Saving Seafood

Sustainable Fisheries Partnership forms partnership with Thai Union

March 21, 2022 — Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) has announced a new partnership with the Thai Union Group, one of the world’s leading seafood producers.

SFP was founded in 2006 and is a marine conservation organization working towards healthy oceans and sustainable seafood by leveraging the power of seafood buyers and retailers in the seafood supply chain. Thai Union is the world’s third largest seafood company as well as one of the largest producers of shelf-stable tuna products, and it owns and operates Chicken of the Sea and Red Lobster. The company’s annual sales exceed THB 141 billion (USD 4.5 billion, EUR 4.1 billion) and it has a workforce of more than 44,000 people.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Red Lobster latest seafood vendor to get hit with sustainability-focused lawsuit

June 15, 2021 — A growing number of class-action lawsuits are being filed against seafood retailers and foodservice outlets, claiming their offerings do not meet their own sustainability claims.

Earlier this month, in a complaint filed in the U.S. Superior Court in the District of Columbia, ALDI was accused of false advertising and marketing, with the advocacy group GMO/Toxin Free USA alleging ALDI’s claim that its salmon is sustainably sourced is not credible. Earlier this year, Mowi agreed to settle a similar lawsuit for USD 1.3 million (EUR 1.1 million). The complaint alleged that the sustainability claims on its Ducktrap River of Maine smoked salmon were false.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Thai Union scored record profits in 2020, despite Red Lobster losses

February 22, 2021 — Bangkok, Thailand-based seafood giant Thai Union earned a record profit last year despite losses from its Red Lobster affiliate, the company said in its Q4 results report, released 22 February.

The company’s net income in the fourth quarter rose 38 percent year-on-year to THB 1.46 billion (USD 48.6 million, EUR 40 million) on the back of strong core business results. The company’s net profit reached THB 6.25 billion (USD 208 million, EUR 17.2 million) last year, an increase of 64 percent from 2019. Thai Union said this is the first time that its net profit has surpassed THB 6 billion (USD 200 million, EUR 164.7 million).

Read the full story at Seafood Source

US aquaculture lobbying group urges Biden to prioritize local seafood production

January 29, 2021 — Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS), a trade group has emerged to promote aquaculture in the United States, has sent a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden, asking that his administration prioritize domestic seafood production.

Specifically, the group has asked that aquaculture be included as part Biden’s oceans and climate policies “as a means to build back a stronger, more resilient America.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Red Lobster’s Chief Supply Chain Officer Joins SNP Board

September 9, 2020 — The following was released by the Seafood Nutrition Partnership:

The Seafood Nutrition Partnership (SNP) is pleased to announce Nelson Griffin of Red Lobster® is joining its Board of Directors. Griffin, a veteran of foodservice and consumer package good procurement and supply chain management, brings a wealth of experience and thought leadership to SNP as it strengthens its outreach to encourage even more Americans to eat sustainable seafood for better health through consumer-facing campaigns such as Eat Seafood, America!

Griffin is Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer at Red Lobster, the world’s largest casual dining seafood restaurant company, based in Orlando, Florida. In his current role, he is responsible for leading all the supply chain related activities, which includes over $900MM of food, beverages, all supplies including kitchen equipment, product distribution and travel services for more than 700 restaurants around the world. In addition, he oversees the Total Quality department that is responsible for food safety, product quality and restaurant inspections.

“I am honored to join the Seafood Nutrition Partnership Board of Directors,” Griffin said. “I admire and respect the diverse Board and the important work the organization is doing to help move the needle on seafood consumption in the U.S.”

Prior to joining Red Lobster, Griffin served in several roles at Darden Restaurants, Inc., most recently as Vice President of Supply Chain. Previously, he was Director of Strategic Procurement for Kellogg’s and served in a variety of roles for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.

“We are thrilled to have Nelson join the Board,” SNP Board Chair Steve Hart said. “He brings decades of experience in supply chain best practices that will provide great direction for the future of SNP, and he believes in the importance of bringing healthy sustainable seafood to consumers.”

Read the full release here

Coronavirus forces Red Lobster to explore rent easements, refinancing options

August 26, 2020 — Thai Union is looking at refinancing Red Lobster’s loans, reduced rent from landlords, and potentially closing some locations after the restaurant chain posted a USD 18.4 million (THB 579 million, EUR 15.6 million) loss in the fourth quarter.

The record losses were caused by having to close down all 600 dining rooms for a period of time, Thai Union Chief Financial Officer Joerg Ayrle said on an investor conference call.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

US industry, offshore farmers believe Trump’s order will have ‘huge’ impact

May 11, 2020 — An executive order issued May 7 by the administration of US president Donald Trump will have “huge” and far-reaching impacts on the country’s ability to farm its own seafood, particularly offshore, sources told Undercurrent News. The order establishes the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as the federal government’s lead agency for aquaculture permitting, set a two-year deadline for permitting most projects and seeks to develop “aquaculture opportunity zones”, among other provisions.

Its importance should not be  “underestimated”, Margaret Henderson of the group Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS) told Undercurrent.

“We in the seafood business know how much value we bring to the American public, we know how much value we bring to the global economy. But it’s not something you see batted around every day at the Oval Office,” she said.

She added that SATS was founded following a Nov 2017 meeting among representatives of companies such as Cargill, Pacific Seafood Group, Red Lobster, Fortune International, and Taylor Shellfish. The members met with the leadership of NOAA and Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross about their hope to bring change to the sector.

“They indicated to us a willingness to move something like this back then. We’d been in constant communication and had several White House meetings since that time and have been working very close with the entire NOAA team who really should credit for the language in this product. They’ve been working on this for a very long time,” Henderson said.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Maine is running out of lobster bait. Is salmon the answer?

May 1, 2019 — People love lobster. For some, it’s nostalgic, eliciting memories of bygone days and summers in Maine. For others, it’s a celebratory meal reserved for special occasions. From whole lobster or tail to a lobster roll or bisque—from Panera, McDonald’s, and Red Lobster to the finest white-tablecloth restaurant, lobster is an iconic American food. And waitstaff and apps tell diners that Maine lobster is thriving—it’s a sustainable fishery certified by the Marine Stewardship Council—so they can feel good about what’s on their plates.

The bait used to catch lobster, however, is less on people’s minds. But it’s unavoidable when talking to Maine’s lobstermen these days.

Genevieve McDonald fishes out of Maine’s largest lobster port aboard the F/V Hello Darlings II. Last November, she became Maine’s first female commercial fisherman (“fisherman” and “lobsterman” are the strongly preferred terms for both women and men in the industry, she says) elected to the Maine House of Representatives, representing a district that includes Maine’s two biggest lobster ports. Not surprisingly, McDonald ran on a platform many in the fishing industry support. But above all else, one issue stood out.

“Our biggest issue is the bait crisis,” she said in November, regarding a newly imposed 70 percent catch limit cut for herring, the most popular lobster bait. “I can’t get the herring quota back,” she said, “but I want to try to see about other species.”

Read the full story at National Geographic

Industry group pushing for more aquaculture in the United States

September 17, 2018 — When it comes to aquaculture in the United States, there’s a sea of opportunity.

Seas of opportunity, really.

Since the United States boasts the second-largest exclusive enterprise zone in the world – meaning it has proprietary marine resource rights over an area totaling roughly 4.4 million square miles in three oceans, the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico – aquaculture would seem like an ideal industry for the country. That’s especially true since America’s coastlines are home to a variety of seafood species.

However, as aquaculture has witnessed exponential growth worldwide in recent years, the United States really has not been a significant player in the industry. According to the World Bank, aquaculture produced more than 106 million metric tons (MT) of seafood in 2015. That’s more than double the seafood farms created in 2003 and more than 50 times the yield reported in 1960.

In 1960, the United States ranked fourth in the world, harvesting 104,421 metric tons of the more than two million MT produced worldwide.

In 2015, America was responsible for just 426,000 MT – or just 0.4 percent of the worldwide harvest. That put the it 18th in the world in aquaculture production, trailing such countries as Ecuador, Malaysia, and North Korea.

By contrast, the United States ranks No. 1 in the world in poultry and beef production.

Aquaculture supporters say there’s a major reason for that discrepancy. Don Kent, the president and CEO of Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, told SeafoodSource his organization has tried for more than a decade to develop a small fish farm off the Southern California coast, but so far to no avail.

“In a lot of ways, what we’re trying to do in aquaculture is just growing another kind of food. We already know how to grow chickens and pigs. We know how to grow vegetables, and we even know how to grow catfish and trout. We have regulations for handling that,” he said. “What we don’t have is permission to go out into ocean and use the ocean in a sustainable way.”

That’s why a new trade group has emerged to promote aquaculture in the United States. Stronger America Through Seafood – represented by officials from such companies as Cargill, Pacific Seafood, Red Lobster, and High Liner Foods – sees aquaculture as a way to provide Americans increased access to seafood products that are both sustainable and affordable.

Margaret Henderson, the group’s campaign director, told SeafoodSource that the organization came together after industry leaders were encouraged by some of the positions expressed by federal officials regarding increased domestic seafood production. At the same time, Henderson said those same industry leaders looked around and saw no private-sector organization championing those efforts.

Read the full story at Seafood Source