Saving Seafood

Local fish markets reel from loss of bay scallops

November 3, 2020 — The bay-scallop season on Long Island’s East End started Monday, but Braun Seafood Co., which serves 700 restaurants and a large retail base market, has yet to take in even a pound of the prized shellfish.

“It’s a shame,” said Ken Homan, the company’s president. “Everybody needs that extra buck, particularly with the economy the way it’s been this year. But it’s a bust.”

As reported in Newsday on Sunday, the Peconic Bay scallop fishery appears to have suffered another catastrophic die-off, idling scores of baymen and recreational scallopers and leaving another $1.6 million hole in an economy already reeling from COVID-battered restaurants.

Local fish markets, which saw the bottom fall out of their businesses during spring lockdowns, had been looking to scallops to help shore up a difficult year that saw many bounce back sharply during the summer, mainly on the back of increased retail business and restaurants opening outdoors.

Read the full story at Newsday

NEFMC November 2020 Meeting Lineup – Groundfish, Scallops, Whiting, Habitat, and More

October 30, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council has scheduled several advisory panel and committee meetings throughout November to address actions related to groundfish, Atlantic sea scallops, whiting, habitat, and more. Webinar registration links and related documents are – or soon will be – posted on each of the respective meeting webpages. Here’s the lineup.

GROUNDFISH ROUND 1 – Wednesday, November 4: The Council’s Groundfish Advisory Panel (GAP) and Groundfish Committee will meet back-to-back to continue work on Framework Adjustment 61 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan (FMP). The GAP will meet from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and the Groundfish Committee will meet beginning at 12:45 p.m. Here is the joint meeting notice.

GROUNDFISH ROUND 2 – Monday, November 30: The GAP and Groundfish Committee will meet back-to-back once again to continue work on groundfish issues in preparation for the December 1-3, 2020 meeting of the full New England Council. More information will be posted shortly on the Council’s website.

Read the full release here

Bristol Seafood, University of New England Partner to Create New Scallop Testing Technology

October 27, 2020 — A partnership between Bristol Seafood and the University of New England (UNE) School of Marine & Environmental Programs and Seafood Analytics has resulted in the creation of a new piece of technology that can definitively identify a scallop as fresh (never frozen) or previously frozen.

“We sponsor graduate-level research at the University of New England focused on the marine space, and this year we are proud of what student Joseph Ehrhard was able to accomplish,” said Bristol CEO and President Peter Handy. “Joey worked with Dr. Keith Cox, co-founder of Seafood Analytics, to create, implement and validate a testing methodology that uses electrical impedance to assess the quality, freshness and state of sea scallops.”

Read the full story at Seafood News

NEFMC Highlights Importance of Scallop RSA Surveys During COVID-19 Pandemic

October 15, 2020 — The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) noted the value of the industry-funded Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program, calling it the “sole source” of scallop survey data during the coronavirus pandemic.

The typical survey run by NOAA Fisheries was canceled thanks to COVID-19 and it would leave key information about the status of the fishery for the year. However, the RSA program has worked as a complementary data set for about two decades.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NEFMC Gives Go Ahead for Amendment 21 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan

October 14, 2020 — Last week, the New England Fishery Management Council signed off on Amendment 21 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan.

The amendment includes new measures to “better manage total scallop removals from the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Management Area by all components of the fishery.” Along with expanding flexibility in the Limited Access General Category (LAGC) Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) fishery. The NEFMC noted that the amendment still needs NMFS/NOAA approval before it can be implemented.

Read the full story at Seafood News

Scallop RSA Surveys Gather Essential Data During COVID-19

October 13, 2020 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The industry-funded Sea Scallop Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program earned its weight in gold this year by providing the sole source of 2020 scallop survey data during the coronavirus pandemic.

NOAA Fisheries typically conducts an annual survey for Atlantic sea scallops on the R/V Hugh R. Sharp, a research vessel owned and operated by the University of Delaware. This year, however, the federal survey was canceled due to COVID-19 precautions. The cancellation of this important federal survey meant that essential information related to the current status of the resource would be missing for 2020.

Read the full release here

Atlantic scallop fishers object to ongoing sea turtle litigation

October 7, 2020 — Atlantic scallop fishermen in the Northeast U.S. are objecting to the latest ruling in a long string of litigation regarding the fishery’s responsibility to protect endangered sea turtle species.

A recent court ruling determined that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NFMS) needs to revise the method it uses for its incidental take statements. The scallop fishery, however, asserts that it has already taken steps to protect sea turtles, and that the litigation is unnecessary.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Sea bass bad, scallops super: charity updates sustainable fish guide

October 7, 2020 — Consumers are being urged to steer clear of wild-caught sea bass fished from French and Spanish waters, but to eat farmed king and queen scallops to alleviate pressure on threatened fish stocks.

Sea bass caught in the southern Bay of Biscay and Atlantic Iberian waters have been rated red in the Marine Conservation Society’s updated 2020 Good Fish Guide – joining its “fish to avoid” list – because of serious risk to local dolphin and porpoise populations.

The charity warns the use of trawling and static nets in these areas has led to dolphins and porpoises increasingly being caught as bycatch; a problem now so severe that they could disappear. Consumers are instead advised to opt for certified farmed or line-caught sea bass.

Read the full story at The Guardian

Federal court ruling requires NMFS to improve sea turtle monitoring in Atlantic scallop fishery

October 6, 2020 — A federal court has ruled in favor of an Oceana challenge to National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) rules regarding the incidental take of endangered sea turtles in the U.S. Atlantic scallop fishery, siding with the nonprofit in its assertion that the rules are inadequate.

The ruling, according to Oceana, is the latest in a “decades-long effort” by the nonprofit to ensure the scallop fishery “minimizes its harmful impacts on sea turtles.” The ruling will require the NMFS to revise its incidental take statement (ITS) to either more thoroughly explain the surrogate information, or revise its selections.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Maine scallop fishermen secure important access to northern Gulf of Maine resources

October 2, 2020 — Three years ago, the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association (MCFA) began working with fishermen and local businesses to improve scallop management and give a voice to scallop fishermen on important regulatory issues. As a result of the work from these efforts, at a virtual meeting of the New England Fishery Management Council Oct. 1, the Council voted in favor of regulations that protect both the scallop resource and the smaller Northern New England scallop fishing businesses.

The outcome of the meeting ensures that there will be a scientifically set limit on scallops harvested from the Gulf of Maine and meaningful investments in science and accountability to ensure the resource continues to grow.

The Council also voted to set aside a portion of catch specifically for the federally permitted smaller fishing businesses from Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. The scallop set aside will allow for preferential access for the small boats within this area and create stability for the small-boat fleet moving forward.

Read the full story at the Wiscasset Newspaper