populations

Vote With Your Fork

One of the most common questions we’re asked about supporting traditional fishing communities is, “That’s great, but now what? How do I know what fish is ok to buy?” The answer to this might seem complex, but one step we can all take is to simply buy wild domestic seafood. The statistics speak loud and clear: 91% of the seafood consumed in the U.S. is imported, and over half of what we catch here is sent overseas. That is a broken supply chain. With our own traditional fishing communities struggling to have better access to the marketplace, one of the best choices we can make is to be patriotic with our seafood purchases.

Although fish populations remain challenged around the globe, US wild fisheries have made remarkable strides from thirty years ago. When the Magnuson-Stevens Act was passed in 1976, it became federal law that no U.S. waters could be overfished. Though better management has taken time to implement, today we’re ahead of most countries when it comes to protecting our marine ecosystems. Around the country, fish stocks are rebuilding, fishing methods are becoming more sustainable, and independent fishermen have a chance to pass their work down to the next generation. Things are still far from perfect, but it’s important that we recognize the success stories.

Atlantic Spiny Dogfish is one such success story. Underutilized in the U.S., no rules were put in place to protect the species. Dogfish is extremely popular in Europe, and the increased foreign demand combined with a lack of management soon led to declining stocks. Strict management was implemented, and the fishery was declared rebuilt in 2010, receiving MSC certification in 2012. With Atlantic Cod quotas cut 77%, Dogfish is an abundant species available as an alternative catch for Northeast fishermen.

Dogfish is somewhat of a Cinderella story in the fish world: it’s gone from an undervalued species to a sustainable, delicious, extremely affordable option. Its lean white meat is a wonderful substitute for imported sturgeon, and its clean flavor shines through when cooked sous vide or braised. “It's got great flavor when it's raw, and would be killer for sushi,” adds chef Nathan Shapiro of the Ashby Inn. It’s time that we start noticing more of our diverse domestic fish species, and make fish like Atlantic Dogfish the belle of the ball. After all, sometimes the best culinary magic happens when we look no further than our own surroundings- or waters- to feed us. 

Cod's Close Cousins

Last Wednesday marked a turning point for the New England fishing community when the New England Fishery Management Council approved deep cuts to the cod quota that are expected to put many fishermen out of business. “That’s it. I’m all done. The boat’s going up for sale,” said Gloucester fisherman Paul Vitale in response to the news. There’s no escaping the fact that tough times are ahead for this historic fishing community.

New England was built on cod. They even named a cape after it. “People settled this area because of the bountiful fish stocks that they found here,” says GMRI’s Jen Levin. From Portland to Gloucester, Cape Cod to New Bedford, waterfront communities prospered thanks to abundant fish populations. In those early days, fish seemed endless, and fishing wasn’t regulated. As fishing technology developed, we put increasing pressure on our fish stocks. In the mid-20th century, huge factory trawlers from as far away as Russia fished the seas for all they were worth. It wasn’t until the 1980’s, when faced with a near collapse of the fishery, did we wise up to the real impact of human greed. Strict fishery management began, and New England finally adopted a catch share management program in 2010. Soon after, cod seemed to be rebounding to healthy levels.

Last year, long suffering New England fishermen were dealt a cruel blow. Cod populations that just one year before had been rapidly growing, suddenly fell. No one could explain it, but management was required to severely reduce quota. Although not their fault, fishermen would suffer. The fact is, this week’s news has been a long time coming. Just as fishermen began managing the resource in a sustainable way, another culprit - climate change - wreaked havoc on fish stocks as cod swam north in response to warming ocean temperatures.

As the New England fishing community faces a grim reality, it’s important that we stick by our fishermen. Now is the time to get acquainted with cod’s close cousins, haddock and pollock, and create a market for what these fishermen are still able to catch. “It will be tough for the next few years,” said Michael Castigliego of Somerset, MA. “But we’ll get through it. It should be better three or four years from now. At least, that’s what we hope.” If we want our traditional working waterfronts to endure, let’s remember on the long road ahead that our independent fishermen are a vital part of our food system.

As One Door Closes, Another Door Opens

For years scientists have been blaming fishermen for depleted cod stocks in the Gulf of Maine, but now evidence points to another culprit -- climate change. As waters warm, cod are swimming to colder seas. But record high temperatures in the North Atlantic are bringing other species, and as lobster's natural predators head north, lobstermen like Captain Bobby Springer are seeing populations grow.

Bobby has been lobstering literally since he was a baby watching his dad from a crib on the boat. At the tender age of five Bobby started hauling traps, and when he was 17 he bought his granddaddy’s 31-foot lobster boat the F/V Northeaster. He’ll never forget the time he spotted a killer whale in the Gulf of Maine, or the time a propane tank exploded when he was 35 miles offshore, nearly killing him and his crew. Now lobstering on the F/V Bridget & Mary, Bobby credits his success to being extremely hard working. This wise lobster boat captain says, "If you do the work, you make a living. Nothing more, nothing less."

They say New England was built on cod, and though cod seem headed for the waters of Greenland, haddock populations are strong. We expect regular landings all winter from our Portland friends working the F/V Orin and F/V Maura K with beautiful haddock at the lowest prices we have seen in two years. We are also Individual Quick Freezing the tails from Captain Bobby’s lobster catch as well as the claw and knuckle meat.

The only constant is change, and we all have to adapt. Rigorous regulations and warming waters bring continuous challenge to independent New England fishermen. The best way to ensure the future for our treasured traditional fishing communities is to buy their catch.

Shrimp Hot and Cold

Shrimp are delicious little critters that everyone loves, but few respect. In our Huffington Post blog we discuss the opaque seafood supply chain that allows Asian pond-farms to fuel Red Lobster’s “Endless Shrimp” buffet. Sea to Table offers chefs access to delicious wild shrimp, traceable right to the boat, that they can be proud to serve their guests.

Up north in Alaska where temperatures were 33 below in Fairbanks last week, there was a small fall opening for the treasured Spot Prawn. Record dock prices are not expected to decrease demand in Japan, where more than 80 percent of the catch ends up. These cold-water prawns are unlike any shrimp you have ever tasted. The frigid Alaska waters force an extremely high fat content making them succulent and even creamy when eaten raw. Many chefs consider Spot Prawns their favorite crustacean. Alaska Wild Spot Prawns are harvested in pots, or traps, limiting by-catch and environmental impact to nearly zero. Our Sitka friend Captain John Bahrt landed a portion of that quota on the F/V Kristina and IQF flash froze both jumbo (with roe) and medium Spot Prawn tails right at the dock. They rode a barge and train to get to our cold storage where we can FedEx Next Day Ground ship to you. Do not miss these sweet treats.

Waters are warmer in the Gulf of Mexico where abundant white shrimp populations are fueling a recovery in traditional fishing communities built on shrimp. The sleepy town of Port St. Joe, Florida has two claims to fame: legendary high school basketball coach Vernon C. Eppinette, and a prospering local shrimping dock that's been run by the Wood family for five generations. At Wood's Fisheries, shrimp is more than something on your plate, it's someone's life. The Wood family has been shrimping since the mid-1800s. With a little luck and hard work, they've built a state-of-the-art processing plant that blast-freezes shrimp from the Gulf's best shrimping boats, taking care to only source shrimp that has been caught sustainably and left untouched by chemicals. Though Wood's is ahead of the curve when it comes to sourcing and freezing shrimp, a visit to the dock is like taking a trip to old-time Florida, where strangers still greet each other on the street and shrimpers congregate on the dock, chewing the fat and gearing up for their next voyage. We're happy to be supporting this traditional fishing community for future generations.

Cod in Hot Water

NOAA has released data showing that for the first six months of 2012, sea surface temperatures and bottom temperatures on the Northeast Continental shelf were the highest ever recorded. Many species of fish change their locations in response to temperature. This is a well known phenomenon with Atlantic Cod, where 'cod distribution continues to be dynamic, with northerly shifts detected in the spring 2012 data, consistent with a response to ecosystem warming'. “Two years ago we did have a good biomass of codfish off Montauk (NY) and even here and then those fish just disappeared,” said Capt. Jimmy Elliott of the Golden Eagle in Belmar NJ. In essence, US Atlantic Cod stocks appear to be moving to Canada.

As maybe the alarming upward temperatures are not solely in man’s purview, declining Gulf of Maine cod populations are not just the fault of fishermen. Our friend Jen Levin of Gulf of Maine Research Institute’s Responsibly Harvested program says that “New England was built on Cod”. Luckily as Atlantic Cod swim north, populations of their close cousins, Atlantic Hake and Pollock, remain healthy and sustainable. We need to enjoy Maine’s best eating fish, and support New England fishermen.

NOAA had some better news as U.S seafood landings reached a 17-year high in 2011, thanks in part to rebuilding fish populations, and increased value of landings. Yet even with the improved catch last year, the U.S. still imported over 90% of the seafood consumed here in 2011, with the majority being farmed fish from Asia. We all need to eatbetterfish.

In another interesting development, scientists have discovered that sharks are colorblind. Kinda wish everyone was.

Old England, New England

There is a BBC TV series called The Fisherman’s Apprentice where Monty Halls travels to a traditional Cornwall fishing village in the south of England. He discovers that over 80% of the fishing boats are less than 30 feet long, yet the large industrial fleets land over 80% of the catch. He reports that over 80% of the catch is exported outside the UK, while the UK imports over $3 Billion per year in seafood. He does not understand why England does not support their traditional fishing industry.

All the issues he identifies in Old England ring true in New England, where our fisherman friend Terry Alexander is now a member of the New England Management Council. While some Gulf of Maine species like Atlantic Cod still are struggling to recover, their close cousin, Atlantic Pollock or Saithe, is abundantly thriving. As opposed to Pacific Pollock, a smaller, less desirable species that is industrially fish by massive process-at-sea vessels, Atlantic Pollock are landing most every day by small vessels in Portland, and give chefs the opportunity to enjoy a delicious under-appreciated fish and support a treasured fishery.

A great story is the resurgence of the Spiny Dogfish. While shark populations are being challenged worldwide, Dogfish, or sand sharks in the northeast, have become so abundant that they were last week certified as a sustainable fishery by the Marine Stewardship Council. Dogfish are small bottom dwellers that swim the Atlantic Ocean at depths of 2,400 feet. They swim and hunt in packs of 100 to 1000 – hence the name Dogfish. Low in fat and high in Selenium and vitamins B6 & B12, dogfish are a good protein choice. The shark has a mild flavor some say it is similar to cod. The meat holds up well to marinades and it is great on the grill.

A staple of the English fish and chip shop, Dogfish also make for an outstanding fish sandwich. We think that an everyman’s fish sandwich will become an ever more popular choice. In NYC’s Ditch Plains, chef Marc Murphy serves an All-American saithe sandwich to rave reviews. What is your favorite fish sandwich? Please reply to this email or or tweet @sea2table with the hashtag #everymansfish. Best sandwich wins a prize.

Fishy Clams

The owner of a NYC Chinatown fish market was arrested for allegedly selling dangerously dirty clams that she smuggled in on the luggage racks of passenger buses that regularly travel from Washington to Boston. Packaged in burlap, about a dozen packages would arrive on each bus Mondays and Tuesdays. Tests showed high levels of fecal matter and other bacteria that made the claims unfit for human consumption. “Bottom line is this: would you want to eat something stored in the luggage cart of a bus since at least Philadelphia?” asked Department of Environmental Conservation Officer Brent Wilson. Meanwhile, in response to worldwide outrage that the practice of “finning” sharks has decimated the shark populations of all the oceans, the Chinese government announced that they would no longer serve shark-fin soup at state dinners.

The growing problem of fish fraud does not seem to get the attention it deserves. A Boston Globe investigation found fish bought at restaurants across New England was mislabeled about half the time. Sometimes it was innocent error due to the opacity of the supply chain, but often the switch was deliberate, driven by profit. The solution is simple: know where your fish comes from. Our transparent model hopes to shed some light on these issues, as we are most proud of the fishermen whose catch we sell.

Striped Bass season opens in both Massachusetts and New York next week, and it looks like a bumper season ahead. Sockeye Salmon arrived late to Bristol Bay this year, but it looks like the harvest will meet expectations as more that 2 million fish have already been landed. With the mining threat to the world’s greatest salmon nursery remaining virulent, remember that the best way to save a wild sockeye is to eat a wild sockeye.

With reports that agribusiness giants Monsanto and Cargill are now aggressively marketing Genetically Modified Soybeans as feed to salmon farmers, one can’t help notice the similarity of aquaculture and industrial meat production. Once you look behind the curtain at a chicken processing plant or a fish farm, the protein does not taste quite as good. Scientists at Oceana have recently proposed that with proper management, the world’s oceans are capable of doubling the harvest of sustainable wild fish to help feed the world’s growing human population. I find the idea of supporting natural systems very appealing. We all know that happy chickens lay better eggs.

Independent Fishermen on Independence Day

So what does sustainable mean? According to Wikipedia, it's the "capacity to endure". Over the past ten years we have seen US fish populations grow dramatically, from a point where their very existence was threatened to where we can see a sustainable future. “With annual catch limits in place this year for all domestic fish populations and the continued commitment of fishermen to rebuild the stocks they rely on, we’re making even greater progress in ending over-fishing and rebuilding stocks around the nation” reports NOAA. Although all is not perfect, this is great news for all, especially for traditional fishing communities whose extended families depend on healthy fisheries. Sea to Table wants to create better markets for the fishermen who feed these villages. Please take a minute and visit with a few of our friends:

John Bahrt  Sitka, AK

Chris Nicholson  Naknek, AK

Jack Cox  Beaufort, NC

Terry Alexander  Portland, ME

Vermillion Snapper season opens today in North Carolina, and on this holiday week FedEx will only be delivering on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Enjoy Fourth of July festivities. "It's our patriotic duty to eat mussels, clams and oysters," according to our friend Barton Seaver. "A dozen oysters, a six-pack of beer, and a bottle of Tabasco is the most patriotic thing I can think of".

It's not just about the fish

We applaud the folks at Whole Foods (who shot this video with us down in Beaufort, NC last month) in their efforts to protect fish populations, but traditional fishing cultures need protecting as well. We carefully follow the advice of the scientific community, but by-catch species such as triggerfish in the Carolinas and little skate in New England with healthy abundant populations remain “unranked”. These under-appreciated, under-utilized species mean a great deal to the fishermen. Taking care of the fish is not enough; this resource feeds a whole community.

May Day has been a tradition of festivities throughout the centuries; a celebration of Spring, a day of political protest, pagan festivals, a saint's feast day, and opening day for grouper season in the Carolinas. Dave Tucker will start dayboat fishing grouper, pink snapper, cobia and amberjack on the F/V Emily's Weigh. James Holden will be doing the same for grouper and triggerfish on the F/V Sea Mint. Ray, Ian, and Randy Gray will be gigging flounder from the F/V Flounder Hounder at night with lights shining in the water. Way cool.

The only guy tough enough to go out in the fierce winds off Beaufort last week was Captain Donnie White of the F/V Sea Wolf. He has been greensticking for mahi, blackfin, yellowfin, and wahoo. Greenstick fishing rigs consist of long fiberglass poles mounted to the stern with no more than 10 hooks attached. Hooks are baited with plastic squid and trolled across the surface, mimicking flying fish skipping across the water. The Japanese introduced the gear to Hawaii in the 1980’s, and the quick retrieval allows fishermen to bring better fish to market, while significantly reducing by-catch.

Good news and bad news from New England where herring populations are strongly rebounding, while yellowtail flounder quota was cut by 80%. Very bad news from further north in Nova Scotia where Cooke Aquaculture was ordered by the Canadian government to destroy their entire salmon farm population due to a reemergence of the dreaded ISA virus. Friends don’t let friends eat farmed salmon. Alaska wild salmon season is just around the corner.

Every Day is Earth Day

With over 70% of the earth’s surface covered by water, we think the term Earth Day is a bit too terrestrial. Wild fishing is man’s last true hunting for food, and chefs need to step forward to help ensure that our children enjoy this wonder.

The threat to the world’s greatest salmon nursery in Bristol Bay, Alaska remains virulent. The approval process for the world’s largest open pit mine in the headwaters of the bay reaches a critical point this spring when the EPA submits their report to Congress. None of us want to jeopardize the 40 million sockeye returning to Bristol Bay each year to spawn. In a culture where food is ever growing in importance, chefs are gatekeepers. We are sending chefs a Stop Pebble Mine hat, and asking them to shoot a smart phone video imploring Congress to do just that. These videos will be used in a concerted effort by people who think wild salmon are worth saving. Please don your cap.

While 20% of the world’s protein is derived from the sea, an estimated 20% of the world’s catch is landed illegally, reports Dr. Ray Hilborn, a fisheries scientist at the University of Washington. While management has become much better in the United States in much of the world rule-breaking “is an accepted way of business”. It was reported last week that 55% of seafood samples tested in Los Angeles were fraudulently labeled. Don’t buy fish from strangers.

Captain John of the F/V New Wave is again landing side-striped shrimp via otter trawl in Prince William Sound, AK. His is the only boat targeting them in Whittier; after landing he drives them 90 minutes to ship just hours out of the water. These sugar sweet shrimp the Japanese call ebi should land every Tuesday and Friday through August, and can be combined with halibut, cod or salmon.

The “Give Swordfish a Break” effort championed by chefs in the 90’s did so well that swordfish populations are thriving. "The swordfish is a success story," said Ellen Peel, president of The Billfish Foundation, “it has recovered.'' The U.S. has reduced fishing so much it is catching only 70 percent of its swordfish quota under the current international fishing treaty. If it doesn't catch more fish, the U.S. risks losing its quota to countries that allow fishing without measures to prevent the accidental catch of sea turtles, marlin, sharks and juvenile swordfish. Now the best way to protect swordfish is to eat them.

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