May 28, 2013 — With champagne still dribbling down its newly christened bow, the 184-foot fishing vessel the F/V Fleeton celebrated two special milestones on a recent morning here as it pulled away from its dock at Omega Protein.
The retrofitted ship, which was originally used as an offshore transport for oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, joined its 194-foot sister ship, the Rappahannock, on a short cruise to mark their next-generation addition, a $13 million investment in Omega’s Virginia menhaden fleet.
It was icing on the cake that the celebration occurred on a day when the company and the town were celebrating another unique milestone at the menhaden fishing and processing operation at the tip of the Northern Neck.
That milestone: Omega’s centennial celebration, commemorating the company being chartered as Reedville Oil and Guano in 1913.
But as Fleeton captain Jeff Haydon eased the ship, resplendent in bright blue and white paint, away from the dock with a sure hand on the throttle controlling the 1500 horsepower engines, he wasn’t thinking about that last century.
The 53-year-old veteran menhaden captain was thinking about the future, counting the minutes until he can start actually fishing in this boat that’s bigger, faster, safer, more economic and operates with lower emissions than most vessels in the fleet.
The christening of the two new vessels, done in company tradition by the assistant chief of the Rappahannock tribe and the wife of the CEO, is a boost to the spirit of many in the region.
Buffeted by regulatory challenges, Omega, one of the largest employers in the Northern Neck region, and its employees that number in the hundreds, along with legions of others who provide services, got an emotional boost to see the company step up with this $13 million investment. “We believe strongly in this industry and in the people of the Northern Neck,” said Omega CEO Bret Scholtes on the christening cruise. “The experience of several generations of fish boat captains working for Omega is one you’ll see all throughout our company.”
He added, “We believe investments like the addition of these two unique fishing vessels will allow that tradition to continue.”
Scholtes said that despite new legislation that has Omega facing more regulation and, at least for now, catch limits, “We think long term, not of next year, but of next decade, finding new ways to provide products that let people lead healthier lives.”
Read the full story at the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star