State and Local

LAWRENCE, Mass. — October 3, 2014 — Business started by Sicilian immigrant rolled with industry changes.

To see how the fishing industry has changed since Tom Pappalardo began working at his family’s seafood store on Hampshire Street in 1964, pull almost anything from one of his refrigerated showcases and read the fine print.

Or his wife, Mary Pappalardo-Raymond, will do it for you.

“Product of Indonesia,” she said Thursday, reading from a label of a frozen, shrink-wrapped snapper, probably caught in the South China Sea or the Indian Ocean by a factory ship months ago.

She reads on: Cod from Iceland. Kingfish from Taiwan. Shrimp from Thailand and Vietnam. Conch from Nicaragua. Calamari from China. Salmon from Chile. Mussels from Canada.

The shift to suppliers operating factory fishing boats and coastal fish farms in other hemispheres is just one of the changes the couple has weathered in the half century since Tom Pappalardo, fresh out of high school, first drove to the Boston wharves to pick up catch for the store. Virtually all of it was caught in New England waters by local fishermen a day or two before.

He’d toss the haul onto the flatbed of a family pickup and shovel ice over it for the drive back to Lawrence, something the sea of health code regulations passed in the five decades since then no longer allow. Back at the store, the family would scale and filet the fish, which now arrives mostly boxed, frozen, prepared and ready for the showcases.

Bigger changes followed: Americans eat out much more, including at national chains like Legal Sea Food and Red Lobster. And tastes and preferences shift quickly in churning immigrant cities like Lawrence, where the Pappalardos now sell almost none of the sole or flounder that once flew out the door, but can hardly meet the demand for deep-fried shrimp and crab empanadas. They sell up to 700 a week, every one made in the store, to serve a clientele that they estimate is 90 percent Latino, up from 0 percent in the 1960s.

Read the full story from the Gloucester Daily Times

 

October 2, 2014 — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan got grilled on his positions on fishing issues during a debate Wednesday night with Democratic Sen. Mark Begich in one of the largest fishing ports in the U.S.

Sullivan, who took flak for initially planning to skip the debate to campaign in rural Alaska, sought to show his command of fisheries issues, the focus of the only-in-Alaska debate that is a tradition among politicians in the Last Frontier. Sullivan mentioned his family's fish camp and the need to cut burdensome regulations. He also mentioned Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who recently endorsed him and campaigned with him in Kodiak.

Fishing is a multibillion-dollar industry in the state and a major employer.

It was a friendly audience for Begich, who chairs the Senate subcommittee on oceans, atmosphere, fisheries, and Coast Guard and entered the debate with the endorsement of fishing organizations such as the United Fishermen of Alaska and the Alaska Bering Sea Crabbers. At one point, Begich, wearing a gold salmon pin on his lapel, said he wouldn't mind answering some of the questions that were being directed solely to Sullivan.

"Well, Senator Begich, we've heard a lot from you, but we really haven't had an opportunity to question Mr. Sullivan," one of the questioners, fish industry writer Laine Welch, said before asking Sullivan another question.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at WTEN

October 2, 2014 — A key Maine advisory council is approving the rules for the state’s upcoming scallop fishing season.

The state Department of Marine Resources said Wednesday that the council has signed off on proposed rules. They call for the season to last from Dec. 1 to April 11. Zones one and two will have a 70-day season while zone three will have a 50-day season. Zone three includes scallop-rich Cobscook Bay.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Portland Press Herald

October 1, 2014 — Most of what's sold at Congressional Seafood in Jessup is exactly what you might see on a typical menu: salmon, tuna, grouper, bass, cod, haddock and the like.

This year, though, Tim Sughrue, vice president of the company, he expects to sell about a million pounds of blue catfish, a species many Marylanders may have never heard of.

John Rorapaugh, director of sustainable initiatives at seafood supplier ProFish in Washington, D.C., says his company will sell 400,000 pounds of blue catfish this year, in addition to more than 10,000 pounds of snakehead, a fish many local people have heard about but — let's face it — may not have eaten. The fish is also available at Whole Foods Market.

The only two invasive freshwater species in Maryland are being bought by restaurants, hotels and food service vendors.

"This fish is the top of the food chain," Sughrue said of blue catfish, which arrived here 40 years ago. He compared it to "a shark that is much more fecund.

The snakehead arrived in the 1990s when aquarium owners released them into local waterways because they grew too large or aggressive for the tank. The problem with invasive fish like blue cats, as they are called, and snakeheads is that they endanger the viability of native species by eliminating native sources of food and invading local habitats.

Steve Vilnit, fisheries marketing manager for the state Department of Natural Resources, acknowledges that snakehead and blue catfish are most likely here to stay but says residents need to reduce their population in order to mitigate the environmental impact. It makes sense, then, that he would brand the fish as culinary specialties.

Read the full story at the Capital Gazette

October 1, 2014 — The following was released by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection:

Commissioner Bob Martin today announced that the Department of Environmental Protection is making more than $2 million in grants available to certain fishing-related businesses that were affected by Superstorm Sandy.

Owners of bait-and-tackle shops, commercial dealers, commercial fisherman, for-hire party and charter boat operators, marinas and those involved in shell-fishing and aquaculture may apply to the DEP for grants of  up to $10,000 each to help offset some of the costs of the storm on their operations.

The funds are being provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as part of a federal fishery disaster declaration for states impacted by Sandy.

“Superstorm Sandy dealt a severe blow to all sectors of the state’s commercial and recreational fishing industries,” said Commissioner Martin. “We have worked closely with both groups to develop an online application system and make the process as easy as possible for them. The program will focus on helping small businesses, which are the backbone of our state’s fishing industry.”

New Jersey’s commercial fishing industry is one of the largest on the East Coast, landing roughly 175 million pounds of seafood and generating over $1.1 billion in economic activity in 2012. The economic impact of recreational fishing also supports approximately 10,000 jobs and $1.74 billion in annual sales.

Applicants must document a minimum of $5,000 in losses as the result of Sandy. Examples of losses eligible for reimbursement include lost or damaged fishing gear; lost, damaged or ruined product; replacement and/or repair of other equipment; replacement and repair of infrastructure; and revenue lost in the months immediately after Sandy hit.

Grants will be made for losses for which there remains an unmet need for repair or replacement. Activities already undertaken out-of-pocket as part of a business’ or individual’s recovery effort may also be eligible.

Expression of Interest pre-applications are being accepted beginning October 1 until October 31, from individuals and/or businesses in six fishing-related sectors: bait and tackle shops, commercial dealers, commercial fishermen, for-hire (party and charter) operations, marinas and shellfish/aquaculture.

The Expression of Interest pre-application is only available on-line and can be accessed beginning Oct. 1 from the Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Fishery Disaster webpage at www.njfishandwildlife.com/fisheriesdisasteraid.htm .

No applications will be accepted after Oct. 31and the Expression of Interest pre-application must be completed to be considered for any direct assistance.

Once an Expression of Interest pre-application is submitted, a team of independent grant administrators will determine an applicant’s eligibility. If eligibility is determined, a separate e-mail will be sent to the applicant requesting additional materials/documentation in order to complete a full application.

The following is a list of numbers for grant administrators who can help you: Commercial Fishermen and Shellfish/Aquaculture, 609-292-1057; Commercial Fishermen and Commercial Dealers, 609-292-1055; Bait and Tackle and Marinas, 609-292-9942; Bait and Tackle and For-Hire, 609-984-0232.

All grant administrators may also be reached by email at: FisheriesDisasterAid@dep.nj.gov

 

October 1, 2014 — It’s about a three-hour drive to the nearest coastline from Chapel Hill — 162 miles to Wilmington , 178 miles to Atlantic Beach and longer to get to other seafood hotspots on the Outer Banks.

Yet many Chapel Hill restaurants claim to serve fresh, local seafood — shellfish, shrimp and even mahi mahi.

Squid’s Restaurant and and Oyster Bar’s executive chef Andy Wilson, whose restaurant doesn’t promise that its seafood is local, said it is difficult to only serve seafood from North Carolina.

“We have things like snow crab and calamari and lobsters (and) oysters — a lot of things on the menu that we can’t get locally,” Wilson said. “We have a pretty big menu here at Squid’s. It’s a bigger restaurant and all of the things that are local that we can get aren’t available year round.”

Wilson said he uses local shrimp when he can, but since it’s not available year – round, he sometimes uses “Latin farm-raised shrimp.”

“We try to offer a little bit of everything, so if this was a small restaurant that just specialized in local seafood, we would do that. But some of our stuff does come from other parts of the world,” Wilson said. “We try to keep everything domestic.”

Read the full story from The Daily Tar Heel

SEAFOODNEWS.COM by John Sackton — October 1, 2014 — California Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed Senate Bill 1138, the fish and shellfish labeling law, that would have created chaos for seafood consumers.

The bill was pushed through the legislature by Oceana, who claimed that it would help combat seafood fraud.  But the remedy – using the FDA common name for each species, rather than the standard market name is is now required, would have created chaos.
 
The bill would have required that seafood producers, seafood processors, retailers, and restaurants label their packaging and menus with the “common” name of the seafood item, as opposed to the market name developed by the Food and Drug Administration.
 
There are over 1850 common names for fish and shellfish sold in California.  The FDA allows most similar species to be grouped under the same market name, for example "shrimp."
 
In discussing why this bill was so bad, Mary Smith at Santa Monica Seafood said "A waitress would need to inform a customer ordering shrimp whether the shrimp was “Kadal Shrimp” or “Marsh Grass Shrimp” or “Jinga Shrimp” or one 30 possible Common Names for specific shrimp species.
 
"A worker at a food truck accepting an order for a mahi fish taco would need to inform the customer “at the time the customer orders” that she will be served dolphinfish."
 
"Hotel restaurant staff would need to know and immediately inform a guest that his “Rockfish” was actually “Splitnose Rockfish” or “Swordspine Rockfish” or “Bronzespotted Rockfish” to comply with this law."
 
It would be literally impossible for waitstaff to know the more than 1,850 Common Names of the fish served daily at California restaurants … and the law states a restaurant shall provide the Common Name when the customer orders the fish.
 
Under the guise of protecting consumers, the real impact of this bill would be to reduce seafood consumption. 
 
NFI strongly supported this veto and was pleased to be able to work with the California Fish & Seafood Institute to explain the legislation’s flaws to the Governor and his staff.  Though mislabeling and fraud are legitimate and serious issues, the California legislation would have done nothing to address them, and would have burdened NFI member companies with a complex and needless new mandate, while confusing consumers with additional labeling information of no value.
 
In his veto Message, the Governor took this advice.  He said "Much of what the bill seeks to accomplish is good. Requiring seafood producers and wholesalers to identify whether fish and shellfish are wild caught or farm raised, domestic or imported – these are reasonable and helpful facts for purchasers to know."
 
"Requiring more precise, species-specific labeling of seafood. however, is not as easily achieved."
 
"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration publishes both market names and common names under which fish and shellfish may be sold. The bill's requirement to use the FDA published common name in all fish and shellfish labels, unless the state promulgates a different common name, would create uncertainties and complexities that may not be easily resolved."
 
The veto is a small success for the states restaurant and seafood industry.  But it is unfortunate that so much time has to be spent lobbying and reacting to those who keep seeking to limit seafood consumption, under the guise of 'helping' the American consumers fight fraud. 

This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

October 1, 2014 — As the two candidates prepare for a debate Wednesday in Kodiak over fisheries, Begich is counting on strong support from the multibillion-dollar industry, which employs more than 30,000 people statewide.

The difference in reception for the two U.S. Senate candidates was stark.

The Republican, Dan Sullivan, got 45 minutes Friday morning to make his pitch to the United Fishermen of Alaska’s board of directors in a dimly lit hotel conference room in Anchorage — a pitch that at best would draw just a few votes away from his opponent, incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, whom the group had endorsed months earlier.

Begich, by contrast, was invited to give the keynote address Friday night at the UFA’s glitzy 40th anniversary banquet, where he presented a fish-centric stump speech and described how he’d gone to bat for attendees by fighting against genetically modified salmon and illegal fishing in Alaska waters.

Read the full story from Alaska Dispatch News

 

September 26, 2014 — Alabama will not be joining Mississippi in opening a state-water, fall red snapper season.

After hearing of Mississippi's plan to open a weekends-only season, Alabama Marine Resources Director Chris Blankenship said he briefly discussed the prospect of doing the same with Conservation Department Commissioner Gunter Guy Jr.

"We decided not to open a season at this time," Blankenship said.

He said the state continues to work with federal fishery managers to improve data collection. Blankenship added that results of Alabama's red snapper stock assessment on its extensive reef system will be presented to the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council during its Oct. 20-24 meeting in Mobile.

Mississippi's Department of Marine Resources Executive Director Jamie Miller announced Friday that state water will open to red snapper fishing every weekend in October and the first weekend in November.

Read the full story from AL.com

September 30, 2014 — The following was released by the Maine Department of Marine Resources:

The group that will determine criteria for ecologically sensitive areas that should be closed to rockweed harvesting on the Maine coast, known as the Rockweed Working Group (Working Group), has scheduled its first two meetings, both of which will provide an opportunity for public input.  The meetings will be held Oct. 15 from 3-7 p.m. at the Department of Marine Resources Natural Resources Service Center, Room 106, 6 Beech Street in Hallowell, and Nov. 17 from 3-7 p.m. at University of Maine Machias, Science Room 102,116 Obrien Avenue in Machias.
 
Both meetings will include a 3-5 p.m. meeting of the Working Group, which will include a discussion of criteria that should be used to evaluate whether commercial rockweed harvest presents an unreasonable impact to sensitive wildlife, to inform the designation of no-harvest areas.
 
From 5-7 pm the public will have an opportunity to provide suggestions to the Working Group and the Department of Marine Resources regarding the criteria, as well as species and areas that warrant protection.
 
Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher appointed the members of the Working Group in accordance with the Fishery Management Plan crafted last year for rockweed and LD 1830, An Act To Further the Implementation of the Rockweed Fishery Management Plan. The group’s purpose is to determine the impact of commercial rockweed harvest, if any, on sensitive wildlife, and recommend areas that are closed to commercial harvest based on their analysis. 
 
The Working Group consists of scientists and others with expertise in relevant issues outlined last year by the team that developed the statewide Rockweed Fishery Management Plan and as specified by LD1830.
 
Following the fall meetings, the Working Group will continue their work by reviewing public input provided at these meetings, refining the evaluation criteria, and applying the criteria to specific species and areas along the Maine coast.  The Working Group may make recommendations to the Commissioner for the closure of specific areas and will also advise the Commissioner on a process for reviewing and amending no-harvest areas in the future.  Meetings will be held monthly and are expected continue through early 2015.
 
The Commissioner will consider the Working Group’s recommendations as well as those in the Rockweed Fishery Management Plan when developing the proposed regulations necessary to implement no-harvest areas.  As with all Department of Marine Resources rule-making, other considerations will include guidance from the Attorney General’s Office, available department resources, enforceability, and public input submitted during the rulemaking public comment period.  
 
For resource and management information on rockweed, visit http://www.maine.gov/dmr/rm/rockweed/index.htm . 
 
For more information about the upcoming meetings, contact Department of Marine Resources Policy Development Specialist Chris Vonderweidt by email at chris.vonderweidt@maine.gov .

PRESS CONTACT: Jeff Nichols, Maine Department of Marine Resources, 207-624-6569