abundant

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. 

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.

Genetically modified salmon is more than a food safety risk; it threatens the livelihoods of traditional fishermen. Our friend Christopher Nicolson has been landing wild salmon in Bristol Bay since he was thirteen. Nicolson tells us that in the 1940s, pioneers flocked to the Alaskan territory to take advantage of the Homestead Act, which offered ownership to anyone who spent two years on a piece of land. Nicolson’s grandfather spent two winters without permanent structure in a camp on Graveyard Point, Alaska. Nicolson and his cousins return each summer to fish from the same homestead that their grandfather built.

The Bristol Bay salmon run is the largest and best managed in the world. Fishermen camp together waiting for the openings, and then work together to pull shallow nets bulging with the brilliantly-colored salmon coursing through the rivers and streams. The six week season is abundant enough to provide superlative sockeye salmon, flash-frozen at the dock, year-round. Nicolson spends the rest of the year as a winemaker in Brooklyn with his wife and small children, but two months ago Hurricane Sandy devastated his Red Hook winery. We hope for a quick recovery of the business, and that in the meantime his work as a fisherman can carry him through the hard time.

Now Frankenfish is moving one step closer to our dinner plates. Even as AquaBounty, the company who genetically engineered this fast-growing salmon hybrid, struggles to stay afloat, the FDA is expected to approve genetically-modified salmon, and the fish could potentially reach grocery stores months from now. Consumer fear of GMO farmed salmon is justifiable, and the environmental risk associated with genetically engineered fish is yet unknown. If we want a healthy source of seafood for future generations, GMO farmed salmon is a threat that can’t be taken lightly. The FDA is currently accepting public comments, and we encourage you to take a moment to let your voice be heard.

Ultimately when we make choices about what products we want as consumers, we have to keep in mind the link between our dollars and producer livelihoods. The GMO salmon debate should consider the effect on our communities as well as the risk to our environment and health. When you eat salmon, where did it come from? Remember that when we dig into salmon, we’re part of a much larger web.

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.

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.