Daily Archives: November 29, 2023
Bluefin Tuna Get Busy Off North Carolina – Inside the $40 billion tuna industry
In November 1981, a fleet of briefcase-toting lobbyists, scientists and political negotiators gathered in sunny Tenerife, Spain, to decide the fate of Atlantic bluefin tuna. During the meeting in Tenerife, the American delegation to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas proposed a disarmingly simple solution: they would draw a line down the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and split the bluefin into two separate stocks. The proposal passed and, eventually, for a variety of reasons, Atlantic bluefin tuna did bounce back. – Inside the $40 billion tuna industry – Once a staple in American homes, canned tuna consumption dropped 45.7% between 2000 and 2021. That is mainly due to changing consumer preferences, sustainability concerns, market consolidation and a major price-fixing scandal between Bumble Bee and StarKist that lasted nearly a decade. Despite this, in 2020, the U.S. remained the top importer. The industry, largely controlled by conglomerates such as Thai Union Group, saw a pandemic-driven demand spike in 2020, but that has since declined. Video, >>click to read<< 16:20
Locals want more rules for seafood imports
Only about 10% of seafood consumed in America is domestic. That’s crippling the Louisiana seafood industry. “For the last two years it’s just about ruined the industry,” Louisiana fisherman Pete Gerica said. In his 50 years on the water, Gerica has never seen it this bad. “There’s just so much you can take,” Gerica said. “Fuel prices being $4.00 a gallon. The cost of everything you buy, it’s just you can’t stay in business if you keep on spending money and you ain’t making none.” Monday, Congressman Garret Graves and Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser testified before the Louisiana Seafood Task Force in Baton Rouge. more, video, >>click to read<< 12:40
Environmentalists face off against environmentalists over offshore wind projects
The Energy Department estimates offshore wind turbines could produce as much as 20% of regional power needs along the densely populated Eastern Seaboard from Florida to Maine by 2050. To reach that goal, the Biden administration had hoped to green-light 30 gigawatts from utility-scale offshore wind farms by 2030—enough to power nine million homes. That now seems wildly ambitious, as billions of dollars in projects have been canceled amid staggering cost overruns, soaring interest rates and supply-chain delays. Added to these economic woes are persistent environmental concerns, as attested to by some recent federal lawsuits. In September, for example, Cape May County, N.J., and a coalition of regional environmental, fisheries and tourism groups sought to stop development of two utility-scale projects off the New Jersey coast. more, >>click to read<< 11:54
Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 56′ DMR Scalloper/Dragger, 500HP, John Deere
To review specifications, information, and 37 photos’, >click here<, To see all the boats in this series, >click here< 10:50
F/V Carol Ann: Families suspend search for missing Brunswick fishermen
If Chris Barlow could go back to Oct. 14 and tell his son Tyler Barlow to sit this commercial fishing trip out, he would. Instead, 45 days later, the last privately funded helicopter flight searching for signs of the fishing vessel Carol Ann and its crew, Tyler Barlow, Caleb Wilkinson and Dalton Conway, landed. “It is with great sadness that we are informing everyone that the helicopter that landed at 4:38 P.M. today will be our last flight unless we receive new information,” Chris Barlow posted to Facebook on Tuesday afternoon. “We are suspending our active search effort as we have exhausted every lead we currently have, although we have found numerous boat wrecks and debris none have been linked to the Carol Ann.” more, >>click to read<< 09:40
Get to know your local western rock lobster fisher and their produce
It’s a warm summer’s day in December with a light breeze blowing in from the ocean. You’ve dragged your mum, boyfriend, sister, cousin or friend along to join the locals and tourists down at the port to get your hands on the freshest and best crustacean in the world, right in time for the Christmas festivities that are around the corner. The rock lobster you purchased has just been caught by the commercial fishermen, kept in a live tank until the point of landing at port and then weighed and put on ice in your esky. Thanks to Western Rock Lobster’s Back of Boat (BoB) initiative, this is a reality for seafood lovers and fishers across the state. more, >>click to read<< 08:30
Vessel Review: F/V ERIN BRUCE II – Wanchese Argentina adds Scallop Trawler to the Fleet
Wanchese Argentina, a subsidiary of Cooke Seafood USA’s Wanchese Fish Company, took delivery of a new scallop trawler built by Armon Shipyard of Spain at its recently acquired Astilleros Ria de Vigo facilities. F/V Erin Bruce II will be used for year-round trawling and processing of Patagonian scallops off Argentina primarily for export to Europe and North America. Cooke Seafood USA said it is the biggest newbuild factory trawler to be operated in Argentina and the first to be constructed specifically for the domestic scallop fishery. Ross Butler, CEO of the company, remarked that the vessel is designed to be fuel-efficient and to offer modern crew accommodations. Photos, more, >>click to read<<07:48
Maine lobstermen signal opposition to participating in ropeless testing program
Maine lobstermen are signaling their hesitation to participate in a multimillion-dollar program the state is launching to test new ropeless technology that the federal government soon may require to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale. Lobstermen have been largely unhappy with the regulations, fearing that the regulations will destroy the lobstering industry as they know it. Maine’s congressional delegation succeeded in securing legislative approval for a reprieve that stalls the regulations from going into effect until Jan. 1, 2029. Industry groups also have succeeded in taking NOAA to court, where the regulations are still tied up. Even so, the clock is ticking and the Department of Marine Resources wants to be prepared for what it expects is an inevitable regulation. more, >>click to read<< 06:31
