Tag Archives: Belford Seafood Co-op
China Does Not Follow Int’l Law, Hurting American Fishermen
On Monday morning, Captain Richard Isaksen, president of the Belford Seafood Co-op, met with North Middletown’s congressman to call for stricter scrutiny on seafood products imported from China. Did you know? The United States imports more than $2 billion of seafood products from China every year. But China’s cheap labor practices and illegal fishing methods are hurting American fishing companies, said Isaksen. Congressman Frank Pallone agrees: “The flagrant disregard from the People’s Republic of China for international and domestic laws allows China to export seafood that is often sold at low prices to establish a market advantage — and drive out American seafood producers,” he said. more, >>click to read<< 09:45
Harvesting the sea
Working out of six major fishing ports, New Jersey fishermen rank No. 1 in the nation when it comes to landing clams, scallops, squid and Atlantic mackerel. “It supports thousands of jobs.’’ Fishermen are the heart and soul of this industry, risking both life and livelihood to land the fish that feed their families, and millions of Americans. “Commercial fishermen are some of the hardest working people,’’ said Wayne Reichle, president, Lund’s Fisheries in Cape May. “They are paid on what they harvest. If they go out to sea and don’t catch anything, they don’t make anything. They take a lot 
of risk both financially and personally.’’ “In the winter, our guys go anywhere from 75 to 150 miles offshore,’’ said Dave Tauro, manager of Belford Seafood Co-Op in Highlands. “It takes them sometimes 18 hours. Imagine what the fuel cost is. They spend three grand before they leave the dock.’’ photos, >click to read< 13:45
New Jersey’s Commercial Fishing Industry Struggles to Stay Afloat
In the wake of the pandemic, the industry—the fifth largest in the country—has been in rough waters. Will July and August bring relief? Atlantic Cape Fisheries, of which Sam Martin is chief operating officer, is a large commercial fishery as well as New Jersey’s largest producer of farmed oysters. “Last year we sold 2.5 million oysters, and we planned to sell 5 million this year, but sales so far are down about 80 percent compared to last year.” The bottleneck that Martin spoke of has throttled not only oystering, but New Jersey’s entire commercial fishing industry, “When I tell my boats to go fishing, I tell them, ‘Don’t bring in a lot,’” says David Tauro, general manager of the docks at the Belford Seafood Co-Op Belford, founded in 1953, is the smallest of New Jersey’s six commercial fisheries, but its pain is shared by the larger ones, such as Viking Village in Barnegat Light and Lund’s Fisheries in the state’s largest commercial fishing port, Cape May. >click to read< 17:53
Commercial Fisherman Scott M. Boyce Sr., of Belford, New Jersey
Scott M. Boyce Sr., 61, a lifelong resident of Belford, passed away May 30 at home. Scott was born Oct. 26, 1958 in Red Bank, a son of the late Norma and George Boyce. Scott was a commercial fisherman with the Belford Seafood Co-op. He and his brother Brian owned and operated the fishing boat The Linda. Scott is survived by his devoted wife of 32 years, Ann Boyce, along with their son Scott Boyce Jr. Scott also leaves behind his brother and sister-in-law, Brian and Ronnie Boyce; nephews, Brian and Heron; and nieces, Lauren and Ivy. He was predeceased by his brother George Boyce. >click to read< 14:18
‘I cannot believe how much we’ve lost.’ N.J. fishermen face tough times with restaurants shut down.
Fish of all shapes, sizes and stripes glisten from stainless holding bins at Belford Seafood Co-Op, reached by a narrow bumpy road that seems to head to the marshy middle of nowhere.,, “The dorado (mahi-mahi) is wild caught from Spain,,, “The rest of it is local, from our boats. We have six different draggers…’’ So expect no punches to be pulled when you ask how the coronavirus has affected the seafood co-op, and the fishermen on its 10 boats. Most of the restaurants that depended on Belford’s fish have shut down, which has wreaked havoc on the co-op’s business. >click to read< 15:31
In New Jersey! Support The Local Fishing Industry With Seafood Made Simple
Like everyone else, our local fishermen have been hit hard by the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. Support your local fishermen by purchasing fresh seafood from these participating markets & restaurants. Then, use their own recipes at the bottom of this page to prepare yourself a delicious meal. This is how we preserve generations of livelihoods – keep guys fishing to teach their kids who teach their kids. Locations through out the state. Information, and lots of links! Gus Lovgrens “Sea Bass over Pasta”, and the other recipes sound great! Atlantic Offshore Fishery, Point Pleasant, Point Lobster Co, Point Pleasant, Viking Village, Barnegat Light, Belford Seafood Co-Op, Belford, Fisherman’s Dock Co-Op,Point Pleasant. >click to read< 18:19
F/V New Age: Captain lands vessel at Belford Seafood Co-op after salvage operation, including the fish!
Chris Winkler was not on his boat the New Age when it became distressed off the coast of Fire Island Wednesday morning. The boat began to take on water and the crew radioed for help,,, “First thing, you know, ‘Hey, are my guys all right?’ And that’s all I needed to hear was that they were all right. That changed everything from that point on,” Winkler says. “ But with the crew present and accounted for – Winkler realized that he could salvage the New Age. So, with the help of his brother-in-law Matt Fabrizio, Video, >click to read< Archives: F/V New Age, >click< 05:44
Son of former Middletown Police Chief charged with stealing fishing, crabbing equipment from the Belford Seafood Co-op
The alleged burglary happened on Aug. 18, but Robert Oches, Jr., 42, was arrested on September 17, confirmed Middletown police. He was charged with criminal mischief, burglary and theft of property.,,, “I will say that Middletown police did their investigation very thoroughly before making this arrest,” said David Tauro, dock manager of the Belford Seafood Co-op. >click to read< 14:15
Fluke-catching quota costing fishermen thousands
Dozens of commercial fishermen say they are losing out on pay after they reached their state-imposed limit on how many fluke they are allowed to catch. Captain Roy Diehl says he and dozens of other commercial fluke fishermen are docked because they caught their allowed quota for the July-August season just two weeks after it opened. He says he blames the 30 percent quota reduction set by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission for this year. “What it does is it takes seven weeks of income out of everybody’s paycheck for the year,” says Diehl. “It’s pretty tough because there’s a lot of fluke out there and we can’t have them.” Video, read the story here 22:51
Belford Seafood Co-op struggles to stay afloat following damaging fire
The general manager of the Belford Seafood Co-op says the business is doing all that it can to stay open following a fire that destroyed the second floor. The fire on Port Monmouth Road over Memorial Day weekend destroyed the co-op’s ice machines, but did not damage the main building. The retail market is still open for business, and local fisherman are still bringing in their catches. General manager Joe Branin tells News 12 New Jersey that the co-op has been shipping in ice from several vendors, including ones in Atlantic Highlands and Newark. This is so they can keep the thousands of pound of fish that are brought in from spoiling. Video, read the rest here 18:50
