Other News Archives - Page 2 of 142

Frustrations as Departure of Famed Ocean Liner SS United States Delayed

February 10, 2025 — Excitement over the impending departure of the famed ocean liner ss United States was building last week before a further delay appeared prolonging her stay in Philadelphia. The new owners of the liner, Florida’s Okaloosa County, have been trying for months to start the final voyage of the now 75-year-old liner as she heads toward a new chapter as the largest artificial reef.

On Wednesday, February 5, Okaloosa County announced that after months of delay, it had finally received all the necessary approvals for a large ship dead tow as defined by the U.S. Coast Guard. At high tide around 0600 on Thursday, February 6, the plan was to yank the 53,000 gross ton liner from Pier 82 where she has been docked since July 1986 after the vessel returned from having been stripped of her interior fittings in Turkey and Ukraine.

The ss United States despite having been out of service since 1969 remains fabled in the annals of shipping history. Design by American’s renowned naval architect William Francis Gibbs, she entered service in 1952. On her maiden voyage, she shattered the Atlantic speed record for a passenger liner with an average speed of over 35 knots and 72 years later remains the fastest passenger liner to have ever crossed the Atlantic. The liner is rumored to have touched 40 knots during her “top secret” speed trials.

The non-profit SS United States Conservancy, which acquired the ship in 2011 and sold her to Okaloosa County in October last year for $1 million, wrote in an announcement, “After completing comprehensive due diligence involving extensive testing and reporting to local, state, and federal agencies, Okaloosa County has now received final approval from the U.S. Coast Guard to begin moving the ss United States.”

Read the full article at The Maritime Executive

Whole Foods Market Introduces New Seafood Code of Conduct

January 29, 2025 — Whole Foods Market has launched a new Seafood Code of Conduct, reinforcing the company’s commitment to safeguard the human rights and welfare of workers throughout its global seafood supply chain. Building on the company’s Quality Standards, the new policy strengthens protections for fishers and vessel crew and sets a higher bar for ethical labor practices and supply chain transparency.

Whole Foods’ Seafood Code of Conduct draws from globally recognized principles, including the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Work in Fishing Convention. The code establishes clear standards that all seafood suppliers — from vessel owners to processors and distributors — are expected to follow. These new standards build on the broader Whole Foods Supplier Code of Conduct and are part of the company’s long-term mission to promote social responsibility and continuous improvement in its supply chain.

Read the full article at the Progressive Grocer

NOAA Fisheries and Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission Promote Fisheries-Related Career Paths for Tribal Youth

January 23, 2025 — Take it from us at NOAA Fisheries: Careers in environmental science and policy are rewarding and offer a wide range of professional opportunities. To help promote workforce development in these fields for tribal members, the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) and NOAA have partnered to create a Workforce Development Workgroup.

The workgroup provides a forum for NOAA to work collaboratively with tribal governments to support tribal members with career education, training, and recruitment. This engagement enhances NOAA’s trust responsibilities and supports education and career development of tribal members in natural resource fields. NWIFC tribes have treaties with the U.S. federal government reserving their right to fish. They are co-managers of the fisheries with the states and federal government.

“Our goal is to connect Native youth with opportunities to learn more about natural resource stewardship and the wide variety of careers available to them,” said NWIFC Executive Director Justin Parker. “We want to pass this knowledge down to the next seven generations of leaders so they can continue to protect the natural resources our ancestors secured for us in our treaties.”

Read the full article at NOAA Fisheries

Seafood Nutrition Partnership Continues Expansion of Successful Seafood Campaign at Key Retailers and Welcomes New Director of Marketing

January 21, 2025 — The following was released by Seafood Nutrition Partnership:

Seafood Nutrition Partnership will again partner with H-E-B in January 2025 to expand the
Texas-based chain’s successful 2024 Fall in Love with Seafood (FILWS) consumer campaign.
SNP collaborated with the H-E-B seafood and marketing teams to launch a multi-media
marketing plan spanning social, digital, influencer, and retail marketing including in-store
seafood cooking demos and integration into H-E-B Wellness team communications promoting
the nutritional benefits of seafood.

The Fall in Love with Seafood campaign launched in 2024 to educate consumers about the
nutritional benefits of eating seafood at least two times a week while driving seafood
consumption and retail sales. In 2024, the FILWS campaign was executed with five major
retailers and delivered an average $4.07 return on investment. In other words, each $1
invested in the campaign delivered over $4 in incremental seafood sales.

“We are thrilled with the campaign’s performance,” said Sarah Crowley, vice president of
marketing and communications at SNP. “The positive response from consumers and partners
shows that when we work together, we can have a profound impact on driving seafood sales
and helping consumers make healthier food choices.”

The FILWS marketing campaign will continue to raise awareness about seafood consumption
by launching further initiatives in 2025 with multiple retailers including Lent with Northeast
Grocery at their banners Price Chopper, Market32, and Tops.

The successful program has led the non-profit to tap Stephanie Blicharz (pronounced
BLEE-hahsh) as Director of Marketing to help implement the national seafood promotion
campaign and collaborate with SNP partners.

Steph has successfully developed and executed strategic marketing campaigns for diverse
organizations, most recently the Chilean Salmon Council. She has worked with well-known
brands, including Energy Star, Ocean Spray, and Chinet. Steph is committed to driving
initiatives to encourage Americans to eat more seafood.

To participate in or learn more about sponsoring an upcoming retail campaign, contact Linda
Cornish, president and founder, at lcornish@seafoodnutrition.org.

National Fisheries Institute Statement on FDA’s Proposed Front of Package Nutrition Panel

January 15, 2025 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

We are disappointed that the Food and Drug Administration is proposing still more significant, unnecessary regulation in the waning hours of the Biden Administration.  The proposed front of package labeling is redundant and could deliver an inaccurate message to consumers including healthy seafood in their diets.

By focusing on negative saturated fats, FDA misses the point and misleads label readers. Fish, such as salmon, contain almost entirely unsaturated essential omega-3s, the healthiest fatty acids found in any protein. Meanwhile, the planned labeling provides no way to highlight nutritious components of the product, including for fish, the unsaturated fats associated with brain and heart health.

In the case of seafood, this regulation is essentially pointless and can confuse consumers while adding an unneeded compliance burden to American producers who will need to retool their labels for the massive U.S. market.

The incoming Trump Administration should withdraw the proposal in its entirety.

Lisa Wallenda Picard
President & CEO

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