Saving Seafood

Wolfgang Puck and Thomas Keller warn that restaurants across America are on the brink of collapse

March 26, 2020 — This week, world-famous chefs Wolfgang Puck and Thomas Keller joined Tucker Carlson on Tucker Carlson Tonight to describe the difficulties faced by restaurants, their problems related to business interruption insurance, and keeping their teams together for when restaurants re-open. Chef Keller specifically mentioned concern for fishermen and farmers. Both chefs reminded viewers that restaurants are the largest private sector employers in the nation.

Watch the video here

Economic forecasts indicate that restaurants and the foodservice industry could sustain $225 billion in losses and eliminate 5-7 million jobs over the next three months.

We are well aware that two-thirds of domestic seafood landed goes to restaurants, and the seafood community is concerned about the health of the restaurant industry. We encourage seafood industry members who want to support restaurants to use the tools made available by the National Restaurant Association to urge the President and Congress to support the association recovery plan.

Stimulus includes $300 million for fisheries and aquaculture

March 26, 2020 — A $300 million earmark in the Senate’s $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill passed late Wednesday, March 25, is slated for fisheries and aquaculture. It’s aimed at supporting independent operators who are not otherwise covered by agricultural disaster assistance programs.

The Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (or CARES) Act late Wednesday, March 25. It returns to the House of Representatives for a vote on Thursday, March 26. The bill is designed to stimulate the economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has led to widespread shutdowns intended to slow the spread of the virus.

The National Coalition for Fishing Communities made a statement thanking the industry for uniting in requesting help from federal legislators and also Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) for their quick action in speaking on behalf of the industry in a letter to Senate leaders.

“The speed with which the domestic seafood industry has come together to speak with one voice is unprecedented,” said Bob Vanasse, executive director of Saving Seafood, which organized the coalition. “There are many differences in our nation’s fisheries — geography, species, gear types and management — but today our fisheries are simultaneously diverse and unified. We look forward to working together across traditional industry lines, and with elected officials and administrators, to ensure the aid the federal government is providing will flow fairly and equitably across regions and fisheries.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Coronavirus NJ: Fishing coalition seeks $4B in federal aid to cover lost restaurant sales

March 26, 2020 — Commercial fishing industry members say they’re trying to stay afloat while the demand for fish dwindles as restaurants are reduced to take-out only amidst the coronavirus health crisis.

Saving Seafood, a national coalition of seafood harvesters that includes New Jersey members, is now turning to the federal government for $4 billion in financial help.

“We have to manage our expectations right now. This is a national issue and it’s not going to be solved in a day or two,” said Greg DiDomenico, executive director of the Garden State Seafood Association, a commercial trades group that’s also a part of the Saving Seafood national coalition.

The coalition reports that more than two-thirds of the $102.2 billion that consumers paid for U.S. fishery products in 2017 was spent at food service establishments, as opposed to home consumption.

Read the full story at the Asbury Park Press

NCFC Thanks Senate for Support of American Businesses and Employees, and for $300 Million in Specific Fisheries Assistance

WASHINGTON – March 25, 2020 – The compromise COVID-19 stimulus package, negotiated by the U.S. Senate Republican and Democratic leadership with the White House and passed tonight by the Senate in a 96-0 vote, includes a number of provisions that will aid small business, and provides $300 million in assistance specifically for U.S. fisheries. This assistance will help fishermen around the country struggling due to shrinking demand and disappearing markets caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Tribal, subsistence, commercial, and charter fishermen, as well as aquaculture farmers, are all eligible for the disaster assistance.

This assistance is vitally needed. In 2017, more than two-thirds of the $102.2 billion spent on fishery products in the U.S. was spent at food service establishments, with less than one-third sold in retail outlets for home consumption. Thus, domestic commercial fisheries have been hit especially hard by the closures in the nation’s restaurant and hospitality industry.

Yesterday, members of Saving Seafood’s National Coalition for Fishing Communities (NCFC) and fishing harvesters and processors from around the country made their needs known in letters to the White House and Congress. These needs include the designation of essential employee status for fishermen and processor staff, the promotion of American seafood, and direct and indirect financial relief, among many other suggestions.

“The speed with which the domestic seafood industry has come together to speak with one voice is unprecedented,” said Bob Vanasse, Saving Seafood’s Executive Director. “There are many differences in our nation’s fisheries – geography, species, gear types and management – but today our fisheries are simultaneously diverse and unified. We look forward to working together across traditional industry lines, and with elected officials and administrators, to ensure the aid the Federal Government is providing will flow fairly and equitably across regions and fisheries.”

The NCFC is especially grateful to Senators Ed Markey (D-MA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and their staffs, who previously wrote to Senate leadership calling for urgent support for the U.S. fishing industry. The NCFC would also like to thank Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Murkowski, Sullivan, and Susan Collins (R-ME) for their work on the language included in the bill.

Additionally, the NCFC commends the work of Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Vice Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and coastal members of the committee, including Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Collins, Murkowski, Jack Reed (D-RI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Christopher Coons (D-DE), Brian Schatz (D-HI), John Kennedy (R-LA), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).

As this legislation moves to the House, NCFC members are encouraged to contact their representatives to support this fisheries assistance and thank their Senators who voted for its passage.

The specific language in the Senate bill passed today is:

ASSISTANCE TO FISHERY PARTICIPANTS
SEC. 12005.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce is authorized to provide assistance to Tribal, subsistence, commercial, and charter fishery participants affected by the novel coronavirus (COVID–19), which may include direct relief payments.
(b) FISHERY PARTICIPANTS.—For the purposes of this section, ‘‘fishery participants’’ include Tribes, persons, fishing communities, aquaculture businesses not otherwise eligible for assistance under part 1416 of title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations for losses related to COVID–19, processors, or other fishery-related businesses, who have incurred, as a direct or indirect result of the coronavirus pandemic—
(1) economic revenue losses greater than 35 percent as compared to the prior 5-year average revenue; or
(2) any negative impacts to subsistence, cultural, or ceremonial fisheries.
(c) ROLLING BASIS.—Funds may be awarded under this section on a rolling basis, and within a fishing season, to ensure rapid delivery of funds during the COVID–19 pandemic.
(d) APPROPRIATIONS.—In addition to funds that are otherwise made available to assist fishery participants under this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated, and there are appropriated, $300,000,000, to remain available until September 30, 2021, to carry out this section, of which up to 2 percent may be used for administration and oversight activities.
(e) EMERGENCY REQUIREMENT.—The amount provided by this section is designated by the Congress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985.

Senators: Without aid, fisheries may sink at dock

March 25, 2020 — Massachusetts Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey are urging the U.S. Senate leadership to include the commercial fishing and seafood industries in any economic relief packages passed by Congress or face potential bankruptcy at the docks.

Warren and Markey, working with Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, wrote in a letter to the Senate leadership that the spreading novel coronavirus has robbed fishermen of their most dependable markets and left all quadrants of the seafood industry struggling to keep businesses afloat.

“Some fisheries are completely shut down because there is no market for their fish,” the senators said in their letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. “Seafood processors are struggling because closed restaurants are no longer buying fresh products.”

“Large export markets in virus-affected countries like China have also been disrupted. Additionally, many fishermen are not eligible for unemployment benefits because they are self-employed,” the senators said.

The letter traces the dire economic chain reaction the spreading virus has foisted on the fishing and seafood industries, from harvesters and processors to retailers and wholesalers.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Buy Local Fish

March 25, 2020 — Local and domestic sources of wild American seafood shipped to you or available locally for pick-up. The top listing is all domestic seafood suppliers who will ship anywhere in the country. Below that, find listings for all local suppliers by state. Both are listed in alphabetical order.

Don’t see your company? Submit your info here.

Find more community supported fisheries and local direct marketers at Local Catch.

*All suppliers are listed based on information submitted by the suppliers themselves and have not been endorsed, verified or vetted by National Fisherman.

SHIPPED TO YOU

Atlantic Sea Farms
Saco, ME

Fresh-frozen and fermented Maine kelp
Delivering to the Continental U.S.
Food Service and Retail available!

Contact: Jesse Baines
(207) 807-9185
jbaines@atlanticseafarms.com
atlanticseafarms.com
89 Industrial Park Road, Saco, Maine 04072

Product List:
Ready-Cut Kelp
Kelp Cubes
Fermented Seaweed Salad
Sea-Chi
Sea-Beet Kraut

Bristol Bay Wild
Sitka, AK

Bristol Bay sockeye

Delivered anywhere, click for local deliveries and pick-ups

Contact: Lilani Estacio
lilani@bbrsda.com
(907) 677-2371
P.O. Box 6386
Sitka, AK 99835
find.bristolbaysockeye.org

Read the full story at National Fisherman

NOAA Fisheries Issues Emergency Action to Waive Observer Coverage on a Case-by-Case Basis

March 25, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Today, in response to the spread of COVID-19, NOAA Fisheries issued an emergency action to provide the authority, on a case-by-case basis, to waive observer coverage, some training, and other program requirements while meeting conservation needs and providing an ongoing supply of fish to markets. We are taking this emergency action to protect public health and to ensure the safety of fishermen, observers, and others.

Under this emergency action, a NOAA Fisheries Regional Administrator, Office Director, or Science Center Director has the ability to waive observer requirements in three specific circumstances, after consulting with observer providers. The three circumstances are:

  • The providers do not have sufficient observers to staff a fleet or a port or a vessel (i.e., the observers are under quarantine).
  • The providers cannot physically get observers to fishing vessel departure points – perhaps because of travel restrictions, or shelter in place guidance, etc.
  • The providers do not have enough trained observers because we could not offer training due to building access restrictions, meeting guidance, etc.

If observer requirements are waived, the agency will monitor fishing effort and catch data and other relevant information to ensure that there are no significant adverse environmental consequences and consider alternative fishery management measures should such consequences arise.

We will continue to fulfill our mission, maintaining our nation’s seafood supply and protecting marine life, while ensuring the health and safety of our employees, partners, and broader fishing community during this crisis.

Read the full release here

The best places to buy fresh seafood online in 2020

March 25, 2020 — With much of the country practicing some form of social distancing and attempting to keeping indoors whenever possible, delivery services have become all that more useful. From booze to groceries, butcher meats and even fully-prepared meals , these services are providing a level of safety the public, especially for those at high risk of becoming sick. The following is our pre-COVID-19 list of the best seafood delivery services in 2020 to keep a steady flow of healthy fish coming, even in these unnerving times. Be sure to check that the services listed are accepting new customers and deliver to your area.

There are lots of reasons to buy more seafood. Generally speaking, fish and seafood (wild caught in particular) are healthier both for our bodies and the planet than beef, chicken, pork and other meats (all now largely factory-farmed, often using growth hormones and other dubious practices). But for every reason to eat more fish and seafood, there seems to be an obstacle in the way — cost and access to name a few.

It might sound counterintuitive to order seafood online but a bevy of new members of the online seafood industry are proving that fish and seafood delivery might just be the best way to get fresh and affordable seafood into your home, especially when living far from fished waters. “Fresh seafood delivery” is not an oxymoron. A reliable seafood market (or seafood restaurant) with a consistently fresh bounty of salmon, halibut, crab and other shellfish is a treasure, to be certain, but not every town or neighborhood has one, and if you live far from the ocean things get even dicier.

This score of online ordering seafood delivery companies offer everything from high-quality salmon, jumbo shrimp, gulf shrimp, clams (and clam chowder), oysters, cape porpoise lobster and crab legs to harder-to-find fish species like monkfish and grouper, all flash-frozen, expertly packaged and delivered right to your door as a one-time order or recurring subscription. The new players are finding innovative ways to ensure maximum freshness and accountability and supporting sustainable seafood, with many now providing detailed records about exactly where the fish and seafood came from, when it was caught, how far it traveled and what sorts of fishing practices have been employed.

Read the full story at CNET

Fishers, brewers, distillers: What aid do they need to survive Covid-19?

March 25, 2020 — As the spread of the novel coronavirus disrupts business as usual across the country, food producers of all kinds are turning to the government for the help they say they need to stay afloat through the pandemic. From fishermen to produce growers to brewers, companies and organizations are lining up for federal aid as policymakers argue about the coming stimulus for small businesses.

In the fish sector, the closure of scores of restaurants and the destabilization of exports to China has forced the seafood supply chain to adapt to primarily servicing retail stores where possible. Yet even if some fishermen are able to shift to retail, the existing disruptions could be ruinous to many independent producers.

Take the Maine fishermen who catch elver eel. Roughly 1,000 fishermen in the state catch the baby eels and mostly send them to China, to the tune of about $20 million in revenue each year. Yet now they must wait at least two additional weeks to begin harvesting due to officials’ concerns about the spread of coronavirus. State policymakers say the nature of the fishing operations “makes it impossible to follow social distancing recommendations, including maintaining six feet from other people to reduce the spread of this disease,” according to Patrick Keliher, commissioner of Maine Department of Marine Resources.

Read the full story at Fern’s AG Insider