Saving Seafood

Louisiana to help pay for devices that can save sea turtles from shrimp nets

October 21, 2020 — Louisiana is starting a financial assistance program to help shrimpers buy new gear to make their nets less lethal for endangered sea turtles.

The new $250,000 state program will reimburse up to 60% of the cost for special metal grates known as TEDs, or turtle excluder devices, for shrimping nets used in the Gulf of Mexico. TEDs create an opening that allows trapped turtles to escape nets before they drown.

Starting in April, a federal law will expand TED requirements to include skimmer vessels that are 40 feet long and longer. About 1,500 TEDs will need to be purchased for 400 boats in Louisiana, according to the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, which will oversee the Skimmer Turtle Excluder Device Reimbursement Program.

Read the full story at NOLA.com

Louisiana helps inshore shrimpers buy turtle escape hatches

October 14, 2020 — Louisiana will help inshore shrimpers buy turtle escape hatches that will be required next year for some boats in the Gulf of Mexico and southeastern Atlantic, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Tuesday.

The $250,000 program will pay up to 60% of the cost for two of the grates called “turtle excluder devices,” or TEDs, a news release said. Some of the money comes from BP payments to restore the Gulf after the oil spill in 2010.

Big offshore shrimp trawlers have had to use such devices since late 1989. Protests against that rule included shrimp-boat blockades of Texas and Louisiana ship channels.

Read the full story at the Associated Press

Omega Protein Raises Over $5,000 For Hurricane Laura Assistance

September 24, 2020 — Omega Protein announced last week that they have partnered with the Cameron Parish Lions Club and their charitable organization, the Cameron Educational and Charitable Endeavors, to raise money for Hurricane Laura relief and recovery efforts in Cameron, Louisiana. In the week since launching a GoFundMe, Omega Protein has been able to raise over $5,000.

Hurricane Laura made landfall in Cameron on August 27, with sustained winds of 150 mph. Omega has deep ties to the area, having previously operated a fishing facility there from the mid-1960s through the end of 2013.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Study: Increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids linked to improved heart health outcomes

September 18, 2020 — A new study presents “compelling evidence” for consuming more of omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA – nutrients that seafood possesses rich quantities of – for cardiovascular prevention.

The meta-analysis, considered to be the “most comprehensive analysis of the role of omega-3 dosage on cardiovascular prevention to date,” was published in the most recent issue of in Mayo Clinic Proceedings and involves an in-depth review of 40 clinical trials. It finds that intake of EPA and DHA is correlated with reduced risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) events, which cause 7.4 million deaths globally each year, and reduced risk of myocardial infarction, or heart attacks.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

La. seafood industry struggling during pandemic; business owners hope to see relief soon

September 17, 2020 — Louisiana’s commercial fishermen are struggling during the coronavirus pandemic, but they now have the option to apply for assistance from the CARES Act.

WAFB’s Breanne Bizette spoke with seafood businesses about how demand for the product has gone down.

Since the start of the pandemic, fewer people are eating out at local seafood restaurants. Restaurants are restricted on how many people can dine at once, meaning fewer people are eating those delicious seafood platters.

Fishermen who sell their catch to restaurants are feeling the pressure.

“I think the price has to come down because if you don’t have sales you can’t just keep a price at a level that there’s no sale for,” says Al Sunseri who is the co-owner of P&J’s Oyster Company.

Read the full story at WAFB

Omega Protein opens fundraising for Hurricane Laura-stricken Cameron

September 17, 2020 — Omega Protein is working with the Cameron Lions Club to raise money for Cameron Parish, La., residents, devastated when Hurricane Laura came ashore Aug. 27 with 150 mph winds.

Cameron was for decades a homeport for Omega’s menhaden catcher vessels, and the company on Tuesday set up and will contribute to a GoFundMe campaign to pay for relief and recovery efforts in the community.

Menhaden companies were a big part of the local economy for 65 years, and Omega had a fishing facility there from the mid-1960s until the end of 2013.

“Cameron was a wonderful home for us for nearly half a century,” said Ben Landry, director of public affairs for Omega Protein. “Even though we no longer operate in Cameron, the people there are still our friends and neighbors, and we will not turn our back on them during their time of need.”

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Outer Banks seafood sent to Louisiana as part of Hurricane Laura relief

September 16, 2020 — More than 11,000 pounds of Outer Banks shrimp and fish is going to help with storm relief in Louisiana, another area known for seafood and devastating hurricanes.

The North Carolina Fisheries Association coordinated the effort with companies in Wanchese, Grantsboro, Washington, N.C., and Hampton, Va., to gather and ship 11,225 pounds of seafood, including more than 2,000 pounds of shrimp and nearly 9,000 pounds of filleted flounder and other fish, said Jerry Schill, government affairs director for the fisheries organization, in an email.

The seafood shipment was part of a relief effort to help those affected by Hurricane Laura.

“Hurricanes hit the Atlantic and Gulf coasts on a regular basis so we need to have the infrastructure in place and do what we can, just as they would do the same for us,” Schill said.

Read the full story at  The Virginian-Pilot

La. Dept. of Wildlife and fisheries to host live session online to address CARES Act fund questions

September 16, 2020 — The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will discuss and answer questions about the $14.6 million in federal funding it has received to help the state’s fishing community suffering financially because of the COVID-19 pandemic during its bi-monthly live social media series “Conservation Conversations.”

The program will highlight information on applications and qualification issues for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act benefits. LDWF began accepting applications for the funds on Monday, September 14.

“Conservation Conversations” will be available on Facebook, live at noon, Wednesday, September 16, by visiting: www.facebook.com/ldwffb/live_videos, according to LDWF. Viewers can submit questions about the session’s topic in real-time.

Read the full story at KATC

Omega Protein Spearheads Cameron, Louisiana Relief Efforts After Former Company Home Hit Hard By Hurricane Laura

September 16, 2020 — ABBEVILLE, La. — The following was released by Omega Protein:

Omega Protein is partnering with the Cameron Lions Club to raise money for Cameron Parish, Louisiana, which was devastated by Hurricane Laura at the end of August. Omega Protein has set up and will contribute to a GoFundMe campaign, which will raise funds to be used in relief and recovery efforts for the community.

The Gulf menhaden fishery was a mainstay in the Cameron Parish business community for over 65 years. Omega Protein operated a fishing facility there from the mid-1960s through the end of 2013.

“Cameron was a wonderful home for us for nearly half a century,” said Ben Landry, Director of Public Affairs for Omega Protein. “Even though we no longer operate in Cameron, the people there are still our friends and neighbors, and we will not turn our back on them during their time of need.”

All funds raised from the GoFundMe campaign will go directly to the Cameron Lions Club and their charitable organization, the Cameron Educational and Charitable Endeavors Inc., to help with cleanup and recovery from the hurricane.

Omega Protein is working to share its GoFundMe campaign with employees across the Cooke, Inc. family of companies to help spur awareness of the damage to Cameron Parish, and raise money from across North America for relief efforts.

“Cameron Parish has sustained incredible damage from this storm,” said State Representative Ryan Bourriaque, whose District 47 includes all of Cameron Parish. “But with the help of good neighbors like Omega Protein and the generosity of people everywhere, we’ll rebuild this community and get it back on its feet.”

The Cameron Lions Club was founded in 1944, and has served charitable causes in and around Cameron Parish for over 75 years. Its initiatives include promoting higher education through academic scholarships, the Louisiana Lions Camp for children with special needs, the Keep Louisiana Beautiful campaign, help with community hearing and vision needs, and an annual fishing festival.

On August 27, the Category 4 Hurricane Laura made landfall on Cameron, Louisiana near peak intensity, with sustained winds of 150 mph. It was the strongest hurricane to strike Louisiana since 1856.

Support Cameron Parish, Louisiana here

SEAN HORGAN: The new fad diet

September 15, 2020 — Here’s a good story out of the South: As you might imagine fishermen in Louisiana and along the Gulf of Mexico have had a terrible time of it through the late summer, with tropical storms and hurricanes tearing up the landscape, disrupting fishing and adding to the general misery of life in the time of pandemic.

In North Carolina, the North Carolina Fisheries Association and True North Seafood decided to help their fishing friends in Louisiana by sending a truckload of supplies down to the bayou.

“We received more than 20,000 pounds of ice, fish and cleaning supplies,” Frank Randol, treasurer of the Gulf Seafood Foundation and owner of Randol’s Seafood, told Gulf Seafood News. “We are in the process of working with the United Way, Second Harvest Food Bank and others to get these supplies into the hands of those that need it the most. We need to keep the attention focused on the damage in the Gulf, and how it has affected our fishermen because they not only feed their families, but their communities and whole country.”

You may have noticed that we’ve had a slew of stories in the past few weeks on the various federal and state programs to financially assist fishermen and others in the seafood industry that have been crushed economically by the ongoing pandemic or had markets disappear because of retaliatory trade tariffs from U.S. trade partners. It’s a pretty confusing landscape right now, so we hope we helped clear up some of the details.

Last week, we wrote that the state Division of Marine Fisheries had finally mailed out the applications to commercial fishermen for funds allocated by Congress in the CARES Act. The state got $28 million in all to help mitigate the economic damage to its seafood industry from the COVID-19 pandemic, and commercial fishermen will split $11.8 million of that haul.

We mentioned the completed applications are due Oct. 10. What we didn’t mention — because the information was not available until after the story went to press — was when the successful applicants might expect to see their slice of the loot. Now we know.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times