Saving Seafood

Is it safe to eat seafood in the Tampa Bay area during Red Tide?

July 16, 2021 — With no end in sight for the Red Tide algal blooms currently plaguing the Tampa Bay area, questions have surfaced concerning the safety of the region’s locally sourced seafood. We spoke with several food safety and marine biology experts about what consumers should know before dining out and how best to avoid fish and seafood that may be contaminated.

Is it safe to eat local seafood during Red Tide?

The short answer is yes. Most of the local seafood sold at markets and restaurants in the Tampa Bay area is fished offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, and the industry is heavily regulated and monitored for safety. Florida grouper and snapper are all fished in areas far offshore nowhere near the coastal algal blooms plaguing the region, said Dr. Steve Murawski, a professor of fishery biology at the University of South Florida’s College of Marine Science.

“Generally, the major seafood components are offshore,” Murawski said. “This particular Red Tide is really restricted to the very near-shore area from north of Port Charlotte up to Pasco County, and in terms of sourcing traditional grouper, snapper, scallops … they wouldn’t be affected by this.”

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, storebought seafood and seafood served at local restaurants can be considered safe to eat because it’s been monitored and tested prior to distribution.

Read the full story at The Tampa Bay Times

FLORIDA: Tampa Bay fishermen donate their catch to families struggling during the pandemic

November 19, 2020 — Fishermen from the Tampa Bay area are stepping up to help families in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders’ Alliance is partnering with the St. Petersburg Free Clinic to bring 20,000 pounds of fresh fish to families who are facing economic hardship because of the pandemic. 

Over the next few months, commercial fishermen in Madeira Beach will donate red grouper and red snapper to St. Petersburg Free Clinic for distribution to the people and community it serves. The clinic is a multi-service, independent, human services agency that helps locals who are in need of food, shelter and health care.

“Since the onset of the pandemic, we’ve been serving at times up to triple the amount of families we typically support,” said Jennifer Yeagley, CEO of St. Petersburg Free Clinic. “Half of these households have never had to visit a food pantry prior to COVID-19. So, we are very grateful to the local fishing captains and these businesses all working together to provide sustainable, local seafood to our neighbors in need.”

Read the full story WTSP

National Fish accuses former employee of sharing trade secrets in recent lawsuit

July 26, 2018 –Kathleen Scanlon – the former head of research, development, and quality assurance for National Fish & Seafood – was ordered not to work for her new employer, Tampa Bay Fisheries, and return National Fish property in a heated court battle.

Pacific Andes-owned National Fish, based in Gloucester, Massachusetts, filed a complaint against Scanlon, Tampa Bay, and a “John Doe” on 20 July, alleging that Scanlon “unlawfully acquired NFS’ confidential information and trade secrets” involving its proprietary clam production process.

NFS, which markets the longstanding Matlaw’s stuffed clam and seafood line, said Scanlon’s action were “part of a scheme to harm NFS’ position in the seafood-supply industry,” according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Boston.

Dover, Florida-based Tampa Bay Fisheries specializes in private label seafood for retailers and restaurants. Both suppliers recently tried to secure a national listing with Whole Foods Market, according to the complaint.

After working for NFS for 20 years, Scanlon voluntarily resigned on 11 July. She was set to begin working for Tampa Bay Fisheries on 23 July.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Scallops rebounding in Tampa Bay, count shows

August 26, 2015 — People are jumping into the waters north of here and hauling out scallops by the thousands this time of year, but the environmental group Tampa Bay Watch is rejoicing at a far smaller found number closer to home — just 233 of them.

It was a scientific undertaking by selected volunteers off Boca Ciega and Fort DeSoto that turned up the local scallops Saturday, rather than hungry snorkelers looking for their next meal from the Pasco-Hernando county line north during the Gulf harvest that runs through Sept. 24.

But 233 is nearly double the 112 found in local waters during last year’s Great Bay Scallop Search and represents an upward trend line that has local scallop watchers celebrating. Just five were counted in 2011.

Both Tampa Bay Watch and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission describe scallop populations as an indicator of water quality because of the shellfish’s sensitivity to pollution and their ability to filter and clean the water of nuisance species like phytoplankton.

Scallop numbers can be an indicator that something’s going on at a bigger level, and extreme changes mean the local population might collapse, said Sarah Stephenson, a scientist at the state’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute.

Read the full story at The Suncoast News