonseafoodfestival.org

 

Tickets:  Tickets remain available for purchase at bostonseafoodfestival.org, or at the event gate on Sunday. General admission tickets are $20 for adults, $7 for children aged six through 12, and free for children aged five and under.

 

Beneficiary:                 A portion of all proceeds support the Boston Fisheries Foundation, a non-profit organization created to preserve, sustain, and share the region’s seafood and maritime heritage.

 

Social Media:              Find event updates on the Boston Seafood Festival Facebook page, @BostonSeaFest on Twitter, or join the conversation by using #BostonSeaFest.

           

 

About the Boston Fisheries Foundation:

The Boston Fisheries Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization created to preserve, sustain, and share the region’s seafood and maritime heritage, and the regional economy it supports. The BFF works to protect our oceans and fisheries while promoting Boston’s historic Fish Pier. The BFF created the Boston Seafood Festival to celebrate Boston’s rich fishing history, its bustling economic impact, and its bright, sustainable future.

 

Schedule of Events            Boston Seafood Festival, Sunday, August 4, 2019

11:00 a.m. Festival Begins (Beer Garden, Lobster Bake Tent, Kids Activities begin) Opening Gate
11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Music by Acoustic Aaron Lobster Bake Tent

 
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Music by Rocking Rose Mid-Per Riser
11:45 a.m. – 4:45 p.m. Chef Demonstrations Throughout Pier

 
12:30 p.m. – 12:50 p.m. Welcome Remarks and Seafood

Hall of Fame Inductions (Lisa

Weiland, J.J. Bartlett, Ray Flynn)

 Main Stage
12:50 p.m. – 1:20 p.m. Inclusive Unity Blessing Main Stage
 

1:15 p.m.

 Showing of Dead in the Water The Exchange Center
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Lion and Tiger Dancers Throughout Pier
1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Fish Cutting Demonstrations Mid-Pier Riser
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Roving Pirates Throughout Pier
2:45 p.m. – 5:40 p.m. Music from Hipshot Band Set 1 Main Stage
3:00 p.m. Battle of the Shuckers Oyster Shucking Competition Mid-Pier Riser
3:00 p.m. Showing of Fish & Men The Exchange Center
4:30 p.m. Showing of A Fish Story The Exchange Center
6:00 p.m. Festival Ends

 

New England waters are teeming with fish species. The problem is we eat too few of them.

June 22, 2022 — Jared Auerbach stands with a box of monkfish livers at his feet. They are pale pink and streaked with blood, each one packed in plastic and nestled on ice.

Behind him on the processing floor at the Boston Fish Pier, an ice machine releases an avalanche of cubes at two-minute intervals. Dozens of gloved and aproned workers mill about, offloading, packing, and filleting. They work with the usual suspects: blue mesh bags of oysters, live scallops, and lobsters with banded claws in plastic crates.

But plenty of other local species fill the floor. There’s the monkfish, of course, plus a box of conch. There are halibut bellies and skate wings and whole black sea bass.

“On our busiest day, we unloaded 376 different boats,” says Auerbach, who founded fish distributor Red’s Best in 2008 to connect fishermen with wholesalers and retailers. He deals that catch around the world — to buyers as close as the Boston Public Market and as far as South Korea.

The shellfish stand a good chance of staying within New England, he says, finding a home at a local restaurant or fish market. But the finfish may still have a long journey ahead of them.

Read the full story at The Boston Globe

Boston Highlights: What to see at SENA

March 11, 2022 — The seafood industry is on the move, converging in Boston this weekend for Seafood Expo North America. The event, located at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, runs from Sunday to Tuesday, March 13-15.

This international seafood event is a don’t-miss for our domestic seafood industry. If you are planning to attend, be sure to check out some of these must-see new products and conference sessions — including National Fisherman’s booth #167!

After a two-year hiatus, the industry is primed for this rush of productive in-person meetings, in-depth discussions, big announcements, and of course, a range of fun bonus events at and around the show. These are my picks for things to see and do at the show — whether you have the luxury of being there for one day or all three days.

For fishermen, the Processing section of the show floor — Seafood Processing North America — is a great spot to shop a wide range of fishing gear (boots, gloves, foul-weather gear, knives), as well as packaging options and a full range of machinery and technology for onboard handling and processing.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Mass. Seafood Collaborative calls for sanctions on Russian fish imports

March 8, 2022 — The Boston-based Massachusetts Seafood Collaborative, which has several Gloucester members, is calling for sanctions to take a bite out of Russian fish imports because of the war in Ukraine.

The collaborative, which counts the Gloucester Fishermen’s Wives Association as a member, said that in 2021, the U.S. imported $4 billion worth of Russian fish for processing, leading directly to jobs and paychecks for Massachusetts residents.

“Though Russia blocks imports of American fish,” the collaborative said, “our commitment to free trade and open markets allowed this one-sided relationship to bear fruit. The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has forced our industry — and our nation — to decide between our ideals and our wallets.”

The collaborative called on elected officials to immediately sanction Russian fish exports into the U.S.

It was unclear what this would mean for Gloucester.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Times

Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America drops mask mandate

March 3, 2022 — Diversified Communications, the organizer of the 2022 Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America, will no longer require attendees to the wearing of masks to protect against the spread of COVID-19.

The city of Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. – the host venue for the expo – will drop its indoor mask mandate beginning Saturday, 5 March, though masks will still be required on public transportation and in health care settings. Seafood Expo North America is scheduled to take place Sunday, 13 March through Tuesday, 15 March, 2022 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource