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MarinTrust, MSC sign agreement to strengthen collaboration in marine ingredient supply chain

December 16, 2024 — MarinTrust and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in an attempt to streamline the certification processes between both organizations.

The agreement between MarinTrust, a London, U.K.-based certification program working to improve sourcing and traceability across global marine ingredient production, and the MSC is intended to improve how marine ingredient producers engage with one another, reducing duplicative tasks within both certification schemes and aligning standards across the sector.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Building the next generation of commercial fishermen

November 25, 2024 — From Alaska’s icy waters to the Gulf of Mexico’s warm tides, commercial fishing is critical to the economy and to support coastal communities.

With a graying fleet and evolving challenges, the industry’s leaders are stepping up to mentor, train, and inspire the next generation. The Workforce Development panel at this year’s Pacific Marine Expo brought together representatives from all corners of the U.S. to share innovative programs addressing these challenges within the industry. Hannah Heimbuch from Ocean Strategies moderated the panel and kicked things off by stating, “There’s a lot of really great work happening in this space with people encouraging fishing as a livelihood. Today, our panel is just talking about different programs around the U.S. coast that encourage workforce development in the commercial fishing industry.”

“The Graying of the Fleet is Real”

Andrea Tomlinson, executive director of the New England Young Fishermen’s Alliance, underscored the national and global issue of declining participation in commercial fishing.

“The graying of the fleet is real. It’s a nationwide problem. It’s also a worldwide problem,” she said, adding that young people face barriers to entry, from financial constraints to a lack of mentorship. Her organization’s Deckhand to Captain training program provides trainees with critical skills like business planning, public speaking, and marine policy education.

Tomlinson’s efforts are paying off. “As of our 2022 trainees, we have three out of four in their own vessel. We just had this year’s 23-year-old trainee, Alex Varner, buy his boat two days ago. He’s diversifying into both lobster and ground fishing.”

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

New leadership at Responsible Offshore Development Alliance

November 20, 2024 — The Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) announced Tuesday that its longtime executive director Annie Hawkins will be succeeded by Lane Johnston, now policy director for the national commercial fisheries coalition.

Launched in 2017, RODA was created to advocate for commercial fishermen and their communities as the federal government and wind energy industry stepped up efforts to develop offshore renewable energy. Originally focused on the potential impacts on East Coast fishermen, RODA broadened its national advocacy and cooperative research programs to the West Coast and Gulf of Mexico.

New acting executive director Lane Johnston has been part of RODA almost from its start, “driving our advocacy as programs manager, and has a powerful record of steadfast commitment to our membership and the fishing industry,” the group said in its announcement. “With a background in marine biology and years of fisheries policy work under her belt, Lane’s institutional knowledge and expertise will guide us forward.”

Read the full article at WorkBoat

National Fisheries Institute Announces New Additions to its Board of Directors

November 13, 2024 — The following was released in National Fisheries Institute:

The National Fisheries Institute’s (NFI) members approved a new slate of Directors of the Board at its Annual Membership Meeting.

NFI’s bylaws allow for a 51-person Board, with 45 at-large Directors. There is an 18-person Executive Committee drawn from the Board and six officers. NFI elects a new slate of board members annually to serve three-year terms.
“This Board is comprised of some of the most knowledgeable individuals in the seafood community,” said NFI President and CEO Lisa Wallenda Picard. “The NFI Board of Directors’ never-ending commitment to the industry will always impress me, and I’m honored to welcome these new voices and outlooks to the Board.”
The newly elected Board members as well as Executive Committee members in italics are as follow:
Marcy
Bemiller
Candor Consulting, LLC
Founder
Frank
Bodin
Nordic Group Inc.
Vice President of Finance and Administration
Jason
Driskill
H-E-B
Vice President – Seafood
Paul
Jewer
High Liner Foods
President and CEO
Dick
Jones
Blue Ocean Mariculture
CEO
Bart
Lovejoy
Glacier Fish Company
Vice President, Global Sales
Chris
Maze
Pescanova Inc.
CEO
Ben
Medearis
Americold Logistics, LLC
Vice President, Business Development Protein Sector
Roger
O’Brien
Santa Monica Seafood Company
President and CEO
Bret
Scholtes
Cooke Aquaculture USA
Chief Operating Officer
Matthew
Simpson
Monarch LLC
President
Anjan
Tharakan
Newport International
President
Dennis
Williams
Harvest Sherwood Food Distributors
Vice President Seafood Sales & Purchasing
Lisa Webb, Gorton’s Inc. Vice President of Operations, joins the officer’s group as Treasurer and David Melbourne, President and CEO of AquaBounty Technologies, Inc., joins the officer’s group as Secretary.

Fishing Back When: Role of fishermen’s wives

November 11, 2024 — Story and photos by Holly Hughes from the 1983 National Fishermen Yearbook

To the general public, the image of the fisherman’s wife is commonly that of a lone figure gazing out to sea, waiting on the quay for her husband’s return. Throughout history, the life of the fisherman’s wife, like that of the fisherman himself, has often been romanticized.

Tradition dictated that she tends the home fires while her husband wrestled a living from the cruel sea. She had a clearly defined role of supporting her husband on shore, whether that meant raising the children, planting the potatoes or peddling the catch.

Just as most fishermen no longer put out to sea in open dories, the image and role of the fisherman’s spouse is changing. Today she may be a partner in her husband’s operation, either by handling the business onshore or going to sea with him. She may be active in lobbying for fisheries legislation or in setting up markets for his fish. She may be volunteering in the community or pursuing a career of her own.

While the fishing industry remains one of the last strongholds of tradition including the tradition that fishing is a male occupation, women’s participation in the fishing community is nevertheless broadening. The change can be attributed in part to the general evolution in the social climate brought about by the women’s movement.

However, changes in the fisheries themselves are also factors – from shorter seasons to more advanced (and less brawn intensive) fishing technology. Although the most dramatic change may be in women’s entrance into fishing itself, evidence of a new era can also be seen in the many variations on the theme of being a fisherman’s wife today. Many women still choose the traditional role, but others are working as partners with their husbands or using the free time to pursue their own careers. For better or worse, fishermen’s wives now have much greater freedom to determine their own roles than did their romanticized predecessors.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Future fishermen: Community recruiting for the next generation

November 5, 2024 —  “Our fishing fleets have long been sustained through recruitment via family traditions and within working waterfront communities,” said Maité Duquela, coordinator of the National Future Fishermen Coalition, a new workforce development initiative formed by a group of community-driven fishing organizations that are prioritizing access to and training for work in domestic fishing fleets. “The changes we’re seeing in our communities tell us we can no longer rely on our traditions alone.”

Succession planning, the graying of the fleet, and difficulties staffing domestic commercial boats with qualified (or even willing and able) crew have dogged fishing captains and boat owners for years.

Add to the growing list of confounding and compounding problems: widespread gentrification and shoreside development that threaten critical working waterfront infrastructure as well as waterfront accessibility and opportunities for potential future fishermen.

Fishing organizations around the country have been taking on this problem head-on, knowing that local access to sustainable wild seafood depends on the employment of fishermen willing to catch and land it — and viable working waterfronts are the vital corridor.

Representatives from these organizations will discuss new opportunities for workforce development and waterfront resilience at a conference panel at Pacific Marine Expo on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 10:45 a.m. Among the topics they’ll dive into are funding opportunities for programs, including the Young Fishermen’s Development Act, and the importance of industry support to keep these programs running. Several of the panelists are members of the National Future Fishermen Coalition as well as the Fishing Communities Coalition (FCC).

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

At-sea Processors Association Celebrates Madsen’s Distinguished Career and Announces Leadership Transition

October 28, 2024 — The following was released by At-sea Processors Association:

Stephanie Madsen, at the helm of the At-sea Processors Association (APA) since 2007, will retire at the end of the year. Matt Tinning will become CEO, while Caitlin Yeager will join APA as Vice President of Policy and Engagement.

 October 28, 2024 – After almost five decades working with and championing the Alaska fishing industry, Stephanie Madsen will retire at the end of the year. Madsen began working with fishing industry leaders after moving to Unalaska more than 40 years ago. She served two terms on the North Pacific Fishery Management Council—four years as the first woman Chair—and as Vice President of the Pacific Seafood Processors Association. She has served as Executive Director of APA for the last 18 years.

 

Matt Tinning will become APA’s new CEO. Tinning joined the association in 2019 after 11 years working in the environmental community. He will continue to lead the association’s national policy, global sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility portfolios while serving as CEO.

 

Caitlin Yeager will join APA as Vice President of Policy and Engagement. Yeager has worked in North Pacific fisheries for the last 14 years, most recently leading Alaska Boat Company as its General Manager.

 

Jim Johnson, President of APA, offered the following comments on Ms. Madsen’s retirement and the association’s new leadership team:

 

“Stephanie Madsen is a steadfast leader of our industry and we are grateful for her lifetime of dedicated and talented service. When she arrived in Dutch Harbor more than four decades ago, our nation’s Alaska pollock industry was in its infancy. Today, we are proud global leaders in responsible fisheries management and food production. Stephanie’s strategic guidance during this period of growth and improvement was instrumental at every step. A remarkable leader for APA, the Alaska pollock sector, and the North Pacific fishing industry, we thank her and wish her the very best on a well-deserved retirement.”

 

APA President Jim Johnson continued:

 

“We are confident that Matt Tinning and Caitlin Yeager will be strong leaders of APA in the years ahead. During his tenure at APA, Matt has led critical projects for the association, working cross-functionally to strengthen our sector’s presence in Washington, D.C. and extend the global leadership position of the Alaska pollock industry on sustainability and human rights. We are also extremely excited to welcome Caitlin to the APA team. She has a strong reputation and demonstrated track record of experience and success in Alaska Region fisheries, as a groundfish fisheries observer in the Bering Sea, a catcher vessel cooperative manager, and most recently leading Alaska Boat Company, a pollock and crab harvesting company. Caitlin has served on the Board of United Catcher Boats and currently chairs the North Pacific Research Board Advisory Panel. She will be an essential member of APA’s leadership team in the years ahead.”

APA represents five companies that operate catcher-processor vessels in the Eastern Bering Sea Alaska pollock fishery: American Seafoods, Trident Seafoods, Glacier Fish Company, Arctic Storm Management Group, and Coastal Villages Region Fund. For almost four decades, the association has engaged in science, policy and advocacy to support its members, the 30,000 Americans who rely on Alaska pollock for their livelihoods, and the wider North Pacific seafood sector.

SFP launches aquaculture Feed Solutions Toolkit for seafood companies

October 23, 2024 — Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) today launched its aquaculture Feed Solutions Toolkit, a one-stop resource for companies to tackle the climate change, habitat, and biodiversity risks associated with aquaculture feed. The toolkit combines over 80 tools, standards, initiatives, and platforms from multiple organizations, along with guidance and case studies on practical steps to improve feed sustainability.

The Toolkit connects seafood companies with tools and resources to make commitments, assess the risks associated with their feed ingredients and implement improvements. Major suppliers and retailers, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Thai Union, and Walmart, have already set goals and targets to improve the sustainability of the feed used to produce their products or the ingredients it contains.
“We want all seafood companies to include aquaculture feed in their sustainability commitments and policies because feed poses significant environmental and climate challenges,” says Paul Bulcock, aquaculture information manager at SFP. “Addressing this issue, along with continued improvements in farm planning and management, will enhance aquaculture’s role as a low-carbon, environmentally sustainable, and socially responsible food source.”
Aquaculture now accounts for more than half of the world’s seafood, by volume, and is critical to meeting increasing global demand for seafood while offering a low-carbon alternative to other animal products. However, aquaculture feed remains a significant climate change and environmental hotspot, with risks such as land conversion, deforestation, overexploitation, pollution, and bycatch from the production or capture of feed ingredients. It is estimated that aquaculture’s use of compound feed ingredients is responsible for up to 70-80% of its carbon impact and up to 90% of certain environmental impacts such as land and water use.
While multiple tools, standards, and improvement initiatives have already been developed to assist the seafood supply chain in meeting the challenge of feed sustainability, the Feed Solutions Toolkit represents the first time these resources have been curated in one place.
The Feed Solutions Toolkit was produced with funding support from the Walmart Foundation for the project titled, “Addressing the Carbon and Biodiversity Impacts of Aquaculture by Motivating Responsible Aquaculture Practices at Scale.” The findings and recommendations are those of SFP alone and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Walmart Foundation.
About Sustainable Fisheries Partnership 
Founded in 2006, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) is a marine conservation organization working toward a world where the oceans are healthy, all seafood is produced sustainably, and everyone has access to sustainable seafood. We leverage the power of seafood buyers and retailers in every part of the seafood supply chain to rebuild depleted fish stocks, reduce the environmental impacts of fishing and fish farming, address social issues in fishing, and advance economic opportunities for fishers and their communities. Our Supply Chain Roundtables (SRs) allow seafood suppliers to work together in a pre-competitive environment to promote and support improvements in fishery and aquaculture practices, management, and policy. Visit us at www.sustainablefish.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and Seafood and Gender Equality (SAGE) Partner to Advance Gender Equity in the Global Seafood Sector

October 15, 2024 — The following was released by Sustainable Fisheries Partnership and Seafood and Gender Equality:

Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and Seafood and Gender Equality (SAGE) today signed a groundbreaking Memorandum of Understanding to advance gender equity in the global seafood sector. The two organizations – leaders in addressing environmental and social responsibility in fisheries, aquaculture, and seafood production – announced their partnership at the Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions annual conference.

The partnership will focus on engaging with SFP’s Supply Chain Roundtables (SRs), to provide them with the knowledge, expertise, and resources they need to address gender inequalities in their respective sectors. SRs, which are convened and facilitated by SFP, bring together major buyers and importers of seafood in a particular sector to work together pre-competitively to scale up individual initiatives and jointly advocate for better fisheries policy and management. This engagement will introduce SR member companies to SAGE’s flagship Gender Equality Dialogues (GED) program, which promotes innovation and workforce development in the sector by co-creating space for industry leaders to develop actionable solutions to address gender inequalities.
“The SRs have a singular purpose – to drive significant and measurable change to fisheries sustainability. We are excited to work with SFP and the SRs to explore the incorporation of a gender component to this work, as it has been shown that, by empowering women and historically excluded groups, we can achieve our goals around environmental improvements faster and at scale,” said Julie Kuchepatov, founder of SAGE.
Because the seafood sector is facing challenges on multiple fronts – from increasing scrutiny around human rights violations in seafood production to an uncertain and volatile business climate – it has deprioritized introspection of its own role in improving the work experience of underserved people in the sector. However, all these challenges are interrelated.
Another key focus of this partnership is to pilot SAGE’s gender equity index tool to assess SFP’s internal operations.
“Diverse workforces attract top talent and reduce employee turnover, and research shows that gender diversity in leadership is linked to higher profitability,” says Jim Cannon, chief executive officer of SFP. “I am keen to assess our own operations and apply what we learn from SAGE’s assessment because we owe it to our current and future workforce to periodically reflect on and adapt our policies to foster inclusivity and, thereby, innovation.”
SAGE is currently recruiting participant companies for the next GED cohort, scheduled to begin in early 2025. If you’re interested in participating in the next GED cohort or would like to learn more about SAGE’s gender equity index tool, contact Becca Williams at becca@seafoodandgenderequality.org. Read more about the GED on SAGE’s website here.

Seafood industry DEI initiatives showing staying power

October 11, 2024 — Many U.S. companies across industries swiftly began adopting ambitious diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals in 2020, but work in the field has largely slowed as businesses grow wary of boycotts and other forms of backlash.

However, in the seafood industry, DEI remains integral to many companies’ sustainability goals, according to experts engaged in ensuring the sector supports these types of initiatives.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource