October 18, 2024 — Troy Pack, the captain of the Itasca, a Hawaiʻi-based longline fishing boat, had a different outlook on his job just a few years ago.
“I loved being a captain. I loved my job. I love fishing, but it’s like I was making good money and it was worth it. It was worth being away from my family and worth being away and being out at sea for 25 days a month,” Pack said.
After a recent fishing trip, the Itasca was docked at Oʻahu’s Pier 38. On one afternoon, Pack, some of his crew and Peter Webster, who owns the Itasca, were taking a break aboard the vessel before heading out on another fishing trip.
There, Pack said he’s been rethinking his career.
After 20 years of fishing, he said he couldn’t live on the pay anymore.
“It’s coming to the point where I’m this close to just quitting, giving up, and just (getting) a normal nine-to-five. This last trip, I came in with 20,000 pounds of fish, they sold 16,000 pounds of it, and threw away 3,500 pounds. After expenses and everything … I would make more money working at McDonald’s,” he said.
The crew just came back from weeks on the ocean fishing mostly for ahi, specifically bigeye or yellowfin tuna.
There are some 140 Hawaiʻi-based longline fishing vessels that bring in more than 20 million pounds of tuna annually.
Collectively, the state’s longline commercial fishing industry is one of the largest local food producers. But Pack said he and others might be forced to leave the industry over what they’re making.