Saving Seafood

NORTH CAROLINA: Coronavirus having an impact on commercial fishing industry

April 9, 2020 — With many seafood restaurants in eastern Carolina limited in operations, or closed, commercial fishermen are feeling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic right in their pockets.

And while local seafood shops like B&J Seafood in New Bern are still in business, the concern for the future is being felt in the present.

“Right now our biggest concern in the seafood business is continuing to maintain good markets, so that the guys have confidence that they can go fish, and when they get in they can sell their product,” explains Brent Fulcher, the owner of B&J’s.

But maintaining those markets has been a challenge.

Fulcher estimates 50% of their harvests are ultimately sold to restaurant owners.

But many of those owners have been forced to adjust operations, or close all together.

“Some restaurants are able to operate takeout only, but seafood isn’t typically a takeout type ‘venue,’ so a lot of seafood restaurants aren’t able to accommodate that,” Fulcher adds.

One restaurant owner that hasn’t been able to accommodate, is Captain Ratty’s owner Tom Ballance.

Read the full story at WITN

North Carolina’s seafood leaders use data collected pre-pandemic to go to bat for fisheries

March 30, 2020 — The effects of covid-19 in North Carolina are widespread and touching all aspects of the fishing industry, including seafood harvesters, wholesalers, retailers and processors — all currently operating their businesses at a fraction of their normal production or in many cases, closed for business.

“It’s affecting everyone,” said Brent Fulcher, of Beaufort Inlet Seafood and B&J Seafood and Fish Market in New Bern, N.C. “No one knows if this will last two more days, two more months or all year.”

As restaurants and retailers close across the country, markets for fresh seafood are quickly drying up. The severe cutbacks are particularly tough on small operators like Keith Bruno, owner of Endurance Seafood in Oriental, N.C.

“It’s difficult, if not impossible, to sell anything right now. We won’t be putting any more pots overboard. And with Virginia and Maryland opening, I doubt any North Carolina crabs will be sold,” said Bruno. “Right now, I just don’t see any light at the end of the proverbial tunnel.”

Making matters worse is the closure of restaurants and fish markets up and down the coast. New York, Boston and Baltimore are shutting down, following government mandates to help slow the spread of the virus.

Read the full story at National Fisherman

Lingering North Carolina Fisheries Association issues persist into 2019

January 25, 2019 — Captain George’s was the venue for the recent 2019 North Carolina Fisheries Association’s Annual Meeting, which addressed issues that included conflicts with special interest groups, shrimp trawl bans and aquaculture in the sounds.

The NCFA is the primary organization promoting, providing education and, in recent years, defending North Carolina’s commercial fishing industry.

NCFA board presided over an extensive agenda, discussing and taking comments from the dozen or so NCFA members attending on a wide range of legislative, regulatory and other issues the organization faces in 2019.

As board Chairman Brent Fulcher worked his way through the agenda, many of the same concerns facing the NCFA this year are the same, unresolved issues that were on the board’s plate five, 10, and even 20 years ago.

Primary among them were the continuing challenges of well-financed efforts of special interest groups claiming to represent recreational fishing interests.

For those who have followed these issues in the past, the actions of the Coastal Conservation Association, a national group with state chapters active in virtually every state, was once again behind several initiatives seen as a threat by the NCFA to their industry.

Read the full story at The Outer Banks Voice

NORTH CAROLINA: Gov. Cooper Vows Continued Help for Fishermen

January 21, 2019 — Gov. Roy Cooper watched Thursday afternoon with Brent Fulcher, owner of Beaufort Inlet Seafood Co., as hundreds of pounds of shrimp were processed at the seafood business on Old Causeway Road.

The two were discussing the continued recovery effort from the aftermath of Hurricane Florence.

Cooper said he was in the Carteret County town because he wanted to listen to commercial fishermen to hear about the effects of Hurricane Florence.

“Clearly there’s a period of time after the storm that’s devastating economically for our commercial fishermen,” Cooper explained, adding that significant funding has been proposed to help commercial fishermen. There’s a program now in place, for which commercial fishermen can apply to receive financial help to help them recover.

The 2018 Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Act and an act to provide additional disaster relief allocated funding to the Department of Environmental Quality. This legislation directed $1.6 million to the Division of Marine Fisheries to compensate commercial fishermen and shellfish harvesters for equipment and income losses from harvest reductions. Another $10 million was directed to the division for commercial fishing assistance for holders of a Standard Commercial Fishing License, Retired Standard Commercial Fishing License and N.C. Resident Shellfish License between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30, 2018, for reductions in landings as reported from trip ticket data compared with average landings over the prior comparable period. In all, the legislature approved $11.35 million for economic assistance to the industry.

Read the full story at Coastal Review Online

Commercial fishing takes a blow in North Carolina

October 9, 2018 — BEAUFORT, N.C. — With Hurricane Florence’s effects still to be determined, commercial fishermen seem sure to have taken hard hits, short- and long-term.

Commercial fishermen are no strangers to losing time on the water because of bad weather. However, according to commercial fisherman Brent Fulcher, who owns and operates both Beaufort Inlet Seafood and B&J Seafood in New Bern, local fishermen lost more than just a day or two.

“We lost one-and-a-half to two weeks of fishing,” Mr. Fulcher said. “A lot of people haven’t even been able to get back to work yet because they’re occupied with their personal recovery.”

Mr. Fulcher is also the chairman of the N.C. Fisheries Association, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the state’s seafood industry. Association Executive Director and commercial fisherman Glenn Skinner said there’s been a lot of damage to the commercial fishing infrastructure along the state coast, such as to fish houses.

Read the full story at the Carteret County News-Times

 

North Carolina shrimpers say net of new rules for trawlers will destroy industry

February 17, 2017 — WILMINGTON, N.C. — The state Marine Fisheries Commission voted Thursday to begin drafting rules that would limit trawling for shrimp in North Carolina’s inland coastal waters, a move that many on the coast say could destroy the shrimping industry.

The decision came after months of wrangling between commercial and recreational fishermen, with the latter group arguing that trawlers are scooping up millions of young fish before they’re old enough to spawn, effectively killing off fish stocks in the region.

The North Carolina Wildlife Federation petitioned the state – the only one on the East Coast that allows shrimp trawling in its sounds and estuaries – to reduce the size of trawler nets, limit how long nets could be pulled in the water, permit shrimping only three days per week and eliminate night-time shrimping.

“North Carolina has some of the most lenient shrimp trawling rules on the East and the Gulf Coast,” said David Knight, a policy consultant for the Wildlife Federation.

Thousands of people signed petitions against the proposal, and commercial fishermen packed Marine Fisheries Commission meetings in recent months to make their stance known. Hundreds left in disgust Thursday after the commission overrode the recommendations of its advisory committees and accepted the Wildlife Federation’s petition.

“What just happened today is appalling,” said Brent Fulcher, who owns Beaufort Inlet Seafood in Beaufort. “The state process is broken.”

Read the full story WRAL

North Carolina Fisheries Association files legal complaint over southern flounder rule process

September 30, 2016 — For the second time in recent years, entities representing commercial fishermen have taken to the courts to fight fisheries regulations.

The North Carolina Fisheries Association, a New Bern-based trade association representing commercial fishermen, announced that commercial fishermen have joined with several coastal counties in filing a legal complaint against the state over the process used in adopting new regulations for the southern flounder fishery.

The North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission adopted stricter management measures for the fishery in November as a supplement to the state’s Southern Flounder Management Plan.

While the practical effect of the lawsuit would stop the closure of recreational and commercial flounder fisheries to take effect this fall, the concern raised by the NCFA has been over the use of the supplement process rather than the amendment process, which is a longer, more-involved process that allows for greater public input.

“Filing a lawsuit is the last resort for us,” said Brent Fulcher, chairman of the NCFA board of directors, via a news release announcing the litigation. “We testified many times last year before the Marine Fisheries Commission that using the supplement is the wrong approach and should be managed by a full-blown amendment that allows full public participation. Our advice was totally ignored.”

In a June 2015 report by The Daily News, NCFA President Jerry Schill called the supplement process used “quick and dirty.”

Schill said at the time that the amendment process includes a review by a committee of various stakeholders who make recommendations to the MFC on a management strategy. The process can take a year or so but allows for more scrutiny.

Supporters of the new rules, many recreational fishermen, however, cited stock status reports and said the southern flounder fishery is depleted and action was needed.

It’s not the first time the NCFA has felt the need in recent years to take legal action over fishery regulations.

Read the full story from Jacksonville Daily News

NCFA Weekly Update for January 25, 2016

January 25, 2016 — The following was released by the North Carolina Fisheries Association (NCFA):

WEEKLY UPDATE: 1/25/2016
NORTH CAROLINA FISHERIES ASSOCIATION
“Serving the Commercial Fishing Families of North Carolina since 1952”
Phone: (252) 633-NCFA (6232)
www.ncfish.org

Jerry Schill, President: jerryschill@ncfish.org; ext. 100
David Bush, Fisheries Biologist: davidbush@ncfish.org; ext. 102
Peggy Page, Accounting: peggy@ncfish.org; ext. 103

NOTE: Since this update is already very lengthy, we will send out a supplement to this tomorrow. In it, we will include information on:

* The Sneads Ferry Open House by Camp Lejeune about the K-2Range New  River.       Jerry attended and will give an update;

* Fundraising efforts for Ginger Shackelford, daughter of Britton and AudraShackelford, who is fighting cancer.

* Calendar of events & meetings coming up.

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING recap:

Congratulations to Sonny Davis & Glen Skinner of Carteret County and Joey Daniels of Dare County, as the newest members of the Board of Directors!!

The following were elected as officers of the Board:

Chairman: Brent Fulcher
Vice Chairman: Glen Skinner
Treasurer: Leslie Daniels
President & Corporate Secretary: Jerry Schill

After a lengthy discussion on southern flounder, including comments from attorney Steve Weeks, the following motion was approved by the membership:

To pursue administrative, legal and legislative options;

To create a southern flounder fund for the purpose of challenging the NC Marine Fisheries Commission’s decision on southern flounder in November 2015 and expose the illegal actions of the commission.

The motion requires that NCFA staff exhaust all efforts to resolve the problems associated with the illegal decision made by the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission regarding southern flounder. To that end, NCFA will establish a “Southern Flounder Fund” that will be set aside to pay for costs associated with this effort. Those costs may be legal, public relations or communications Contributions to this fund will not be used for administrative costs. More details will be included in a press release in a few days.

NCFA’s membership also agreed to:

* Assure that the current definition of a commercial fisherman remains as is;

* Reaffirm its opposition to catch shares or individual quotas.

SOUTHERN SHRIMP ALLIANCE & SHRIMP IMPORTS:

John Williams, Executive Director of SSA presented an overview of the history of SSA and their efforts and successes in curbing the importation of shrimp being “dumped” into US markets.

The Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA) is an organization of shrimp fishermen, shrimp processors, and other members of the domestic industry in the eight warmwater shrimp producing states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas.

Founded in 2002, the SSA works to ensure the continued vitality and existence of the U.S. shrimp industry. The livelihoods of U.S. shrimpers are threatened by cheap, unfairly traded imported shrimp. The U.S market has become a dumping ground for shrimp that are turned away from other major seafood importing countries. Proposed restrictions on shrimp fishing and rapidly increasing costs of doing business also loom over the industry. The SSA is committed to preserving the long term viability of one of our nation’s most valuable fisheries, which for decades has been a foundation of the economy and social structure of countless coastal communities throughout the Gulf and Southeast regions.

SSA is currently conducting a sunset review, which is required to determine if antidumping duties should remain for imported shrimp from certain countries. John distributed surveys for shrimpers and processors. It is very important for shrimpers and shrimp processors to participate in this survey! If not, the antidumping duties could be lifted.

We have copies at the office, so call if you want us to send you one or more. Or you can contact John Williams of the Southern Shrimp Alliance directly: John@shrimpalliance.com or call: 727-934-5090.

Jerry’s comments:

I would like to add my personal thanks and congratulations to those who were re-elected to NCFA’s Board, and to Sonny Davis, Glen Skinner & Joey Daniels for their willingness to serve. Special kudos to Brent Fulcher, Glen Skinner and Leslie Daniels as officers. It takes a significant amount of time to serve on our Board as we meet monthly, and the meetings are not short! They all deserve the gratitude of everyone involved with commercial fishing and those who support it.

In addition, I appreciate the support of the Board in appointing me to continue for another year as President and Corporate Secretary. It’s a role that I don’t take lightly, and offer my assurances that we will do our utmost to address the challenges facing the industry and assure that commercial fishermen will have a future in North Carolina.

It was very gratifying to see the excellent turnout for our annual meeting, and speaking for David & Peggy, the staff appreciates everyone that took the time to attend our annual meeting and also the bycatch reduction workshop and the presentation by John Williams of the Southern Shrimp Alliance prior to our meeting. It was the best attendance of any annual meeting that I’ve been involved with and allows us to build upon that energy for the coming year. David & Peggy spent a considerable amount of time in preparation for the day’s events and did an outstanding job!

There is one issue that I would like to mention here concerning the Annual Meeting. I would like to expand on the comments I made at the meeting regarding 2015. When reviewing the last year, it’s hard to jump up and down with joy. Would you agree? I made the statement that in my 29 years of being involved, it was the harshest to commercial fishing that I can remember. My purpose in saying that was not to depress everyone, as I’m sure everyone agreed that last year was a tough one, but to let those involved in commercial fishing know that we, meaning the staff at NCFA, feel it too. We are not oblivious to the negative effects of overzealous regulations that y’all face. While it’s our job at NCFA to promote a positive face, our members will wonder what we’ve been smoking if we don’t acknowledge the harsh climate facing fishermen!

However, I should have spent more time in speaking about the positives and how those positives can be used to approach the issues in 2016. For example, the relationship we have with the North Carolina General Assembly is the best it’s ever been. Commercial fishermen have many friends in the legislature and they’re not only from the coast. That is a benefit that is directly responsible to the effort we, and others, have put into it. Personally, I missed very few days being in Raleigh when they were in session last year. We do need to do the same for our congressional folks in Washington and we’ve been working on that, especially with Senator Burr, Senator Tillis and Congressman Rouzer. Congressman Walter Jones is staunchly in our corner but we do need to maintain that dialogue with his office so they understand our positions. Likewise, his staff keeps us informed on upcoming issues at the federal level.

We also have Tradewinds back and try to make it better with every issue. Our website and Facebook pages are being kept current thanks to Aundrea O’Neal. Using technology enables us to do our best in educating consumers. Of course, those efforts need to be expanded. For the past 2 years, we have partnered with North Carolina Watermen United and NC Catch in educational efforts at the Seafood Festival and the State Fair. We have a very good relationship with Farm Bureau as they have been a steadfast ally. And we have a Board of Directors that’s as pro-active as any I’ve seen. In the “old” days we had quarterly Board meetings. We now have monthly meetings that cover a multitude of issues.

The challenges are many, but we have a positive base to build on to address those challenges.

What we really need now is for more participation in terms of MEMBERSHIP, especially half percenters. If you commercially fish and are not a Half Percent Member, you need to be! It’s an easy way for you to do your part in addressing the issues facing commercial fishing. If you are a dealer and not participating, you need to be! The days for letting the other guy carry the load are over if you want commercial fishing to continue! We can assist you in getting started as a half percenter.

Give us a call or drop us a note. Stop by the office in New Bern. Or call one of the members of the Board. Get involved!

God bless,
Jerry

View a PDF of the release