Tuna

Fish Cops

Maintaining healthy fisheries requires three disciplines: science, management, and the third leg of the stool - enforcement. Marine mammal shootings and smuggling operations, international conspiracies and local fraud, paper trails and money trails: these are the kinds of issues NOAA’s Fish Cops confront every day. From busts where “16 federal agents in Crown Victorias and Ford Expeditions pulled into the parking lot, entered the building in pairs, wearing bulletproof vests and carring Glock pistols” to being part of a “Seafood Task Force that surveyed 103 restaurants and retail groceries and found 74% had some type of labeling violation in their seafood”, Fish Cops are looking to bring the bad guys down. "We found many had crawfish being sold as lobster; farmed salmon being sold as wild salmon; seabream and pollock being substituted for snapper; fluke being substituted for halibut; and imitation abalone, crab and octopus being sold as the real product," said Supervisor Michael Antonovich. NOAA’s Fish Cops have “opened 902 cases in 2012 so far”.

With 91% of all seafood consumed in the US in 2011 coming from outside America, and with traceability virtually impossible in our long-standing opaque seafood supply chain, it is good that attention is being paid to the well-being of both consumers and fishermen. Growing support for the Safety And Fraud Enforcement for Seafood Act (HR6200) is a big step in the right direction for traditional American fishing communities and jobs.

Our Nantucket Scallopers have been landing pristine bay and sea scallops almost every day this month, and will continue through until spring. About 50 nautical miles north, long time scallop man Jean Frottier died last week when his 40-foot fishing vessel, the Twin Lights, capsized and sank two miles off Provincetown. Kurt Schmidt, a lobster diver who partnered with Frottier in various ventures over the years, said his friend could have cut the line and saved his vessel, but he believes Frottier was trying to save the traps for the lobsterman. Fishermen are an amazing breed.

As fishing slows down in New England, the fishing is picking up in Beaufort, NC. Jack Cox and Dave Tucker are bottom fishing, while their buddies are Green Sticking for tuna and Pound Netting for flounder. They are landing lots of beautiful fish for this holiday season.

Don’t buy fish from strangers.

Who Caught Your Fish?

A NY Times article this week talked about the changing fishing culture in Greenland. Climate change has diminished commercial fishing opportunities, and mining is being considered as an economic alternative. While this might bring new jobs to the region, it's not a change that everyone wants. "It's about traditions, the freedom of a boat, family professions," says Greenland's housing and infrastructure minister. We've heard this sentiment before. Fishing is more than a business for our Maine fisherman friend Terry Alexander. "It's a way of life for us," he explains. Maybe it's time fishing cultures get more consideration.

The sustainable seafood movement doesn't seem to have taken off the way the local/organic food movement has, and we wonder if that's because the human component of fishing has too often been ignored. Local farms were recognized as a necessary part of our cultural fabric, and now chefs and home cooks alike take pride in knowing the name of the guy who grows their vegetables. We see restaurant menus that can name the person who produces their salt, but can't name the guy who catches their fish. Don't tell me about your warehouse, tell me about your fisherman.

Fish are jumping off Beaufort, NC, where Captain James Holden of the F/V Sea Mint is landing beautiful day-boat Wahoo and Mahi. Captain Dave “Grouperman” Tucker is bottom fishing for serious grouper, and the pound-netters are landing Flounder, Sheepshead and Drum. Two greenstick boats are pulling beautiful Yellowfin Tuna, and the day-boat Wahoo is $11.90/lb delivered, less if you are within 300 miles of the dock. This is the season to enjoy the incredible bounty from the bottom of NC’s Outer Banks.

PBS Newshour ran a frightening story this week about shrimp farmers from Thailand exploiting workers for cheap shrimp. Why would someone want antibiotic-filled imported shrimp that tastes bad, when they can have wild, sustainable, delicious shrimp and support Gulf Coast shrimpers? Beats me.

The fall season begins the end of the Northeast Striped Bass season. Please take a minute and watch this awesome 1956 newsreel about the passion of striper fishermen. Way cool.

Summertime in the Northeast

As a heat wave baked most of America, some fishermen found cool breezes in the Northeast where both recreational and commercial anglers wait patiently for their favorite time of the year, striped bass season. While recreational guys have been able to live line bunker since April, the commercial season for striped bass finally opened in July.

There is no mistaking the feeling of hooking up with a striper. They slam into bait with such force and abandon your line whirls away in a fury until you’re able to set the hook and the fight can begin. The power that awes fishermen is the same reason striped bass is prized for its firm meaty flesh where it’s diet of bunker, eels and clams gives it a sweet delicate flavor. Open a box of these fresh line-caught stripers and smell the ocean. It’s taken a little time for everyone to get over their initial excitement, and dock prices have come back down to earth. They are landing both in Montauk and Cape Cod, and are a highlight of every summer season.

Small boats are running out south of Martha’s Vineyard with hopes of landing local yellowfin tuna. The steam to Hudson Canyon is not short, but the reward is usually well worth the time and effort. In the style of our friends in Tobago, Massachusetts fishermen are dropping metal jigs on hand lines with hopes of hooking up with yellowfin. The sustainability of a hand-lining is unmatched - one man, one hook, one fish - almost a zero by-catch fishery.

In NY and PA the controversy surrounding fracking of the Marcellus shale for natural gas is heating up. A new study is concerned with chemicals seeping into Pennsylvania drinking water, while chef and goodfood advocate Mary Cleaver discusses Fracking and Its Dangerous Effects On Local Farms. If you are in Brooklyn this week you can enjoy some delicious food from Mary, Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern, Peter Hoffman of Back Forty, Zak Pelaccio of Fatty 'Cue, and a host of others at a benefit called Taste of the Marcellus to raise fracking awareness.

As the Bristol Bay sockeye season winds down, awareness of the Pebble Mine threat increases. This week the Huffington Post asked people to share Sea to Table’s videos, as the EPA comment period ends. Remember, the best way to save a salmon is to eat a salmon.

Summer Season

Memorial Day marks the start of the summer season, and fish everywhere are jumping.

Alaska salmon season began last week with an unexpectedly strong run of sockeye at the Cooper River, driving prices down to $10/lb in the first week. We will be landing sockeye next in Prince William Sound, then in Cook Inlet and finally in Bristol Bay by the end of June.

Gulf of Mexico fishing continues strong with red snapper and grouper, mackerel and mullet. Off the Carolinas, greenstick boats are landing yellowfin tuna and swordfish, before they begin to migrate north. A wide variety of species are finding their way to the dock in Montauk, NY and Point Judith, RI, while monkfish and scallops are landing multiple times per week in New Bedford, MA. From Portland, ME lobster pricing is beginning to back down, and the harpoon fishermen are anxious for the swordfish to return.

A NY Times article this week discussed the value of eco-labels. Although well-intended they often do not reflect the latest science, and without helping the fish stocks, harm the traditional communities the fish support. A recent study found that many of the species certified were in fact over-fished, and expressed “growing concern among scientists about the effectiveness of seafood eco-labeling”. 

ABC World News tested imported farmed shrimp from Asia, with disturbing findings. Three different banned antibiotics were found in the shrimp: enrofloxacin, an antibiotic banned in animals that Americans eat because it damages the immune system; chloramphenicol, suspected to cause cancer in humans; and carcinogen nitrofuranzone, which was banned in the U.S. 40 years ago. The Alaska Dispatch cites rampant slavery and human trafficking issues in the Asian seafood industry. A Louisiana seafood processor was charged in federal court in New Orleans last week with mislabeling shrimp. With over 90% of all shrimp consumed in the US imported, people are eating some bad shrimp.

The key to the right seafood is traceability. Know where your seafood came from.

EPA: PM BFD 4 BB

Late Friday the Environmental Protection Agency issued a long awaited report declaring that Pebble Mine would be a ‘Big Fish Disaster’ for Bristol Bay, Alaska.

Threatening to build the world’s largest open-pit mine in the world’s largest salmon nursery has tugged at the heart-strings of fish-huggers everywhere. The Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment Report declares “mining at this scale would cause the loss of spawning and rearing habitat for multiple species” and “over the life span of a large mine, at least one or more accidents or failures could occur, potentially resulting in immediate, severe impacts on salmon”. Strong words. The report was issued in the face of political pressure from Alaska officials where the mine developers have earmarked $107 million to influence the permitting process.

The FDA also announced that all Korean fresh and frozen mussels, oysters, clams, and scallops, along with any product processed or containing them, should be removed from the US market due to concerns over Noro virus. Marion Nestle wrote this week about pink tuna slime that is commonly used in cheap sushi. If something seems too good to be true, it usually is. If you want good fish, know your fisherman.

On the good news side of the ledger, NOAA issued their annual status of the stocks report declaring 86% of US fisheries were not being overfished, and that 6 additional stocks, including Atlantic coast summer flounder and Gulf of Maine haddock, were fully rebuilt. Also this weekend is the official start to the Alaska Salmon Season with the first net opening in Copper River. We will be shipping our first sockeye on Monday to arrive Tuesday. Life is good.

While some famous chefs are controversially saying that a great meal is more important than good intention, some things are a simple matter of right and wrong. If you happen to be in NYC on this glorious Spring Sunday, please join the Sea to Table crew at New Amsterdam Market’s Gathering of the Fisheries to discuss protecting salmon up in Bristol Bay. “This is not about being anti-mining. This is about recognizing that some places are not appropriate for these sorts of industrial activities” says our friend Elizabeth Dubovsky of Save Bristol Bay. Stand up for what’s right.

Mullet Makeover

Most days in Destin, Mullet Mike takes his boat The Sand Gnat into Choctawatchee Bay and cast nets for Striped Mullet. People in seaside towns around the world prize mullet, but they get little respect here. They even have an awful haircut named after them. When eaten fresh from the sea these under-appreciated critters are delicious. Arriving next day from Mullet Mike’s net at a good price, they are awfully good to eat.

In Washington, the House of Representatives voted 220-191 to halt funding for new Atlantic and Gulf catch share programs, with the sponsors saying “catch shares are no different than any other inside-the-Beltway style tactic determined to destroy every aspect of American freedom under the guise of conservation. By capping the amount of fish that may be caught annually and gifting a select few with shares of the annual catch, NOAA is privatizing access to a once open fishery. Make no mistake about it: catch shares are nothing less than a cap-and-trade management system for our oceans.” The problem with this ideological rant is that it has nothing to do with fisheries - it does not address the problem of limiting catches - universally agreed to in the industry - and making vessels economically viable. The huge number of industry supported buyouts show harvesters recognize acutely the problem of too many vessels chasing too few fish. Unfortunately, Congressional grandstanding for 'freedom' won't solve the problem.

Catch shares provide each fisherman with secure access to a portion of the total annual harvest of fish, allowing them to plan their fishing over the entire year. Two things happen under this new approach: uncertainty goes down, and stewardship grows. Fishermen and managers find they have new tools to conserve fish stocks, and the evidence is compelling. A recent study of fisheries published in the journal Marine Policy looked at fisheries before and after they adopted catch shares. Since the implementation of catch shares, fishermen on average are earning significantly more, fisheries are stabilizing, and safety has dramatically improved. For example, in 2010 alone, catch shares in three fisheries in the Pacific, New England and Gulf of Mexico saved enough fish from being tossed back dead to feed an estimated one million Americans for a year.

Yellowfin tuna has been in short supply, with a good part of the reason being an increased number of FDA rejections of “adulterated” tuna from Asia. In a disturbing story from Peru, fishermen began finding dead dolphins, hundreds of them, washed up on Peru’s northern coast. Now, seabirds have begun dying, too, and scientists have yet to conclusively pinpoint a cause. “Never in my 40 years as a fisherman have I seen anything like this,” said Francisco Ñiquen Rentería, the president of the Association of Artisanal Fishermen in Puerto Eten, in the Lambayeque region. “Sometimes in the past, you’d randomly see a dead dolphin or a pelican, but this, what’s happening now, is really alarming.” It is bad to fool with Mother Nature.

The Whole Fish

The trend of chefs butchering and utilizing everything from snout to tail reaches from coast to coast. Now we are seeing some amazing dishes from parts of fish that rarely see the plate. Michael White is serving sablefish collars at Marea in NYC. Yoshi Tome, owner of Sushi Ran in Sausalito, describes the Japanese delicacy monkfish livers as "very rich and creamy, but yet at the same time very light and delicate, feeling silky and velvety to the palate". When grouper fishermen came in from sea, they used to put the grouper cheeks aside for themselves; the cheeks are that good. We like no waste.

Things have gotten very challenging in the tuna world. US imports of treated yellowfin tuna fell almost 30 percent last year. The word from Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, is that the fish are nowhere to be found. Moon Marine USA Corp. of Cupertino, CA is voluntarily recalling 58,828 pounds of imported yellowfin tuna that has been linked with an outbreak of salmonella. It has sickened more than 100 people in 20 states, federal health authorities reported Friday.

Our boys in Beaufort, NC have been steadily landing line-caught yellowfin, but high market demand has been forcing prices steadily higher. The lack of fresh yellowfin has pushed prices of 2+ loins above $15/lb. As spring turns to summer the fish will migrate north, and we will see steady supply landing in Montauk, NY. We are grateful that the well managed US fishery is allowing a sustainable yield, and that our chefs can serve a safe and delicious product.

Cardinals fans should join us on Tuesday afternoon at St Louis’s Sidney Street Café where we will be hosting an event along with Chef’s Collaborative, enjoying Bristol Bay wild sockeye and Florida wild white shrimp with a glass of wine. Promises to be delicious and fun.

Crawfish season is back in swing, and we are shipping live bugs from Natchitoches, LA. From Martha’s Vineyard, MA we are landing live scallops and beautiful steamer clams. A golden tilefish boat will be landing in Portland, ME this week, and will be shipping whole fish at a special price. Beginning next week we will be working with a mid-water trawler from Prince William Sound landing twice weekly at Seward with the famous Alaska side-stripe shrimp. These are the super sweet shrimp that the Japanese call ebi, and most of his catch will be headed for Asia. They can ship together with beautiful halibut, pacific cod, or trolled king salmon.

“Stick to American fisheries, and ‘wild caught’ is best,” Fox News quoted 'Deadliest Catch' Captain Keith Colburn. “When you start buying from overseas without the same health regulations, the quality issues can become scary. There are places that raise chickens above the fish pans, and use the excretions as a food source.” Yum.

Carolina in My Mind

Sun was shining brightly in beautiful Beaufort, NC this week, and I was lucky enough to spend a day with Jack Cox and other fishermen there. Jack is a member of the South Atlantic Management Council and is most concerned with an inability to implement the catch-shares programs that have been benefitting traditional fishing communities around the nation. Still operating under the old “derby” style system, the Carolina grouper/snapper complex is closed to fishing until May 1. “I can’t make enough money to pay for gas keeping only trigger and amber” said F/V Sea Mint Captain James Holden, whose Lumbee ancestors have fished these waters for centuries. “I won’t even go back out until May”. Until then Captain Mike Santos of the F/V Iron Maiden will land summer flounder, and we will see a steady supply of sword and tuna from two boats that will head to their Montauk, NY summer home by June.

On our way home we visited the Raleigh/Durham area, home to a vibrant, growing food scene. We met a great group of chefs at Lantern Restaurant in Chapel Hill, where chef Andrea Reusing put her magic touch on some wild Bristol Bay sockeye salmon and some big wild Florida Gulf white shrimp. An impressive group in an impressive place enjoyed some impressive seafood.

Up north in the Gulf of Maine there is renewed concern for the health of Atlantic cod populations. A step in the right direction happened this week when Whole Foods committed to stop selling all “red-listed” fish by Earth Day 2012, a year ahead of schedule.

Just a few years back the Chesapeake blue crab fishery was in trouble, but strict management has lead it back to where they are now seeking MSC certification. Blue crab season opens today, and when you taste Maryland blue crab in comparison with the Asian product that has flooded the market, it makes you doubly glad that it will be around for our grandkids.

Down in Destin, FL, Chatham Morgan reports that in addition to the steady tuna, snapper, and grouper landing there, mullet, mackerel, pompano, cobia and sheepshead are now being caught within a mile of the beach. These delicious, under-utilized, under-appreciated species, next day from the dock, are a true chef’s delight. Your diners deserve them.

Chef as the Gatekeeper

As food continues to gain momentum as a cultural icon, chefs play an increasingly influential role. The food movement has moved from the coasts to the heartland, from the foodies to the masses. Chefs are the new rock stars, but with power comes responsibility. Chefs need to lead the way.

Along with our friends at Chefs Collaborative, Sea to Table is sponsoring a series of chef gatherings in cities where eclectic food scenes are emerging. This spring we will be visiting St. Louis and Cleveland, with our first event this coming Wednesday 28March from 2-3PM at Andrea Reusing’s award winning Lantern Restaurant in Chapel Hill, NC. Be there if you can. We will taste wild sockeye salmon from Bristol Bay Alaska where the world’s great salmon run is threatened by Pebble Mine, and wild white shrimp from Florida’s Gulf Coast, where reawakening fisheries are working to recover. Enjoy a glass of wine while talking about how chefs can help. It is critical that we protect fish populations, but we also need to support traditional fishing communities that depend on the resource. It’s not just about the fish.

The undersea world is a vast realm over 90% unexplored by man. But man has put his thumb on fish stocks worldwide, and unless he changes his way our grandchildren might not enjoy the sea’s bounty. Wild fishing is the last true hunting on earth, and needs to be treated with the reverence it deserves.

From Florida’s panhandle the old time fishing community of Destin is celebrating spring with their annual Cobia tournament. As the Gulf springs back to life, bountiful landings of snapper, grouper, amberjack, king mackerel, and tuna accompany two types of mullet, only one of which is a haircut. Chatham Morgan and his boys have been landing some real beautiful fish. Chatham describes cobia fishing as "hours of absolute boredom punctuated by a moment of absolute f....ing chaos."

Halibut season has started strong in Alaska, and Chef Jonathan of Benny’s Chophouse in Chicago has been serving them with English peas, buttered spring ramps, & morel mushroom flan. Sounds pretty good.

America's Favorite Seafood

Salmon, shrimp, and tuna are America’s three most consumed seafoods.

I used to like salmon. For years it was my go-to menu choice, not even realizing it was farmed. Then on my first trip to Seattle, I ordered wild king salmon. It was a revelation, tasting unlike anything I had eaten before. Now between genetic engineering, disease, and pollution, I just can’t eat farmed salmon. Reports of resurging wild salmon populations off California, and the threat up in Bristol Bay remind us that the need to support wild salmon fisheries has never been greater. Wild salmon season is coming soon, and the best way to support them is to eat them.

I can no longer eat shrimp without asking where they came from. Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture reports that ‘shrimp have been dying in masses’ from farms ‘seriously polluted with high pesticide residues’. With over 90% of America’s shrimp imported, this is not very good news. Thankfully some chefs are getting the message, like Farm 255’s Whitney Otawka who sources wild for her shrimp and grits.

I have eaten my share of tuna sandwiches, but these days can’t help thinking about how they are caught. With imports skyrocketing from the Eastern Pacific, the FDA has begun stopping yellowfin shipments for histamine concerns. These days yellowfin tuna are scarce with prices rising, and we are lucky to work with line-caught tuna boats in Destin, FL, Beaufort, NC, and Montauk, NY, allowing our chefs a steady supply.

Sea to Table is featured in the March issue of Food Arts magazine. Makes us proud.

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