Saving Seafood

Fishing industry leaders flag offshore wind concerns to Trump interior secretary

July 21, 2020 — Today, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt met with representatives of the commercial fishing industry to discuss their concerns with offshore wind at a roundtable organized by Saving Seafood’s National Coalition for Fishing Communities. The roundtable included representatives from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and North Carolina:

Members of New England’s commercial fishing industry who feel they’ve been cast aside in the rush toward offshore wind took their concerns straight to the top of the Trump administration Tuesday in a Seaport sit-down with Interior Secretary David Bernhardt.

“The fishing industry is not anti-wind. But the fishing industry’s not been part of this process from the beginning,” said Lund’s Fisheries Chairman Jeff Reichle. “Let’s do it the right way.”

Industry representatives voiced a raft of concerns with offshore wind, including the safety of commercial and recreational boaters navigating the waters, issues towing fishing nets through the farms and the potential for disrupting marine life.

Bernhardt said he’s not looking to “whack people with an unnecessary burden if we can avoid it” but noted he’s “very eager” to pursue offshore wind “in a way that works.”

Read the full story at the Boston Herald

WTAS: Re-opening of the Northeast Canyons, Marine National Monument to Commercial Fishing

June 5, 2020 — The following was released by The Office of Congressman Rob Bishop (R-UT):

Today, President Trump announced the re-opening of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument for commercial fishing. Below is what they are saying:

“American fishermen work hard to support their communities, provide food security to the nation, and protect the environments where they make their livelihoods. President Obama swept aside a public, science-based fishery management process with the stroke of a pen. That was a mistake. Ranking Member Bishop deserves thanks for his work in opposing that sort of misuse of the Antiquities Act. We applaud today’s presidential proclamation on the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Monument for restoring the open, collaborative, and science-based council management process that has made our fisheries a model for the world.” – Robert B. Vanasse, Executive Director, Saving Seafood

“We want to thank President Trump for recognizing the prior Administration’s actions pursuant to the Antiquities Act to unilaterally close nearly 5,000 square miles to commercial fishing operations were harmful to U.S. fishermen and their coastal communities and undermines our country’s seafood production.” Mr. Reichle added that “While everyone seems to agree our Nation’s fisheries management system achieves sustainability and our seafood production some of the safest and healthiest in the world — it is remarkable that anyone would prohibit access to large productive fishing areas with no scientific justification and the stroke of an executive pen. This President got it right and our industry appreciates the support.” – Jeff Reichle, Chairman, Lund’s Fisheries, Inc.

“Seafreeze extends our sincere thanks to President Trump for re-opening the Northeast Monument to our commercial fishing vessels. Our vessels have sustainably harvested product in the Monument area for over 30 years, and its closure meant a loss of millions of dollars a year to our company. We applaud President Trump’s decision to support our American commercial fishermen and the world’s most sustainable fisheries.” – Meghan Lapp, Fisheries Liaison, Seafreeze Ltd.

“Today, President Trump acknowledged the tremendous social and economic contributions our American Commercial Fishing Industry and the small businesses that support us provide to the American public. This Presidential support comes at a critical time for our Industry and the Nation as a whole. For this, Mr. President, we are grateful.” – Eric Reid, Rhode Island

Lund’s Fisheries Supports President Trump’s Order Promoting American Seafood

May 8, 2020 — The following was released by Lund’s Fisheries:

Jeff Reichle, Chairman of Lund’s Fisheries, Inc., issued the following statement on President Trump’s “Executive Order on Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth”:

Lund’s Fisheries has been in business since 1954; I myself have been with the company since 1974. This is the first time in my memory that a sitting President has taken the time and initiative to recognize the hard work and value of this country’s fishing industry and its importance in feeding Americans.

Fishermen are notoriously independent people, seldom looking for help, and most often overlooked by their government. It is refreshing, to say the least, that the President has chosen to recognize our industry in this time of national crisis.

We at Lund’s Fisheries are extremely grateful to this Administration for this recognition and Executive Order. With 5 processing companies employing over 300 people in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California, we are ready to continue to meet the country’s needs during this crisis.

We are especially grateful to hear that the Administration will help us with trade barriers and inequities in our international import/export business. Far too often trade barriers have been put in place by foreign nations against our products with no pushback from the U.S. government. We cannot thank the President enough for his tough negotiations on these matters, and look forward to working with his Administration on these issues following his welcomed announcement yesterday.

We further look forward to working with the Administration to ensure that the commercial wild fishing industry is able to stay healthy and vibrant without being impeded by the installation of wind turbines on historical fishing grounds. We hope that the opening sentence in section 1, which states “America needs a vibrant and competitive seafood industry to create and sustain American jobs, put safe and healthy food on American tables, and contribute to the American economy” will include safeguarding this historic industry by ensuring that our ability to produce seafood into the future will not be lost in a rush to produce subsidized wind energy at any cost.

Lund’s lands New Bedford scallop processing facility, closes frozen office

November 22, 2019 — Lund’s Fisheries has added a new piece to its growing Atlantic scallop puzzle in US fishing hub New Bedford, Massachusetts, acquiring JT Sea Products from its founder along with its processing facility, the company has confirmed with Undercurrent News.

Cape May, New Jersey-based Lund’s has been, for the past few years, building scallop sales to match the size of its dominating squid business. Though he declined to provide annual revenue figures, Lund’s president Jeff Reichle told Undercurrent in an earlier interview that scallops have already gone from representing between 5% and 10% of his 64-year-old company’s sales three or four years ago to as much as 40%.

At least seven of Lund’s 19 vessels are equipped with scallop permits, and other scallop owner-operator vessels have been working out of Lund’s facilities for the past 20 or 30 years, he said.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

US squid catchers turn to innovation, MSC in push to boost consumption

May 13, 2019 — The US’ two largest squid catchers and suppliers are taking a similar tack when it comes to plans to boost consumption of their species: product innovation at home targeted at millennials, and the recent Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification of their fisheries to open up new markets, particularly in Europe.

The companies –Narragansett, Rhode Island-based The Town Dock and Cape May, New Jersey-based Lund’s Fisheries — recently teamed up to receive MSC approval for the US Northwest northern shortfin squid (Illex Illecebrosus) fishery. This comes nearly a year after obtaining the MSC’s stamp for the US Northeast longfin inshore squid (Loligo pealeii) bottom trawl fishery last year, the world’s first MSC certification for a squid species. The two firms also catch California market squid (Doryteuthis opalescens) and harvest or procure a wide range of other squid and fish species.

Americans don’t consume a lot of squids — in 2015, the average US consumer ate around four ounces per year, roughly equivalent to a serving of fried calamari rings. That’s where the opportunity lies, Jeff Reichle, Lund’s president, told Undercurrent News.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Lang’s addition helps Lund’s plant scallop flag in New Bedford

March 21, 2019 — Lund’s Fisheries is already known as one of the US’ most dominant producers, processors, exporters and importers of squid, but the additions made recently by the 64-year-old Cape May, New Jersey, company could soon make it a bigger player in the scallop industry, too.

The company, in February, announced the hiring of Jeffrey Lang, the founder and former president of Sea Born Products, as callop distributor and importer in the US’ scallop capital of New Bedford, Massachusetts, along with Donna Pimental, a trusted 13-year employee at Sea Born.

Lund’s president Jeff Reichle told Undercurrent News in a recent interview that the additions were further evidence of the company’s commitment to the species.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

SCeMFiS Members Attend Seafood Expo North America Following Second National Science Foundation Grant

March 15, 2019 — The following was released by the Science Center for Marine Fisheries:

The Science Center for Marine Fisheries (SCeMFiS) brings together industry and academia to conduct groundbreaking fisheries research, and is the only research center funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) dedicated exclusively to fisheries science. As a result of its research track record, NSF awarded SCeMFiS a “Phase 2” second 5-year grant to continue its work. This funding shows that SCeMFiS met the high expectations of NSF for Phase 2 approval, a feat that not every Phase 1 center accomplishes.

Industry members of SCeMFiS will attend this year’s Seafood Expo North America and are available to be interviewed.

Factors that contributed to NSF’s determination that SCeMFiS merited a Phase 2 award included:

  • Successfully undergoing a vigorous 5-year NSF review that included external reviewers;
  • Ongoing solid support from contributing industry member companies and organizations;
  • An extremely high retention rate of contributing members;
  • The exemplary quality of research conducted by SCeMFiS principal investigators.

With its newly approved grant, SCeMFiS plans to use the next 5 years to focus on ways to reduce scientific uncertainty in fisheries science; the effects of climate change on fish stocks and fishing communities; resolving issues between fishing and offshore energy interests; and developing sound ecosystem-based fisheries management.

Since its founding in 2013, SCeMFiS has been at the forefront of finfish and shellfish research. Working with members of the fishing industry, SCeMFiS scientists have conducted innovative studies, including producing the first age-frequency distributions for ocean quahog, and being one of the only institutions to study species like chub mackerel and longfin squid.

“The work of our academic partners at SCeMFiS has been vital in improving our understanding of the species we harvest,” said Jeff Reichle, CEO of Lund’s Fisheries, which was one of the original members of the SCeMFiS Industry Advisory Board. “The more we know about these species, the better we’re able to harvest them sustainably.”

The SCeMFiS industry members attending the Seafood Expo are committed to continuing this scientific partnership. Industry members on the SCeMFiS Industry Advisory Board review, approve, and fund all SCeMFiS projects, which are selected to fill gaps in data and meet the industry’s unfilled scientific needs.

“In the last five years, we’ve been able to study and improve the understanding of some of the most pressing scientific issues facing the fishing industry,” said Center Director Dr. Eric Powell, of the University of Southern Mississippi, one of the academic members of SCeMFiS. “We are looking forward to continue our collaborative partnerships and tackle the scientific questions affecting fishermen the most.”

SCeMFiS members will be at the following locations at Seafood Expo North America:

Lund’s Fisheries: Booth 951

Sea Watch International: Booth 423

The Town Dock: Booth 2133

Seafreeze Ltd.: Booth 2407

Bumble Bee

As climate change sends fish to colder waters, some boats follow

December 14, 2018 — Flipping through his captain’s log, Larry Colangelo looks at the water temperatures off Atlantic City’s coast this past summer. Unusually warm 70- and 80-degree days are jotted down inside the record-keeping book he’s had for nearly two decades.

For $800 a day, he takes tourists and professional anglers alike onto his 31-foot ship. But in recent years, he said, certain fish have become more challenging to catch and keep.

Climate change and outdated regulations are partially to blame, researchers say, and it’s affecting some local fishermen in drastic ways.

“I only know what I see, and what I see is that the water definitely seems to be warmer… We have to work a little harder now,” said Colangelo, who owns a charter boat docked at Kammerman’s Marina in Atlantic City.

A November report in the ICES Journal of Marine Science looked at how fishermen are reacting to the migration of fish north as the ocean’s temperature gradually increases. It reports dramatic shifts in the distances large, commercial Atlantic Coast fishing operations have been traveling over the past 20 years.

But for some commercial fishers in South Jersey, it’s been business as usual.

Dotted with outdoor seafood restaurants, Cape May’s commercial fishing industry brought in $85 million in 2016. The city boasts one of the largest local fishing markets in the country.

Jeff Reichle, president of Lunds Fisheries in Cape May, said his 19-boat fleet has been buying permits off North Carolina and Virginia for decades.

In recent years, he said he’s noticed more summer flounder and sea bass near Connecticut and Massachusetts, but said his boats continue to travel along the entire coast both to maximize the number of fish caught and due to higher quotas in Virginia and North Carolina.

“You follow the fish where they go,” Reichle said. “This is why boats float and have propellers.”

Read the full story at the Press of Atlantic City

 

New Jersey: Inside Lund’s value-added growth plans

December 8, 2017 — U.S. fresh and frozen seafood supplier Lund’s Fisheries is planning to significantly expand its value-added offerings to restaurants and retailers.

The Cape May, New Jersey-based company, which has primarily focused on processing squid and finfish caught off the East Coast of the U.S., will now offer more value-added calamari and sea scallop products.

The supplier’s products are currently sold to restaurant companies, as well as to Giant Eagle, ALDI, Price Chopper, and other U.S. grocery chains.

“We are looking to take the resources we are producing with our independently-owned and -operated boats and creating value-added products,” Wayne Reichle, who was recently promoted from vice president to president of Lund’s, told SeafoodSource.

New product lines that will be available in the next few months include individually quick-frozen (IQF) calamari and sauce packages, as well as IQF scallops and sauce packages. The “Seafood Market” scallops line – expected to be available by March 2018 – includes: Sea Scallops with Bacon Cream Sauce, Sea Scallops with Spicy Asian Sauce, Sea Scallops with White Wine Cream Sauce, and Sea Scallops with Butter Garlic Sauce.

“These are heat-and-serve products. Customers can go to a grocery store and then, in 15 to 20 minutes, they will have a wholesome seafood dinner they can serve a family,” Reichle said.

For the past five years, Lund’s has been producing calamari from squid caught off the coast of New Jersey and California.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

New Jersey: Lund’s Fisheries Promotes, Hires as Part of Domestic Expansion

December 4, 2017 — CAPE MAY, N.J. — The following was released by Lund’s Fisheries:

Lund’s Fisheries is pleased to announce a series of promotions and new hires as part of its expansion into innovative product lines and markets. Our reorganized team will focus on adding additional value-added products such as seafood mixes, sauces and gourmet meals to the company’s overall product mix, while further developing Lund’s long-standing product lines such as fresh and frozen seafood and bait products.

As part of this new focus, Wayne Reichle will be promoted from Vice President to President of Lund’s Fisheries. Wayne has worked with the company for 23 years, and has experience in all aspects of the industry, from commercial fishing to sales. As part of our expansion into value-added products, Wayne will manage all factory and fleet operations and Lund’s Fisheries’ domestic and foreign seafood trade.

David Gray will become Vice President of our Value-Added Division. In this role, David will use his expertise in product development to create products that appeal to new markets – both domestic and international. Having worked for many years in the scallop business prior to coming to Lund’s, David developed innovative techniques to ensure a quality product to meet the toughest retailer requirements. He will play an integral part in creating Lund’s Fisheries’ new value-added line of products.

A recent hire, and the new Director of Sales, Randy Spencer will focus on developing a more robust sales team, and will manage that team along with overseeing Lund’s Fisheries’ domestic sales. Randy comes with a wealth of experience within the industry, having spent the last 20 years working with many species of fish and shellfish. A chef by trade, Randy also brings a strong culinary and product development background to Lund’s. Randy’s new role will focus on positioning Lund’s products and directing the firm’s efforts into an effective, domestic growth strategy.

Jeff Reichle, who is yielding the presidency to Wayne, will remain at Lund’s as Chairman of the Board.  Jeff will pursue long-term growth opportunities for the business. Jeff has been yielding responsibility to Wayne over the course of the past 10 years in order to prepare for this transition in roles. Starting at Lund’s in 1974, Jeff was hired to oversee sales and manage dock operations. In 1987, the opportunity arose to buy the business from the Lund family. He finalized the purchase in 1997 and served as President of Lund’s Fisheries until Wayne’s promotion.

About Lund’s Fisheries

Since 1954, the Lund’s Fisheries’ brand and products have inspired trust and confidence worldwide. With locations on both the east and west coasts of the United States, we are able to offer our customers a wide range of high-quality fresh and frozen seafood products produced by our company-owned fishing vessels and the many independent vessels we deal with. Lund’s is a leader in cooperative fisheries research and management to ensure we have a long-term sustainable supply of products for our customers. We believe that fisheries must be managed based on sound science and work hard to be sure our resources are available for generations to come. Never satisfied or complacent about setting a standard, our team works continuously to improve and raise the quality of our products for the benefit of our customers.