Saving Seafood

MASSACHUSETTS: Scallopers push to open northern edge of Georges Bank

July 31, 2025 — Coastal lawmakers and scallopers railed Wednesday against a decision fishing regulators made last year to keep closed the northern edge of Georges Bank, a thriving scallop ground that has been shuttered to commercial fishing since 1994.

“It’s singularly my most frustrating experience, as someone who thinks of the environment every day, but also worries about the economy minute to minute in my own district. It’s stunning to me how long — decades — this has been closed,” said Sen. Mark Montigny of New Bedford.

Montigny chaired a Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight hearing on Wednesday which explored the state of commercial sea scallop fisheries and regulations impacting the industry.

New Bedford is the largest port in the United States for sea scallop landings and revenue. Other ports in Massachusetts are important for smaller scallop vessels, including Gloucester, Provincetown, Barnstable and Chatham.

Last year, the New England Fishery Management Council voted against reopening the fishing grounds on the northern edge of George’s Bank, a shallow underwater plateau between Cape Cod and Nova Scotia that is rich in biodiversity and a known spawning ground for Atlantic cod and habitat for scallops. The Light reported that Mayor Jon Mitchell was among those asking the council to reconsider opening it, citing headwinds for the region’s top fishery, including falling prices and fewer days at sea for fishermen.

The council voted not to continue discussions on reopening the area, as they said the high density of scallops there helps spawn other nearby scalloping grounds.

Read the full article at the New Bedford Light

MASSACHUSETTS: Nantucket Demands Accountability from Vineyard Wind After “Broken Promises” and Safety Failures

July 30, 2025 — Nantucket delivered a blistering rebuke to Vineyard Wind on Tuesday, accusing the offshore wind developer of a pattern of deception, negligence, and disregard for the island community it promised to protect.

At a press conference, town officials outlined 15 sweeping accountability demands after what they called Vineyard Wind’s “empty pledges and unfulfilled commitments.” Officials said the company has failed on every major front — from basic safety measures to transparent communication — leaving the island vulnerable and eroding public trust.

“Vineyard Wind has left Nantucket, its residents, and its visitors with empty pledges and unfulfilled commitments. We are done waiting for them to do the right thing,” said Select Board member and former chair Brooke Mohr. “We call on Vineyard Wind’s owners, investors, federal regulators, and our elected leaders to stand with us in holding the company to its word.”

The scathing list of failures includes the company’s refusal to communicate critical safety information, its inability to activate light pollution controls in a timely manner, and its failure to create any meaningful emergency response plans despite last year’s high-profile turbine blade failure

Read the full article at The Newport Buzz

MASSACHUSETTS: New Bedford hosts Scallopalooza shucking contest

July 29, 2025 — New Bedford’s long-running tradition of honoring its commercial scallop fishery will take center stage once again on August 14 during “Scallopalooza,” a new community event organized by the New Bedford Fishing Heritage Center (FHC).

Scheduled from 5-8 p.m. during the city’s August AHA! Night, Scallopalooza will host a shucking contest featuring 15 local scallopers. The competition is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. in the center’s parking lot on Bethel Street, which will close to traffic at 1 p.m. that day for vendor and stage setup.

While the shucking contest is the main draw, the event will also showcase the broader culture and industry that surrounds the region’s scallop fishery, FHC said in a press release. Attendees can expect live music, food vendors, and educational demonstrations and exhibits that highlight the city’s working waterfront. The indie rock band Immuter will kick off the evening with a set at 5 p.m., followed by an artist talk with Michael Medeiros at 5:30 p.m. and a scallop dredge link squeezing demo by Blue Fleet Welding at 6 p.m.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

MASSACHUSETTS: One Year Later, Vineyard Wind Blade Failure Still Unfolding

July 16, 2025 — One year ago today, Nantucket residents awoke to reports that green debris was littering the south shore beaches from Madaket out to Tom Nevers. It quickly became clear that the thousands of pieces of fiberglass and foam had floated to the island from the Vineyard Wind farm 15 miles to the southwest following a blade failure.

After failing to notify the town about the incident for 48 hours, Vineyard Wind finally acknowledged the situation following the initial reports of debris washing up and dispatched a team to the island to begin the assessment and cleanup. But in those first few hours, it was the island’s lifeguards – some of them just teenagers – who collected the largest and most dangerous pieces of debris from the surf. Despite warnings not to, residents took it upon themselves to gather and dispose of the blade pieces.

The incident rapidly became a regional and then national news story as the town announced that all of Nantucket’s south shore beaches were closed to swimmers “due to large floating debris and sharp fiberglass shards.”

Within hours, the federal government agency responsible for monitoring the Vineyard Wind project – the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) – shut down the multi-billion-dollar project. The story of Vineyard Wind’s blade failure and the revelations that followed – including manufacturing deviations and allegations of a safety data falsification scheme at a wind turbine blade plant in Canada – would become the biggest news story of the past year.

Twelve months later, while some parts of the story have concluded, others are still unfolding and remain unresolved.

Read the full article at the Nantucket Current

MASSACHSUETTS: Maker of broken Vineyard Wind blade will pay Nantucket $10.5 million

July 15, 2025 — GE Vernova, the manufacturer of the faulty Vineyard Wind turbine blade that broke and washed onto Massachusetts shores one year ago, has agreed to pay the Town of Nantucket $10.5 million to compensate for impacts to the town and local businesses during what was peak summer tourist season.

In the days after the blade broke on July 13, 2024, the town closed beaches to swimming out of safety concerns over fiberglass shards. A local surfing business told town officials in meetings that followed about cancelled lessons. Local officials, eventually with the assistance of company officials, engaged in beach cleanups.

Under the agreement, the town will establish a “Community Claims Fund” to be administered by a third party, which will review claims submitted for cleanups, property damage and lost profit, and dole out compensation.

“We are pleased to have reached a final settlement agreement with the Town of Nantucket to provide compensation for any impacted local businesses,” said a GE Vernova spokesperson in an email Friday.

Nantucket may use any funds not dispensed through the claims process “at its discretion in the public’s interest,” per the 17-page settlement.

The multi-million dollar settlement “finally and forever” releases GE Vernova, Vineyard Wind and the town from “any and all” claims and suits related to the 2024 blade incident. It also binds the Town of Nantucket in an agreement to not sue GE Vernova over the incident.

Notably, the town stated it “would not accept” Vineyard Wind as a signatory to the settlement, though Vineyard Wind still benefits from it.

“The Town has found Vineyard Wind wanting in terms of its leadership, accountability, transparency, and stewardship in the aftermath of the blade failure,” reads the town’s FAQ page. Vineyard Wind is constructing the offshore wind farm about 15 miles south of Nantucket, using turbines built by GE Vernova.

The Light contacted both Vineyard Wind and the town Friday morning for clarification on whether Vineyard Wind requested to be a signatory on the settlement.

Read the full article at The New Bedford Light

MASSACHSUETTS: Immigration raids have spread anxiety for some in New Bedford fishing industry: ‘We don’t know what’s gonna happen’

July 9, 2025 — Hector Grave has worked in the seafood business since he came to this historic fishing city from a small town in Guatemala in the late 1990s.

He worked at fish houses, cutting scallops and shrimp, cleaning fish that came in from nearby waters. Later, a friend introduced him to net making, and he felt it was like solving a puzzle.

He found a job making fishing nets for local companies, typically stitching and braiding the nets together and adding floats, and then founded his own net company in 2012, which now includes a buoy business.

Grave is part of a long line of immigrants who help sustain the fishing industry in New Bedford, the most valuable fishing port in the country. But immigration crackdowns by the Trump administration across New England and in New Bedford, where about a fifth of the city’s residents are foreign born, have spread anxiety in recent months. Some workers are limiting their time outside of their homes and work to avoid potential ICE activity. Many industry leaders said they work hard to ensure they are hiring documented immigrants, but they also hope the Trump administration will take steps to give foreign-born workers pathways to continue earning a living in the sector.

Read the full article at the Boston Globe

MASSACHUSETTS: Supporting Local Seafood Through Outreach and Collaboration

July 3, 2025 — DMF’s Seafood Marketing Program aims to increase consumer demand and preference for local seafood products and support local fisheries through education and awareness. Part of the program’s role is to attend local seafood, food, and outreach shows and conferences to share resources on local seafood, learn from industry members, and grow DMF’s network of fishermen, seafood dealers, restaurants, educators, and more!

Seafood Promotional Events

The Seafood Marketing Program has attended several seafood promotional events so far this year!

Local Food Trade Show. The Sustainable Business Network’s 2025 Local Food Trade Show took place on January 28, 2025, at Russell’s Garden Center in Wayland, MA, featuring nearly 100 local food exhibitors. The event connected wholesale buyers with New England-based farmers and food producers, and several seafood industry members were also in attendance. This event was a great opportunity for DMF to connect with industry members during networking sessions and learn more about building a resilient local food economy. Seafood Expo North America. Seven seafood businesses made up Mass. Ave. at

Seafood Expo North 2025. These local Commonwealth businesses are promoted by DMF’s Seafood Marketing Program and received 50% cost-share for the show via MA Dept. Of Agricultural Resource (MDAR) and the US Dept. of Agriculture. MA Dept. of Fish and Game (DFG) Commissioner Tom O’Shea, Deputy Commissioner Sefatia Romeo-Theken and MDAR Commissioner Ashley Randle visited with those businesses and other Massachusetts businesses scattered throughout the show in March. A DMF grant-supported project by St. Ours was a finalist in the New Product Showcase using invasive green crabs for seafood broth.

New England Restaurant and Bar Show. More than a half dozen seafood businesses attended the New England Restaurant & Bar Show as part of the Massachusetts Seafood Pavilion March 30–31, 2025, at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. Over 300 exhibitors showcased the latest products, services, and technologies, and alongside local seafood businesses, DMF helped promote local seafood and connect industry members.

MA Library Association Conference. The Seafood Marketing Program attended this conference for the first time, May 30-31 at the Sea Crest Hotel in Falmouth. Libraries are a hub for all-ages education and DMF wanted to inform librarians of the resources available on our website as well as our printed educational material and programming opportunities. Librarians were very interested in speakers from DMF for both in-person and on-line programming.

DMF’s Marine Quest. The Seafood Marketing Program was able to offer seafood sampling of over 100 pounds of Jonah crab at DMF’s first Marine Quest Festival using recently earned certifications. The sampling was a huge success!

New Video Content

The Seafood Marketing Program is busy creating video content. We filmed fifteen cooking videos starring Laura Foley Ramsden, a fourth-generation fish mongress with nearly 40 years of experience in the seafood industry, who generously donated her time. Seven of these videos feature local flatfish species as we continue to promote these species, including the pan seared sole recipe below. We are filming four story-telling mini-documentaries with fishermen as well. All videos will be posted on our social media with media partners during 2025.

Read the full article at Mass.gov

MASSACHUSETTS: How do fishermen in Massachusetts get healthcare?

June 23, 2025 — Some of us are lucky enough to have jobs that provide benefits, such as healthcare and paid time off. But for commercial fishermen, there is no human resources office at sea.

Fishing Partnership Support Services is a local nonprofit that’s trying to fill that gap for fishermen and their families.

CAI’s Gilda Geist spoke with Tracy Sylvester, regional navigator with Fishing Partnership, to learn more about how her organization supports fishermen in coastal Massachusetts.

Gilda Geist What does Fishing Partnership Support Services do, and who does it serve?

Tracy Sylvester I’m a regional navigator at Fishing Partnership, helping fishing families all over coastal Massachusetts. Fishing Partnership serves family-owned fishing businesses run by independent fishermen. We have offices in New Bedford, Gloucester, Chatham and Plymouth. Being a commercial fisherman is not easy, so that’s where Fishing Partnerships steps in to support local commercial fishermen with our community health programs, top-notch safety trainings, financial guidance and support for the unique personal issues that fishing families face.

GG You have a background in fishing and being part of a fishing family. Can you tell me a little bit about how that experience informs your work?

TS Before I came to Fishing Partnership, I lived up in Sitka, Alaska where I was a commercial fisherman. We harvested wild salmon, halibut and black cod, and we still do that in the summers as much as we can even though we’re living back here in Massachusetts. There’s nothing like Fishing Partnership in Alaska. When I was commercial fishing full-time up there, it was really challenging to figure out how to access health care as a small business owner. Each fishing boat you can think of as a small business. We have wildly fluctuating income, so it can be really hard to estimate our income when we go to apply. Between juggling the logistics of commercial fishing with the whole family on board—I fished with my partner and our two small kids—it was really hard for me to find time to figure out our health care, figure out how to meet our basic needs when we’re back on land. When we are out there, we’re not able to get online, make phone calls and keep our life on land on track. The challenges with accessing affordable health insurance and the related quality of care issues in Alaska was the tipping point that prompted us to move back to Massachusetts in 2019. This wasn’t a decision that we made lightly. It was really difficult to give up everything we’d built up there and come back here. But health care is just so important, and the stress of worrying about losing it was too much on top of all the challenges of being a commercial fisherman. So we came back with the idea that we would keep fishing up there in the summers, market our catch back here in New England and find some kind of balance between the two states and get the best of both worlds. Then COVID hit and we ended up staying here longer. So we sold our boat after a couple of years of struggling to get up there and work our boat and live here, and that’s when I started working with Fishing Partnership.

Read the full article at CAI

MASSCHUSETTS: Cape Cod lobstermen fear loss of livelihood due to Massachusetts red tape

June 23, 2025 — Cape Cod lobstermen are trying to fend off state and federal regulations that they say could put them out of business in an effort that an attorney describes as a “misguided push for uniformity.”

Beginning July 1, lobstermen will face strict rules when harvesting certain female lobsters in state and federal waters around outer Cape Cod, extending from Chatham to Provincetown’s Race Point, including a part of upper Cape Cod Bay.

The Outer Cape Lobstermen’s Association, a group of roughly 70 Massachusetts-licensed lobster trap fishers, is fighting back against the state Division of Marine Fisheries and the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, reopening a decades-old federal complaint.

The dispute will be heard in a status conference scheduled for Monday in Boston federal court.

Lobstermen in the Outer Cape Cod Conservation Management Area have been allowed to catch so-called V-notched lobsters under a 2000 settlement, but the rules set to go into effect next week will essentially ban that fishing, according to an attorney for the association.

In 2000, the association and the Commonwealth established a “regulatory regime” for outer Cape Cod distinct from other lobster conservation management areas in the state. The settlement permitted lobstermen in the region to fish for most V-notched lobsters in exchange for stricter gauge size requirements.

Read the full article at Boston Herald