Tag Archives: Seth Macinko
How foreign private equity hooked New England’s fishing industry
The 85-foot trawler, deep green and speckled with rust, was returning from a grueling fishing trip deep into the Atlantic swells. As sunrise broke over New Bedford harbor, the fish were offloaded in plastic crates onto the asphalt dock of Blue Harvest Fisheries, one of the largest fishing companies on the East Coast. About 390 million pounds of seafood move each year through New Bedford’s waterfront, the top-earning commercial fishing port in the nation. Leeman and his crew are barely sharing in the bounty. On deck, Leeman held a one-page “settlement sheet,” the fishing industry’s version of a pay stub. Blue Harvest charges Leeman and his crew for fuel, gear, leasing of fishing rights, and maintenance on the company-owned vessel. Across six trips in the past 14 months, Leeman netted about 14 cents a pound, and the crew, about 7 cents each — a small fraction of the $2.28 per pound that a species like haddock typically fetches at auction. Photos, >click to read< 12:04
How Foreign Private Equity Hooked New England’s Fishing Industry
Before dawn, Jerry Leeman churned through inky black waters, clutching the wheel of the fishing vessel F/V Harmony. The 85-foot trawler, deep green and speckled with rust, was returning from a grueling fishing trip deep into the Atlantic swells. Leeman and his crew of four had worked 10 consecutive days, 20 hours a day, to haul in more than 50,000 pounds of fish: pollock, haddock and ocean perch, a trio known as groundfish in the industry and as whitefish in the freezer aisle. Leeman and his crew are barely sharing in the bounty. On deck, Leeman held a one-page “settlement 
sheet,” the fishing industry’s version of a pay stub. Blue Harvest charges Leeman and his crew for fuel, gear, leasing of fishing rights, and maintenance on the company-owned vessel. Across six trips in the past 14 months, Leeman netted about 14 cents a pound, and the crew, about 7 cents each — a small fraction of the $2.28 per pound that a species like haddock typically fetches at auction. >Photos, click to read< 08:01
The Global Ocean Grab – Fishing Rights: We can still help save our BC fishing communities!
The sea is an open space that, beyond coastal waters, does not belong to any particular nation or group. People have been harvesting food directly from the sea since time immemorial and the oceans are a resource that belongs to all humanity. Unfortunately, in the age of globalization, the management of this shared heritage of limited resources is based on legal frameworks that undermine small-scale fishers and community management systems while reinforcing the disproportionate power of corporations and other private actors. One of these “legal” mechanisms involves reallocating access to fishing rights and quotas to increase economic efficiency, but this model is very weak in regards to conservation and ensuring equity and social justice. >click to read< 10:42
Dick Grachek: Thank you Seth Macinko
Thank you Seth Macinko. Since I’ve been reading your work, over several years of Fish Wars, it has always been gratifying to see that there is at least one person in the URI Economics Department and Department of Marine Affairs that values truth and integrity over personal economic gain. Read the rest here 17:26
