Saving Seafood

New Jersey: Lund’s Fisheries accredited for in-house seafood safety inspection

September 30, 2022 — Lund’s Fisheries of  Cape May, N.J. is now accredited to conduct its own food safety inspections on all seafood that the company harvests, processes, and ships, after building up its own laboratory facilities and meeting international standards.

“The company’s in-house lab equipment and testing protocols, built out over the last year, have met internationally recognized standards, and can now be used to test all Lund’s products before going directly to consumers,” Lund’s said in a Sept. 27 announcement.

Before being sold, seafood products are required to be tested for microbiological contaminants such as E. coli, listeria, and salmonella. Most seafood products go to third-party laboratories to conduct tests, as few seafood companies in the U.S. have the in-house capability to test their own products.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

 

Lund’s Fisheries Achieves International Accreditation to Conduct Microbiological Inspections Following Major Investments

September 27, 2022 — The following was released by Lund’s Fisheries:

Lund’s Fisheries is now accredited to conduct its own food safety inspections on all seafood that the company harvests, processes, and ships. The company’s in-house lab equipment and testing protocols, built out over the last year, have met internationally recognized standards, and can now be used to test all Lund’s products before going directly to consumers.

Before being sold, seafood products are required to be tested for microbiological contaminants such as E. coli, listeria, and salmonella. Usually, the products are sent to third-party laboratories to conduct the tests; few seafood companies in the U.S. have the capability to test their own products. To develop this capacity for itself, Lund’s Fisheries set out last summer to build out its testing capabilities, aligning them with international best standards and practices and finally getting them officially accredited this month.

“This accreditation recognizes our dedication to the quality and safety of our seafood,” said Joshua Farinella, Lund’s Director of Compliance and Quality Assurance. “Lund’s now has direct control over the full chain of custody, so we can guarantee that any product meets our high standards from the boat to the plate.”

Lund’s Fisheries to Be Featured On Outdoor Channel’s “The Fishmonger,” Airing May 23

May 23, 2022 — Make sure you’re in front of your TV at 8:30 p.m. on Monday night. Lund’s Fisheries will be featured on the Outdoor Channel’s latest episode of “The Fishmonger.”

“The Fishmonger” is hosted by Tommy Gomes, aka Tommy the Fishmonger. The upcoming episode, which will air on Monday, May 23 at 8:30 p.m., will find Gomes in Cape May, New Jersey. The episode will find him connecting with the team at Lund’s Fisheries to explore a large-scale operation.

Read the full story at Seafood News

US Atlantic scup bottom-trawl fishery achieves MSC certification

May 18, 2022 — The U.S. Atlantic scup bottom-trawl fishery has achieved Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification, verifying sustainable fishing practices are being used in the fishery. The certificate will be jointly held by commercial fishing operations of Cape May, New Jersey, U.S.A.-based Lund’s Fisheries and North Kingstown, Rhode Island, U.S.A.-based Seafreeze.

Scup (Stenotomus chrysops) is a brown and silver food fish found in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, primarily between Cape Cod, Massachusetts, U.S.A., and Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, U.S.A.. The fish is also known as porgy, maiden, fairmaid, and ironsides. Unlike many fish populations, scup is considered an “underutilized species.” Scup populations have been steadily increasing along the U.S. East Coast since the mid-1990s, MSC said.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Atlantic Scup Fishery Achieves MSC Certification

May 11, 2022 — The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) announced that the Atlantic Scup (Stenotomus chrysops) bottom trawl fishery has achieved MSC certification for sustainable fishing practices. The MSC Fisheries Standard is a globally recognized standard used to assess if a fishery is well-managed, and reflects the most up-to-date understanding of internationally accepted fisheries science and management. The MSC certificate for scup is jointly held by commercial fishing operations Lund’s Fisheries, Inc. and Seafreeze, Ltd.

The Atlantic scup certification follows a rigorous twelve-month review carried out by a third-party assessment body, SCS Global Services. The MSC Fisheries Standard has three core principles that every certified fishery must meet including 1) sustainable fish stocks, 2) minimizing environmental impact, and 3) effective fisheries management.  As well as preserving fish stocks and the marine environment,  the MSC certification process ensures that scup products can be traced to a sustainable source through required recordkeeping.

Eric Critchlow, US Director for the MSC, said: “The certification of the scup fishery will help safeguard livelihoods, seafood supplies, and healthy oceans for future generations. Being a new whitefish fishery to gain MSC certification is a notable achievement and we welcome Lund’s and Seafreeze’s commitment to fisheries sustainability.”

Lund’s Fisheries principals own and operate 20 fishing vessels delivering a variety of seafood to its freezing and processing facility year-round. Other, independent vessels, from North Carolina through Maine, land scup at the company’s Cape May, NJ plant, as well.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Atlantic scup from Lund’s Fisheries becomes the fourth MSC-certified product offered by the family-owned New Jersey company

May 10, 2022 — The following was released by Lund’s Fisheries:

Lund’s Fisheries, Inc., operating in Cape May, New Jersey since 1954, is pleased to announce that the company’s Atlantic scup fishery has been certified as sustainable according to Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standards. MSC certification is one of the most rigorous and sought-after sustainability certifications in the world, and our scup trawl fishery now meets those high standards.

Scup is Lund’s fourth MSC-certified fishery, following the company’s certifications for Atlantic sea scallops, Loligo squid, and Illex squid. Lund’s has been a seafood industry leader on the Atlantic coast in certifying its fisheries as sustainable for U.S. and international markets and will continue to look for new opportunities to add products to the MSC certification process.

The company owns and operates 20 fishing vessels delivering seafood to its freezing and processing facility year-round. Other independent vessels, from North Carolina through Maine, land scup at the company’s plant, utilizing its 500 metric ton daily freezing capacity.

“Lund’s Fisheries is proud of our long-standing commitment to harvesting and processing some of the most sustainable seafood in the world, and the MSC certification of our scup fishery is just the latest example of that commitment,” said Wayne Reichle, President of Lund’s Fisheries. “In partnership with the MSC, consumers can continue to trust that our products meet the highest standards of responsible sourcing. This new certification will help us to present another locally harvested, sustainable fish to the public that they may not have heard of, seen, or eaten before.”

The certification comes after a year-long, comprehensive evaluation by independent third-party assessor SCS Global Services. The assessment ensures that the Atlantic scup trawl fishery meets the three MSC Principles, focusing on the status of the scup resource and the harvest strategy in place; the fisheries ecosystem impacts, including efforts to avoid interactions with endangered and protected species; and the governance and management system employed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. MSC certification also ensures that Atlantic scup products can be traced back to where they were caught through required recordkeeping, from harvest to product sale.

The fishery’s strengths include a well-defined and proven governance system of national and state laws; a suite of strategic policy frameworks that are supportive of the MSC’s Principles; effective leadership within federal and state management and scientific organizations; a transparent and engaging consultation and decision-making process; and a proven federal-state record of effective collaboration and cooperation at all levels.

Atlantic scup, which is mainly fished in New England and Mid-Atlantic waters, is considered to be an “underutilized” species, meaning that the population is healthy, and that fishing levels are well below the sustainable limits set for the fishery.

“Demand for sustainable U.S. seafood is only growing, and we are pleased to receive this certification from the MSC, which has become the international leader in seafood sustainability,” said Jeff Kaelin, Lund’s Director of Sustainability and Government Relations.  “This certification reflects the hard work done by our fishermen and our production team at our Cape May plant to successfully sell sustainably harvested products to our customers. It also represents tremendous support from our management partners at the Council and Commission in helping us to accumulate the technical information used in this process over the past year.”

US Atlantic Scup Fishery Achieves MSC Certification

May 10, 2022 — International non-profit organization the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) announced on Monday that the Atlantic Scup (Stenotomus chrysops) bottom trawl fishery has achieved MSC certification for sustainable fishing practices. The MSC certificate for scup is jointly held by commercial fishing operations Lund’s Fisheries, Inc. and Seafreeze, Ltd.

“The certification of the scup fishery will help safeguard livelihoods, seafood supplies and healthy oceans for future generations,” said Eric Critchlow, U.S. Director for the MSC. “Being a new whitefish fishery to gain MSC certification is a notable achievement and we welcome Lund’s and Seafreeze’s commitment to fisheries sustainability.”

Lund’s Fisheries owns and operates 20 fishing vessels that deliver a variety of seafood to their freezing and processing facilities. In addition, independent vessels land scup at their Cape May, New Jersey, plant. Meanwhile, Seafreeze owns and operates three vessels out of their facility in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, and their affiliated company Seafreeze Shoreside handles an additional 10-12 independent vessels that deliver scup.

Read the full story at Seafood News

ASMFC Presents Annual Awards of Excellence for 2020 and 2021

May 5, 2022 — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission:

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission presented its Annual Awards of Excellence to an esteemed group of fishery managers, scientists, stakeholders and law enforcement officers for their outstanding contributions to fisheries management, science, and law enforcement along the Atlantic coast. Specifically, the award recipients for 2020 and 2021 were Lynn Fegley and Derek Orner for management and policy contributions; Rich Wong, Jimmy and Bobby Ruhle, and a subset of the Atlantic Menhaden/Ecological Reference Points Team for technical and scientific contributions; Greg DiDomenico for outreach and advocacy contributions; and Captain Michael Eastman, Special Agents Chris McCarron and Steven Niemi, and Enforcement Officer Timothy Wilmarth for law enforcement contributions.

“Every year a great many people contribute to the success of fisheries management along the Atlantic coast. The Commission’s Annual Awards of Excellence recognize outstanding efforts by professionals who have made a difference in the way we manage and conserve our fisheries,” said ASMFC Chair Spud Woodward of Georgia. “I am humbled by the breadth and extent of accomplishments of the recipients and am grateful for their dedication to Atlantic coast fisheries.”

Management and Policy Contributions
Lynn Fegley, Maryland Department of Natural Resources

It is impossible to overstate Lynn Fegley’s contributions to the Commission and her leadership in interstate fisheries management and coastwide data collection. Her notable accomplishments include work on the implementation of ecosystem-based reference points in the management of Atlantic menhaden; writing and implementing Maryland’s CARES Act Spending Plan; serving as an active member of the South Atlantic State/Federal Fisheries Management Board and subsequently the recently established Sciaenids and Pelagics Management Boards; and leading the discussion to improve accountability in coastwide harvest data standards while  Chair of the Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program Coordinating Council. Highly knowledgeable about and committed to effective interstate fisheries management and policy, Ms. Fegley consistently shows her dedication to hard work, scientific rigor, and integrity in all that she does.

Derek Orner, NOAA Fisheries 

A valued federal partner for many years, Derek Orner has served as NOAA Fisheries’ lead on numerous Commission management boards and committees, including those for striped bass, shad and river herring, and Atlantic menhaden, providing sound advice and guidance on the management of these species. Additionally, Mr. Orner has played a critical role to the ongoing success of interstate fisheries management through his efforts to ensure the Commission and states consistently receive their appropriated funding from Congress in a timely manner. He has a keen understanding of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act and a strong commitment to state/federal partnership, as exemplified by his contributions to the recently signed interagency Memorandum of Understanding between NOAA Fisheries, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Scientific and Technical Contributions
Dr. Rich Wong, Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife 

During Rich Wong’s 17-year career with Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife, he has been a mainstay of the technical committees for a number of Mid-Atlantic species, including bluefish, summer flounder, scup, and black sea bass. Dr. Wong has long been recognized for his strong stock assessment skills, spotlighted recently in his development of the catch multiple survey analysis for the horseshoe crab benchmark assessment which was also used in the 2021 Revision of the Adaptive Resource Management Framework for the Delaware Bay.

Jimmy and Bobby Ruhle

Father and son Jimmy and Bobby Ruhle have been tireless advocates for the commercial fishing industry, while concurrently advancing cooperative/collaborative approaches to fisheries science. With decades of fishing expertise and knowledge of local fishing grounds, The Ruhles have served on the trawl committees and advisory panels for both the Commission and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, as well as North Carolina. They are both committed to ensuring the trawl gear used on research surveys promote confidence within the industry. When it became evident that a federal research survey would not be able to sample the nearshore regions, it was Jimmy Ruhle who stepped in to work with state and federal partners to fill the gap and establish the NorthEast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (NEAMAP) in 2007. NEAMAP has been providing valuable fisheries data ever since and is used in multiple stock assessments.

Atlantic Menhaden/Ecological Reference Points Team of Dr. Amy Schueller, Dr. Matt Cieri, Dr. Jason McNamee, Dr. David Chagaris, Dr. Andre Buchheister, Dr. Kristen Anstead, Dr. Katie Drew, Sarah Murray, and Max Appelman

A subset of members from the Atlantic Menhaden/Ecological Reference Points Team were recognized for their successful completion of two concurrently developed Benchmark Stock Assessments for Atlantic Menhaden and Ecological Reference Points (ERP). While these assessments, particularly the ERP assessment, were many years in the making and involved the contributions of dozens of individuals, this group of people have been instrumental in making the ERP assessment a reality. Through their collective work and leadership, this team of state and federal scientists and ASMFC staff helped to significantly advance the understanding of Atlantic menhaden and its role as an important forage fish. Their efforts have provided the Commission with the tools needed to fulfill its promise to stakeholders to manage menhaden in an ecologically sustainable way. Of special note are the efforts of Dr. David Chagaris and Dr. Andre Buchheister, preeminent experts in the field of fisheries resources, predator-prey interactions, and ecosystem-based fisheries management and models, for their work on the development of the ERP model which is currently being used in management.

Outreach and Advocacy Contributions
Greg DiDomenico, Lund’s Fisheries

Longtime industry advocate Greg DiDomenico was recognized for his outreach and advocacy contributions to fisheries management along the coast. Previously with Garden State Seafood Association and now with Lund’s Fisheries, Mr. DiDomenico has been a tireless voice for New Jersey’s commercial fishing industry at the state, interstate, regional and federal levels. He has been an ever present voice at Commission and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council meetings speaking on behalf of the needs of commercial harvesters.

Law Enforcement Contributions
Captain Michael Eastman, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Law Enforcement Division

Throughout his more than 20 year career, Captain Michael Eastman with New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Law Enforcement Division has proven himself as a very capable leader who cares about the officers he works with and the resources he is charged to protect. He is a longstanding member of the Commission’s Law Enforcement Committee, serving as both Vice-chair and Chair to that Committee. He also serves as the law enforcement liaison on several species management boards, including Atlantic herring, northern shrimp, and American eel. His fair and professional approach has earned him the respect of the public he serves. He has led by example and demonstrated for other officers how to become successful through hard work and determination. Captain Eastman’s work ethic and level of professionalism have been assets to both New Hampshire Fish and Game and the Commission throughout his career.

Special Agents Chris McCarron and Steven Niemi, NOAA Office of Law Enforcement

The thorough and relentless investigative efforts of NOAA’s Special Agents McCarron and Niemi ensured the success of two concurrent prosecutions whose illegal activities undermined the integrity of the Chesapeake Bay blue crab industry. The NOAA Office of Law Enforcement received multiple industry complaints regarding the actions of several companies who were accused of selling imported crab meat as Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab. As the Case Agents from the lead agency, Agents Niemi and McCarron coordinated with multiple State and Federal Law Enforcement entities to create and execute the investigative plan. This comprehensive investigation resulted with the companies admitting responsibility for importing over $8.7 million dollars of foreign crab meat into the U.S. illegally, mislabeled, repacked and marketed the product as Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab. Agents McCarron and Niemi worked tirelessly during their investigations and their work has had a profound and immediate impact on the region’s industry.

Enforcement Officer Timothy Wilmarth

Enforcement Officer Timothy Wilmarth is being recognized for his focus and determination in developing a safe and effective enforcement strategy to address the effects of non-compliant offshore, deep set lobster gear on the mortality of the critically endangered North Atlantic right whales and in support of the Commission’s American lobster management program. Enforcement Officer Wilmarth took the idea of using remote operated vehicles from concept to reality and has allowed officers to effectively locate and inspect deep set lobster gear without having to physically retrieve the gear, which has historically posed a variety of problems including the safety of officers conducting the inspections. When deployed, the ROV can detect and record any gear or tag violation from the ocean surface down to the ocean floor to include inspecting tags, escape panels, markings, and compliance with trap limits. Through his hard work and technological innovation on the project, law enforcement officers will now have a safer platform to ensure gear compliance and boost efforts to protect endangered species such as the North Atlantic right whale.

 

Mid-Water Herring Trawlers to Return to Inshore Waters; Court Overturns Exclusion Zone off Long Island, Cape Cod

March 11, 2022 — The following was released by the Sustainable Fisheries Coalition: 

Lund’s Fisheries, owner of the F/V Enterprise, pictured here, applauded last week’s federal court ruling.

Herring fishermen from New England and the Mid-Atlantic won a crucial decision last week when a federal judge in Boston ruled in their favor against an exclusion zone in Northeast U.S. waters. The court ruled that a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) measure excluding the mid-water trawl fleet from productive inshore fishing grounds violated the Magnuson-Stevens Act, the nation’s premier fisheries law. The lawsuit was brought by the Sustainable Fisheries Coalition (SFC), a trade group representing herring and mackerel fishing companies.

Mid-water trawler vessels account for upwards of 70 percent of the annual herring catch. The NMFS measure would have prevented them from operating within 12 miles of shore from Long Island to the Canadian border, with an even larger buffer around Cape Cod. Analysis by the New England Fishery Management Council, the body that developed the exclusion zone, estimated that the trawlers could lose up to a third of their annual revenue.

Gerry O’Neill, owner of two mid-water trawlers and a herring processing plant in Gloucester, Mass., said that finding underestimated the area’s value.

“In recent years, we’ve relied on this area for most of our catch,” he said. “This was an existential threat to our livelihood. This decision is a huge relief.”

Thanks to the court ruling, Cape Seafoods’ F/V Endeavour and F/V Challenger, pictured here, can return to traditional inshore fishing grounds, significantly reducing their fuel costs and carbon footprint.

The New England Council recommended the exclusion zone in response to persistent complaints and advocacy by inshore fishermen, environmental groups, sport fishers, and others. They claimed that herring fishing caused “localized depletion,” a vague concept the court found not to have been meaningfully defined by the agency.

In fact, the Council’s scientific advisors were able to detect no adverse impacts from the herring mid-water trawl fishery on other marine uses. The court agreed with the SFC that the rule lacked both a scientific and conservation justification.

NMFS and the Council pushed this measure without a science basis, SFC argued, because its advocates were both persistent and politically influential. The court, by contrast, decided the matter on the grounds that the exclusion zone allocated all inshore fishing privileges to these other user groups without promoting conservation.

“The law is the only protection a small fishing sector has against a well-represented majority,” said Shaun Gehan, an attorney for the SFC.  “We are pleased the judge recognized this measure lacked a meaningful conservation benefit, not to mention fairness and equity, as the law demands.”

Wayne Reichle, president of Lund’s Fisheries in Cape May, New Jersey, said that the decision “restored his faith in the law” and that he “believed all along the closures would be reversed.” Additionally, he is confident that “localized depletion” has no scientific basis, but remains disappointed that this provocative term was used to justify the original measure.

Under law, federal fisheries management must prevent overfishing. Herring and mackerel, which serve as forage for other fish and marine mammals, are managed more conservatively than other stocks of fish. Once catch levels are set, the Secretary of Commerce is responsible for providing the fishery reasonable opportunities to harvest its allocation.

The main problem with the process was that it was couched as addressing so-called ‘localized depletion,’ which scientists were unable to identify,” he said. “This is an issue of user conflicts and should be addressed as such.”

He also noted that any solution to this concern must equitably balance all user group interests and not place undue burdens on fisheries’ ability to harvest sustainable herring quotas.

A sea of choices confronts Biden admin in ocean protection

October 5, 2021 — When it comes to meeting its aggressive conservation pledge, the Biden administration appears to have a head start on protecting the United States’ oceans — after all, on paper, the nation is already more than two-thirds of the way to the goal.

But as the administration puts together a tracking mechanism for its pledge to conserve 30 percent of the nation’s lands and waters by 2030, environmental activists warn that frequently cited statistics provide a misleading picture of ocean conservation.

At the same time, advocates for the fishing industry question counter the nation is much closer to the final objective — if not already there. They argue that conservation shouldn’t always mean activities like fishing are banned and say their industry has shown itself willing to help protect vulnerable species.

Managed waters

Opponents of new marine monuments, however, argue that managed waters are sufficient to meet the conservation goals.

“If it’s not conserved unless it’s in a marine sanctuary that excludes fishing — which is a fairly radical and extreme point of view — then I think you get into a very different set of calculations about how you get to 30 percent,” said Roger Mann, a marine sciences professor at the College of William & Mary’s Virginia Institute of Marine Science.

Mann pointed to language in the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, the nation’s primary fisheries law, that calls for “conservation and management” of the oceans.

“If you’re conserving sustainable resources … then all of the area that is managed under Magnuson is already a conservation area,” argued Mann, who previously served on the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council.

“The councils can all sit there and scratch their heads and say, ‘We’re not 30×30. We’re 100 percent by 2021. What’s the problem?’” he said.

Former Garden State Seafood Association Executive Director Greg DiDomenico said he is optimistic that the Biden administration will adhere to its vow for scientific integrity, but remains staunchly opposed to the idea of new monuments.

“What we expect from 30×30, ultimately, is that it be conducted under rigorous science and an open, transparent policy,” said DiDomenico, who is now with Lund’s Fisheries.

DiDomenico pointed to the creation of the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument during former President Obama’s tenure, which closed the area to commercial fishing.

Former President Trump reversed that closure in 2020, and the New England Fishery Management Council subsequently implemented protections for deep-sea corals in more than 80 percent of the monument (E&E News PM, June 5, 2020).

“The proof is in the pudding,” DiDomenico said, pointing to what is formally known as the Omnibus Deep-Sea Coral Amendment.

He added that: “No one is running from this. We’ve been here before.”

Read the full story at E&E News