Saving Seafood

Here’s why seafood prices are soaring this summer

August 6, 2021 — After experiencing broad declines last year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the fishing and seafood sectors are still floundering due to the effects of supply chain issues, worker shortages and renewed consumer demand.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Fisheries wrote at the beginning of the year that coronavirus contributed to an “almost immediate” impact on seafood sector sales including lost sales at most aquaculture, aquaponics, and allied businesses and charter fishing operations.

Now, chefs and restaurant owners are speaking out on why pandemic woes have led to higher prices for their customers.

According to SeafoodSource, premium items are being taken off menus across the country because the delicacies are too hard or expensive to source.

Read the full story at Fox News

Scottish fisheries leaders ask Boris Johnson for help with Brexit woes

August 6, 2021 — At an in-person meeting in Fraserburgh, Scotland, on 5 August, Scottish fisheries leaders urged United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson to help them build back the industry after the Brexit deal.

Scottish Seafood Association Chief Executive Jimmy Buchan told Johnson Brexit and COVID-19 have combined to create a “perilous situation” for companies, with production and export capacity severely reduced, especially due to a related labor shortage.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Labor shortage, masking and vaccine mandates imperiling US restaurant recovery

August 5, 2021 — New COVID-19-related vaccination and masking requirements at restaurants in some U.S. cities are raising concerns among restaurant groups and in the seafood industry.

New York City and San Francisco are now requiring citizens to wear masks indoors – including at restaurants – due to a rapid increase in COVID-19 cases, primarily sourced to the more virulent delta variant of the coronavirus. Customers at New York City restaurants and bars will also be required to show proof of vaccination before dining indoors.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Seafood Prices Soar Amid Supply Chain Issues and Worker Shortage

August 5, 2021 — A post-Covid-19 economic inflationary surge has seafood places rewriting their menus—sans lobsters, scallops, crab and many fish dishes.

Prices have risen by as much as 50 percent in the last quarter due to a lack of fishers and truck drivers combined with climbing consumer demand, reports Christine Blank of SeafoodSource.com.

“The price we had to charge to be profitable was almost insulting,” Josue Pena, chef at The Iberian Pig in Atlanta, tells SeafoodSource.com. He was forced to remove the restaurant’s signature crab coquettes after crab prices nearly doubled.

Overall, the wholesale price of finfish and shellfish rose 18.8 percent from June 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, reports Will Feuer of the New York Post. Halibut soared from $16 a pound to $28, while blue crab skyrocketed from $18 to $44—an increase of more than 140 percent.

Per Bloomberg’s Adam Jackson and Kate Krader, the jump in seafood prices is part of broader inflationary increase working its way through the economy as the United States continues to emerge from the pandemic. However, the seafood surge is also related to an employment shortage, port congestion, lack of product, rising prices and transportation issues.

“Distributors used to hustle and bustle to get your business,” Jay Herrington of Fish On Fire in Orlando tells Bloomberg. “You don’t get a delivery, or it’s a late delivery. Sometimes we have to go and pick it up.”

Read the full story at Smithsonian Magazine

Governor Hogan announces $3.4M to help aid Maryland’s fishing industry

August 5, 2021 — Help will soon be on the way for Maryland’s fishing industry.

Wednesday Governor Larry Hogan announcing $3.4 million in available relief funding.

The funding is through the Federal Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.

Direct payments will be provided to commercial for hire, aquaculture, and seafood processing operations.

Speaking on the relief, Senator Mary Beth Carozza said quote: “Throughout this past year, I have heard from several commercial watermen, seafood processors, and aquaculture businesses about the financial challenges they have been up against during COVID-19. These funds will be used to strengthen fishery markets and are needed for a full economic recovery.”

The second round funding is targeted at individuals who have not received prior aid but have determined a loss of greater than 35% last year or expect a similar loss for 2021.

The online application will be available beginning Aug. 9 on the Maryland One-Stop website.

The deadline to apply is August 27, 2021.

Read the full story at WMDT

While demand for seafood is high, inflated costs are proving too pricey for some restaurants

August 4, 2021 — Rising inflation costs have walloped restaurateurs, forcing many to raise prices or scale back on offerings. For some restaurants, that’s meant pulling plates of scallops, crab, lobster, and fish as business owners say pandemic-driven price hikes and shortages have left them little room to make a profit. Bloomberg reports that congested ports and labor shortages have caused big delays and higher seafood prices.

On average, U.S. fishermen are older than 40, and Covid-related disruptions caused many to leave the industry for fields like construction. Seafood prices have risen 11 percent since July 2020, while demand has skyrocketed. One Georgia restaurant owner said he paid an Atlanta seafood distributor $18 for a pound of blue crab before the pandemic; now it would cost him $44. Not an ideal catch.

Read the full story at The Counter

August 2021 MAFMC Meeting to be Conducted by Webinar Only, In-Person Option Cancelled

August 3, 2021 — The following was released by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council:

Due to the worsening situation with COVID-19 in Philadelphia and other areas of the country, Council leadership has made the difficult decision to cancel the in-person option for the upcoming Council Meeting to be held August 9-12, 2021. The meeting will be conducted by webinar only with the same format and procedures used for our recent virtual Council meetings.

Webinar connection instructions are provided below. Please see the August 2021 Council Meeting Page for additional information and briefing materials.

Webinar Details

Click here to join the meeting (If prompted, enter Meeting number: 1796121174 and Meeting password: WJpMjJQa249). To join by phone-only, dial 1-844-621-3956 and enter access code 1796121174.

For those who wish to listen but do not need to participate, a live stream of the meeting will also be available on our YouTube channel.

If you have webinar issues, please check the Webex Participant Guide to see if your question is addressed there. This page provides step-by-step instructions for joining a meeting from various devices. If you need further technical assistance, contact Stephen Pearson at spearson@mafmc.org or (302) 526-5256.

Questions?

Contact Mary Sabo, msabo@mafmc.org, (302) 518-1143.

LOUISIANA: $12.4M in COVID-19 relief funds coming from wildlife and fisheries

August 2, 2021 — The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) will soon begin accepting applications for $12.4 million in financial assistance that will be available to Louisiana fishermen and others in the industry who have been financially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications for these funds will open at 8 a.m. Aug. 9.

Applications can only be submitted online. To access the application, visit www.wlf.louisiana.gov/page/cares-act-assistance.

The application process will be open for a three-week period, according to LDWF. The deadline to submit applications is 11:59 p.m. Aug. Funding allocation has been structured so that all applications submitted before the deadline will be considered. The funds, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CARES 2.0), will be distributed as direct aid payments by the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to those applicants who qualify.

“These federal funds are another step in alleviating some of the financial impacts of the pandemic on our state,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards. “While we know these funds are not a cure-all, we are grateful for the relief they will provide to our hardworking fishing community.”

LDWF Secretary Jack Montoucet agreed with Edwards. “This is more crucial aid for our fishing community. While it will not totally bail out all of those hard workers, it does provide much-needed financial help to them.”

Read the full story at KTBS