Saving Seafood

USDA Announces $50 Million in Grants Awarded to States to Support the Seafood Industry

February 15, 2022 — The following was released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced an investment of approximately $50 million in grants to support seafood processors, processing facilities and processing vessels through the Seafood Processors Pandemic Response and Safety Block Grant Program (SPRS).

This grant funding, to be distributed through state agencies, will help defray costs incurred by seafood processing facilities and processing vessels preparing for, preventing exposure to, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. SPRS recipients include state agencies, commissions, or departments responsible for agriculture, fisheries, wildlife, seafood, commercial processing, or related commerce activities within Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, as well as the territory of American Samoa. This program is funded by the Pandemic Assistance provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.

“USDA is working with agricultural and food businesses to ensure that, following the pandemic disruptions, they have the resources and tools to continue building more and better markets, and to thrive in 2022 and beyond,” said USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. “This funding for seafood processors and processing vessels will serve as a bridge, providing relief to an industry that was greatly affected by the pandemic as well as the resulting changes in consumer demand. This program is part of our larger pandemic assistance program, providing support to producers, distributors, processors and other small agricultural businesses to get our food system back on track.”

Once USDA has made awards, state agencies will provide funds to seafood processing facilities and processing vessels. Seafood processors and processing vessels should apply directly through their state agency. A listing of state contacts will be made available on the USDA website.

Additionally, states are encouraged to prioritize applications that benefit smaller processors and vessels, socially disadvantaged processors, veteran processors, and/or underserved communities. For grants intending to serve these entities, applicants should engage and involve those beneficiaries when developing projects and applications.

A complete list of the SPRS grant recipients is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service website at: Seafood Processors Pandemic Response and Safety (SPRS) Block Grant Program.

AMS supports U.S. food and agricultural products market opportunities, while increasing consumer access to fresh, healthy foods through applied research, technical services, and Congressionally funded grants. To learn more about AMS’s investments in enhancing and strengthening agricultural systems, visit www.ams.usda.gov/grants.

Read the release from the USDA

 

Inflation dampens US retail seafood sales in January

February 14, 2022 — Increasing inflation and spiking seafood prices hampered the category’s U.S. retail sales in January.

Fresh seafood prices soared 10.8 percent year-over-year in January to USD 8.92 (EUR 7.89) per unit on average, according to new data from IRI and 210 Analytics, led by a 17.2 percent hike in finfish prices. Frozen seafood prices jumped 10.2 percent to USD 9.94 (EUR 8.79) per unit on average, while ambient seafood prices rose 7.2 percent to USD 2.01 (EUR 1.78) per unit compared to 2021.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Restaurants, grocers banking on Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day seafood sales

February 11, 2022 — U.S. restaurants and supermarket chains are pushing seafood promotions for Super Bowl weekend and Valentine’s Day as near-record spending is predicted.

However, the scheduling of the Super Bowl on 13 February, with Valentine’s Day right behind it on 14 February, could hamper overall retail sales for the two holidays, according to Shawn Oliver, seafood category manager for Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based Giant Eagle.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Major border crossing blocked over Canadian trucker protests

February 8, 2022 — Canadian truck driver protesters have impeded access to the busiest international crossing in North America.

The demonstrations began January 29 as an objection to a vaccine mandate requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 or face testing and quarantine requirements. Beginning 7 February, the Ambassador Bridge that links Windsor, Ontario, Canada, and Detroit, Michigan, U.S.A., was partially blocked by those participating in the collective action, according to CNN. Canadian-bound traffic was still shut down as of the morning of Tuesday, 8 February, while U.S.-bound traffic was flowing with limited bridge access.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Alaska lawmakers criticize US approach toward Russian seafood imports

February 8, 2022 — Lawmakers from the U.S. state of Alaska are criticizing U.S. trade policies they claim undermine the state’s seafood exports.

Two resolutions, SJR-16 and SJR-17, were advanced in mid-January by the Alaska House Fisheries Committee that address Russia’s U.S. food import ban, which has been in place since 2014, and China’s seafood import tariffs, which were enacted as part of the Sino-U.S. trade war initiated by former U.S. President Donald Trump.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Complicated labor picture challenging US restaurant sector growth

February 7, 2022 — A new report from the National Restaurant Association is predicting the U.S. foodservice industry will grow 6 percent to reach USD 898 billion (EUR 786 billion) in sales in 2022.

But the NRA’s 2022 State of the Restaurant Industry Report found it faces numerous existential threats, including rising business costs, an extremely shallow labor pool, and supply chain disruptions. More than half of operators believe it will take more than a year for business conditions to return to normal, the study found.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Changes to MSC fisheries standard up for public review

February 4, 2022 — The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has initiated a 60-day public review of its proposed updates to the MSC fisheries standard, with stakeholders having until 4 April to review and provide feedback.

More than 446 fisheries, representing about 17 percent of the global wild marine harvest, are certified to the MSC fisheries standard – which is regularly reviewed for best practices in fisheries management. The current fisheries standard review began in 2018, and has included the participation of over 1,000 stakeholders. The draft standard has been approved by the MSC’s board of trustees and is now moving into the final stage of public review.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

Oceana report calls for SIMP to cover all species, tougher US stance against IUU fishing

February 3, 2022 — A report released by Oceana on Tuesday, 1 February, calls on the U.S. to expand the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP), saying that the federal legislation designed to prevent fraudulently labeled products and specimens harvested from illegal fishing practices from entering the country includes too many loopholes.

The 36-page report notes a report by the U.S. International Trade Commission found that of the seafood imported into the U.S. in 2019, USD 2.4 billion (EUR 2.13 billion) worth was fished illegally. Examples of illegal fishing include crews harvesting fish in unpermitted areas, exceeding catch limits, mislabeling products, and using forced labor.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

China promoting consumption of distant-water catch to tame inflation, conserve local fisheries

February 2, 2022 — Government officials and executives from China’s distant-water fishing sector are teaming up to promote increased consumption of the distant-water catch in interior regions of the country as a way of taming price inflation and conserving local fisheries.

Officials from China’s Ministry of Agriculture joined members of China’s Distant-Water Fishing Association in Chongqing recently for the “Promoting Ocean Seafood Inland” roadshow, which since September 2021 has also included stops in Changsha, Wuhan, Hefei, and Xi’an. The events have taken place in luxury hotels in the inland cities and have featured seafood exhibits and cooking demonstrations.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Cooke appoints Michael Szemerda as Global Chief Sustainability Officer

February 2, 2022 — The following was released by Cooke Inc.:

Cooke Inc. is pleased to announce the appointment of Michael Szemerda as Global Chief Sustainability Officer. 

“Cooke’s core purpose is ‘To cultivate the ocean with care, nourish the world, provide for our families, and build stronger communities’ and our approach to sustainability is central to this,” says Szemerda, who has been with Cooke for 30 years and works as the Vice President of Saltwater Operations for Cooke Aquaculture’s North American Operations. “Across all our subsidiary companies, we are fortunate to have some of the best and brightest minds in wild fisheries and aquaculture working to innovate and implement practices using sound science and advanced technologies to ensure our seafood is sustainable. I’m excited to unify these efforts and continue this important work with our colleagues around the globe.” In this newly established role, Szemerda will oversee all environmental programs and regulatory programs, industry certifications, and sustainability initiatives across Cooke’s global wild and farmed subsidiaries.  

“Michael has shown great leadership throughout his career with Cooke, and he has vast experience with all of Cooke’s saltwater operations around the globe,” says Glenn Cooke, CEO of Cooke Inc. “We’re thrilled that he has accepted this role at such a pivotal time of growth for our company. We know his experience with our operations, and knowledge of the seafood industry will help us in our commitment to protecting and enhancing the marine environments we work in.”  

Cooke is proud to offer True North Seafood products that meet a variety of certifications and recommendations to support sustainability. The Cooke family of companies ships one billion pounds of seafood annually through harvesting 30% wild species (wild salmon, whitefish, and shellfish) and 70% farmed species (Atlantic salmon, steelhead trout, white Pacific shrimp, sea bass, and sea bream).

Read the release here