fishmonger

I think this is brilliant, and a harbinger of things to come. Maybe some of our East Coast fishermen will try this here. If you are a local fisherman here in the Northeast give me a call I want your well handled hand-lined fish. Story below from Seafood Source. Tagged sea bass, lobster deliver price premium By Lindsey Partos, SeafoodSource contributing editor, reporting from Paris 8/5/2009 11:03:46 AM - South East England fishermen participating in a trial tagging scheme are receiving premium prices for their line-caught sea bass and pot-harvested lobsters . Under the aegis of the South East Seafood Group, the trial is designed to promote the region’s inshore fishing fleet as a source of high-end, locally caught seafood. “The main driver for the tags is full traceability,” David Marshall of fisheries consulting firm Fathom Marine, which is leading the initiative, told SeafoodSource. Consumer demand for traceable seafood products is accelerating, he added. “Up until now,...

The rule making boards of NOAA's Fishery Management Council are getting just a bit more diverse. In an effort to address some real or perceived bias on the board a small minority of seats have been recently filled by new members that have no financial gains to be realized or lost based on recommendations. One of these new appointments is Steve Schafer. I know Steve personally and I am confident that he will bring fresh insight and a new outlook to the council. He is a person of great integrity and reason. I think that any fears that might be raised by the commercial fishing industry will be allayed when they get to know this intelligent and thoughtful person. Steve's focus has always been to help to educate the consumer on the benefits of moving seafood to a more sustainable resource. Based upon the press release below from NOAA, I would say that Steve fills that role well. Congratulations are in in order and well deserved. June 25, 2009 The Commerce Department today ann...

Wild striped bass season opened July 1st for New York commercial fishermen. While we have had striped bass in the New York market for some time the opening of the local fish will help drive prices downward. Look for prices to drop after Independence day. Striped bass ( Morone saxatilis ), also known as rockfish to some are one of the east coasts most valuable species. Striped bass was once over fished but over the past ten years most states have implemented strict guidelines for the commercial sales of this fish as well as fair catch limits for the recreational fisherman. However this fragmented regulation from state top state has made enforcement difficult. Below is a list of some Northeast state regulations. Rhode Island trap: 26" min general category: 34" min New York 24" - 36" Delaware 28" min 20" special spring season 3/1-3/30 Maryland Bays and Rivers: 18"-36" Ocean: 24" PRFC ( Potomac River Fisheries Commission ) 18" min al...

Today is Earth day. The Earth is composed of mostly water. Therefore today should be mostly about water. I hope you do not mind my philosophical stretch. But how can you blame me since the fishmonger must be focused on the seas and such? Let us not make light of today's significance, even though I may not agree with many that take a particular extreme view of today's environmental issues, PETA for one. I for one enjoy eating seafood, and I am especially invested in the seafood industry for my livelihood. I just believe that protection does not exclusively rule out enjoyment. If you are a first time visitor please take a moment to look around. I hope that you enjoy my musings and smattering's of actual information. I welcome, actually I encourage your comments and questions be they friendly or otherwise. Actually I hope to expand the content here with additional authors, so stay tuned. And happy Water, eh.. Earth Day.

SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [ASCRIBE NEWS via COMTEX] - April 21, 2009 - SANTA BARBARA, Calif., A major shift in ocean policy is strongly urged by a team of scientists who are calling for comprehensive, national, ecosystem-based ocean zoning for the United States. Newly emerging data on the combined effects of multiple human stressors on marine ecosystems are now available to support this shift in policy, the scientists say. The work, published in the Spring 2009 issue of the journal Issues in Science and Technology, was conducted at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) at UC Santa Barbara, with support from The David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Despite increasing emphasis in recent legislation on the cumulative effects of human activities, 'the oceans are still largely managed one species, sector, or issue at a time,' says Carrie V. Kappel, the lead author. Some promising new initiatives do take an integrated approach, but these tend t...

French fishermen protest quotas by blocking transit. Chinese could eat all of Florida's turtles. Shad and the wheels of politics, fortune wanes.

A well thought out plan to farm native species fish in open ocean pens in United States waters could be a solution to more than one problem facing us today. Or it could be the worst idea to come since we allowed untreated waste to be dumped into the water from heavy manufacturing. Pros Reduces the need to consume wild caught food fish. Creates much needed employment in coastal communities. Promotes innovation and technology. Reduces dependency on imported aquaculture. Cons Waste from fish farming impacts local ecology. Greater demand on wild forage fish as food for aquaculture fish. Disease and escapement jeopardize wild stock. Creates confusion in the market with identical wild and farmed fish species. This debate is far from over, and I am sure all sides will weigh in on this issue. I for one would allow some progress on this to occur on a very limited basis. By allowing some ocean open farming to occur we could better understand how to meet the growing demands of the seafood consume...

Striped bass ( Morone saxatilis ), also known as rockfish to some are one of the east coasts most valuable species. They are both a commercial fish and are regarded by sports fisherman as a desirable species. Sometimes these two agendas are at odds. This occurred last year when President George Bush signed an executive order against the sale of wild striped bass caught in Federal waters, and urging States to do the same. Striped bass was once over fished but over the past ten years most states have implemented strict guidelines for the commercial sales of this fish as well as fair catch limits for the recreational fisherman. However this fragmented regulation from state top state has made enforcement difficult. Below is a list of some Northeast state regulations. Rhode Island trap: 26" min general category: 34" min New York 24" - 36" Delaware 28" min 20" special spring season 3/1-3/30 Maryland Bays and Rivers: 18"-36" Ocean: 24" PRFC ( Potom...

Today Greenpeace released a report grading major U.S. supermarkets on sustainability. Most did not do well. The highest rated of the group Whole Foods received only four out of a possible 10. I was reminded about the presence of this report by an e-mail from Greenpeace despite the fact that I had not been a strong supporter of the group in the past. Hi Matthew! Over at Greenpeace I've been looking over tons of blogs on ocean conservation and seafood, ect., and yours has caught my eye. I thought you might be interested in our new report? From overfishing to bottom trawling to overcrowded fish farms, the seafood industry threatens our marine ecosystems to the point of collapse. Sustainable fishing is a key to maintaining healthy oceans which in turn help stabilize the planetary environment and the climate at large. Greenpeace has just released a unique report detailing the seafood purchasing practices of major American supermarkets, markets who make billions of dollars a...

One of my ongoing rants involves the menhaden fishery. This is by many accounts the largest fishery in the United States. It is in my opinion one of the most important in terms of environmental impact. Here is the wholesale removal of the most important food source for almost every kind of other fish up and down the east coast. In some online research I found that some of the most well opinionated and active people fighting to protect this fish are recreational stripe bass fishermen. Please visit the following sites to learn more, and to sign the petition. http://www.stripersonline.com/surftalk/showthread.php?p=4868342 http://laterallineco.com/

I was watching a the National Geographic channel and a program last night about world greenhouse gas production. One thing that struck me as having great truth when it comes to seafood as well was the notion that there is good news and bad news. The good news was that if we could alleviate the problem in China, then we would solve the problem for the world. The bad news was that if we didn't change the way things are going in China almost nothing else matters. This I think is true when it comes to seafood. Already China is the largest producer of seafood and they are soon to become the biggest consumer as well. Of course there are hundreds of reasons why this is true including the vast number of people, and the growing level of wealth that gives China such incredible buying power. I have read the following report that was put together in late 2006 by Glitner. Chinese Seafood For seafood consumption in China will increase by more than 40 per cent by 2020

In the summer of 1995 I was an underemployed cook, house painter, and part time college student. One of my favorite restaurants in the Tampa Bay area had just moved over the bridge and to Saint Petersburg Florida. That restaurant was Native Seafood, and on a warm evening in July of that year all the stars were lining up in my favor. I asked one of my college classmates a beautiful young lady named Marta to dinner that evening, and she agreed to let me take her to Native Seafood. We must have gotten a late start because I remember most of the customers were making there way out while we were on our way in. It was a pleasant night so we chose to sit on the deck and enjoy our dinner. Our waiter for the evening was quite charming, I think he was trying to make time with my date, but the wine and my delight to have her as my date did not allow it to bother me. So after a delightful meal of tropical inspired cuisine we were the last two customers in the place, and the staff was cleaning up....

Northeast - Tautog Fishery Moratorium Ended NOAA Fisheries has announced the cancellation of the Federal moratorium on fishing for tautog in the State waters of New Jersey. NOAA Fisheries canceled the moratorium, as required by the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act, based on the determination that New Jersey is now in compliance with the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's Tautog Interstate Fishery Management Plan. For addition information, please contact Bob Ross , NOAA Fishery Management Specialist, telephone (978) 281-9327.

If you are a Chef in the great city of New York, I would like to extend an invitation to an upcoming event. For more information reply to this post, or use the contact the fishmonger link.

I hope that any readers of this blog will not take the last few posts as any indicator of the general tone I would like to portray. That being said there is definitely some reason for concern when it comes to seafood, its sustainability, and the future of the oceans. I for one have faith that together the industry, and humans will do the right thing. It will take some time for the public to get the message, and be the right kind of driving force. The future is aquaculture, but aquaculture done right. For so many years and just as many news articles the public has been fed a steady diet of the failures and problems of aquaculture, and the greatness of wild fish. Of course there is always some truth, and I am not going to argue that farmed salmon is the best thing since sliced bread, but I doubt that it has more impact on the environment than conventional land based meat production. At least the industry is having the conversation, and some farms are doing things to lessen the impact. On...

Many indicators abound for less fish to be available in the coming year. From problems with the last years magic bullet frozen Chinese tilapia to the collapse of the California king salmon on the other end of the spectrum. Like every problem the limited output of the next years could spawn new ideas and new solutions. Here is one. By Stephen Leahy Dec 11 (IPS) - Catch less fish. Make more money. Could this be the solution to the global overfishing crisis? Australian economists writing in the current issue of Science magazine think so. Reducing fish catches in the short term will bring fishers big profits later. And that profit potential may finally persuade an intransigent fishing industry to agree to lower catch limits, they say. FULL POST HERE

Soft shell crabs , Blue Crab, callinectes sapidus It seems as though these spring treats have arrived early this year. Some nice big jumbos, and whales are coming from Florida now. I just love soft shells, but if you can wait a few weeks the smaller primes and the decadent hotel sizes will become available. Soft shells are a seasonal spring treat that everyone should try at least once. Nothing is better than biting into a fully dressed soft shell crab sandwich with a tangle of glorious delicious legs protruding from the sides. You can also find some really good frozen soft shells during the off season, that are nearly as good as the fresh ones. Just remember that when you purchase fresh crabs, it is best to purchase live product. Soft shell crabs require a bit of preparation to be pan ready. The front of the shell (were the eyes are) needs to be clipped with sturdy scissors. The apron needs to be removed or cut off. The interior of the crab should be exposed and the lungs r...

I have had many questions about the differences between male an female lobsters. The following information is intended to clear up these questions and more. Most of the information here is from detailed conversations I have had with my purveyors, although I have tried to include links to relevant web sources as well. Here in New York we often run into an account or two that wants us to supply them with female lobsters. Some of the reasons given to us include: better yield (meat vs. shell), different flavor profile, and the inclusion of roe. In addition to these reasons I also believe that it may be a request similar to a rider that bands have asking for something obscure like a certain brand of organic cereal in order to judge our commitment to service. Regardless of the reason it is not always easy to supply these female lobsters. Some lobster houses will not even sell them knowing what a headache it is. And then there is the limited availability due to regulations designed to increas...

Native Seafood was a great experience, it was pure pleasure to have been able to go in everyday and be able to utilize the freshest seafood available. To be have available the most diverse and bountiful on site herb garden I was truly blessed. I miss all my friends, customers and comrades. The years spent there could never be replaced. It has made me the person I am today. Native Seafood was a conduit for a great vibe that was both exhilarating and tiring. Long days spent cooking over that wood burning stove drained the juice right out of you. The front of the house could be maxed out at 150, and things just flowed. The line was small, with barely room for three. I always liked the saute station best. The small pass through window allowing me a glimpse of the dining room, and the wait station. Native Seafood lasted in one form or another over 8 years, and in the restaurant biz that ain't half bad. We only served the best products even when cheaper alternatives existed. Native Sea...