Tag Archives: consolidation
Investigation reveals private equity firms dominate the New Bedford fishing industry
A debate is raging in the local scallop industry about whether fishermen should be allowed to lease their permits. Supporters say the proposal could help fishermen with a small catch share, or those who can’t get out to sea, stay in the business, because they could lease their permit to another captain. Opponents worry it would allow big companies to consolidate the industry and push small fishermen out, similar to what has happened in the groundfishing industry. CAI’s Kathryn Eident talked with Will Sennott, a reporter with the New Bedford Light, about his investigation into permit leasing in the groundfishing industry, and how he found that some of the biggest winners are multinational private equity firms, not small fishermen. >click to read< 16:21
‘I don’t want to be a Wal-Mart fisherman’: Scallopers sound off about permit leasing/consolidation
The New England Fisheries Management Council held a scoping meeting Wednesday at the New Bedford Whaling Museum on its proposed Scallop Fishery Management Plan adjustment. Should it go through, the plan would allow scallopers to lease out portions of their days at sea license to other boats, causing concern among small fisherfolk and portside business-owners alike. “I was born a fisherman’s daughter and became a fisherman’s wife,” said Evelyn Sklar at the meeting. “And now I’m a fisherman’s mother and a fisherman’s grandmother. “I hope I can die in peace, because this doesn’t belong in the fishing family industry.” “When consolidation happened [in the groundfish fleet], the community dried up around it,” “As consolidation happened with draggers, they were forced out of business,” said Justin Mello, captain of the Temptress. “I can see the same thing happening. >click to read< 08:12
New Bedford Scallopers tell fishery managers they don’t want leasing
More than 110 attendees, a mix of fishermen, shoreside business owners, marine scientists, attorneys and vessel owners, filled a meeting room at the Whaling Museum on Wednesday for the first of two public meetings in New Bedford on the leasing proposal. Those who spoke in opposition drew loud applause, while those who spoke in support drew little or none. “There was a time in this industry when a father owned a boat and he taught his son, and his son was able to rise up … buy and operate his own boat, and you know, those days are gone,” said Tyler Miranda, a New Bedford captain of two scallopers. “I think that if [leasing] does move forward and is developed, it will take even further away from the family and community dynamic that fishing is and always was — and will make it more corporate.” >click to read< 13:50
A raft of issues makes life harder for important fishery – Crabbers need community support as problems mount
The past several crab seasons can’t be described as all bad. For example, as recently as 2014-15, ex-vessel prices reached $4.50 a pound to fishermen in December, spiking to $9 just before Asian new year celebrations. Levels of the marine toxin domoic acid, which have occasionally been elevated, have not appeared to shake consumer confidence in crab. They remain a coveted culinary treat on both side of the Pacific Ocean. Crabbers in Washington and Oregon totaled $52.4 million in sales last year; crab remain a bright spot for the commercial fishing industry. Poke into this rosy picture a little, however, and serious concerns emerge. >click here to read< 12:53
Did catch shares enable the Codfather’s fishing fraud?
Carlos Rafael’s guilty plea late last month of falsifying fish quotas, conspiracy and tax evasion has prompted renewed criticism of one of the most contentious parts of the New England groundfish fishery’s management system: catch shares.Rafael, who dubbed himself “The Codfather,” owned one of the largest commercial fishing fleets in the United States, and for some community fishermen in New England, his case represents consolidation run amok. Consolidating fishing permits, they say, also centralizes power, making fraud more likely. But for environmentalists who support catch shares as a way to reduce overfishing, consolidation isn’t inevitable. They say Rafael’s case highlights the need for better monitoring and fraud protections to prevent the sort of cheating that can plague any fishery management system. click here to read the rest 19:09
Fulcher family-owned processor ‘may be beneficial’ in future
Greg Fulcher hit US scallop sector headlines recently by paying $7 million to secure the fishing vessel Alaska, complete with permit, from New Bedford, Massachusetts-based Oceans Fleet Fisheries. However, he is far from the only Fulcher in the seafood business. “In the future, depending on consolidation in the sector and what happens with permits on boats, it might be beneficial to go into processing, with all of us owning one plant, with our raw materials going into it,” he suggested. Fulcher believes changes are coming to the US scallop sector, which will allow a company to stack more than one permits on a vessel. Read the rest here 16:26
Consolidation: Greg Fulcher buys scallop vessel, permit from Oceans Fleet for $7m
Newport News, Virginia-based vessel operator Greg Fulcher has bought a scallop boat and license from Oceans Fleet Fisheries for $7 million, in the latest example of big money being spent in the US sector. At 92.1 feet long 171 metric tons gross tonnage, the Alaska was the largest vessel in the New Bedford, Massachusetts-based company’s fleet of 19 — now 18. “I also bought the Mistress last month, which is a part-time scallop boat. I bought it from Mistress Fishing Corp. out of [Massachusetts], with the help of [shipbrokers] Athearn Marine Agency,” he said. Read the rest here 14:36:03
“Consolidation was coming, and now it’s here.” Foreign investment heats up in US Fishing Industry
The Cooke family’s acquisition of scallop firm Wanchese Fish Company on Friday is one of several signs foreign investors are taking the lead on US seafood consolidation, and this spring, their interest seems to be heating up. The US seafood industry ripe for the picking. A source at a US-based Alaska company, owned by a foreign company, said the US market is also likely attractive to investors due to US fisheries reputation for having the gold standard in management, making them a more reliable investment than fisheries teetering on the brink of instability overseas. Read the rest here 14:30
Jeff Davis: Peabody deal is ‘platform’ for more scallop vessel buy-outs
The deal by Bregal Partners and other investors for US scallop fishing firm Peabody will be a platform for more vessel acquisitions in the sector, said Jeff Davis, who will be CEO of the new company. On April 23, former American Seafoods International and Baader North America CEO Davis confirmed the buyout of Peabody and its eight scallop vessels, which is being renamed Blue Harvest Fisheries. Read the rest here 17:02
CCA takes stand against Gulf red snapper Reef Fish Amendment 40
If Amendment 40 passes, 75 percent of the entire Gulf red snapper fishery will likely be privately held for private profit. Sector Separation proposes to separate charter/for-hire businesses from the recreational sector and give personalized allotments of red snapper to use as their own. <Read more here> 15:43
A Proposal for NOAA – Sean Cosgrove (CLF)
Why does this current groundfish crisis seem so familiar? As the populations of New England’s cod, haddock and flounder have continued to decline, it’s not surprising that the number of fishing boats chasing them have declined. The business of consolidation within any,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
John Bullard, NOAANational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. MPBN Radio Interview – August 29, 2012
