October 2, 2013 — Dogfish is delicious, extremely healthy, and the fishing industry and infrastructure in New Hampshire rely heavily on its revenue.
Recently, a letter to the editor was published in the Portsmouth Herald that criticized the annual N.H. Fish and Lobster Festival, known locally as the "Fishtival," for promoting the use of dogfish in local menus.
Fishtival was created five years ago as a collaborative effort of common interest organizations, fishermen and dedicated volunteers to celebrate our proud tradition of commercial ground-fishing in New Hampshire, where our hardworking fishermen are the stewards of our marine resources and have made extraordinary efforts to protect local fish stocks and our historic fishing communities.
Four years ago, remaining New England fishermen decided to take the future into their own hands by organizing into one of 17 selective harvesting cooperatives referred to as "sectors." In New Hampshire, this means we have two ground-fishing sectors composed of small, family-run fishing boats from Portsmouth, Rye and Seabrook harbors.