MONTEREY — Local fishermen and women have faced rough seas and disappointing catches, but even they were unprepared for the shelter in place order which has collapsed seafood markets.
Though larger fisheries are somewhat better equipped to weather this storm, fishermen on small commercial fishing boats say they are scrambling to adjust their business models — from how they catch to where they sell — to stay afloat.
At a recent fisheries management meeting, officials with Oceana, an international nonprofit that advocates for sea life, reported talk about this being an unprecedented time “with significant challenges at every level,” noting that “We have lost global and local markets.”
This week local crab and salmon fisherman David Toriumi has been fileting black cod in his fish buyers’ warehouse. “I’m taking on any work that I can,” said Toriumi. Despite fishermen classifying as essential workers, the uncertainty of recent weeks leaves him fearful that he will not be able to pay his bills.
Before the pandemic hit, small boats like his were already struggling to compete in this turbulent market. “We’re kind of used to depressing times like this,” said groundfish fisherman Jiri Nozicka. “We can survive this physically; the question is, can we survive it financially?”
Every year fishermen like Toriumi and Nozicka face high upfront costs and strict regulations that put a strain on their operations. An attempt to loosen the regulations that require observers — onboard scientists who collect data that informs management practices — was recently denied for the West Coast fisheries, despite being waived for the greater Atlantic region and Alaskan fisheries in response to the pandemic. Toriumi says observers are sheltering in place, but in their release on March 30, the National Marine Fisheries Service didn’t agree to waive requirements for the West Coast.
Geoff Shester, Oceana’s California campaign director, says that things are moving so quickly right now that the situation can change day by day. Initially, he stated that no regulations were changing at this time and no significant management meetings to discuss them had taken place since COVID-19 hit. A few hours later, Shester said it now appears that the federal government will consider using emergency management authority to change regulations. The Pacific Fishery Management Council will be proposing to reduce operational costs Monday.
This year Toriumi hoped to bolster his sales by paying more upfront, to operate in Half Moon Bay, because Santa Cruz simply hasn’t been producing in the past. “It was supposed to be a great season,” said Toriumi. Now, both the docks in Monterey and Half Moon Bay are closed. While commercial fishermen can continue to operate there, they cannot sell off the boats even with the proper permits. Moss Landing Harbor does remain partially open, and the lone vessel permitted to sell there (the Tina Louise) is still able to do so.
Selling seafood directly to consumers would otherwise make a lot of sense. “The people who love seafood are still out there, but they’re not allowed to go to restaurants,” said California SeaGrant Coastal Specialist, Theresa Sinicrope Talley.
Fisheries spanning the entire West Coast are facing various COVID-19 related challenges. San Diego’s fisherman’s market, located out on the downtown wharf, is bustling with demand just like the grocery stores in the city center whose seafood counters are now empty. These stores aren’t restocking fresh fish because more than two-thirds of the seafood consumed in the US is imported, and those shipments are no longer coming in. In contrast, ships in Alaska that left pre-shelter-in-place returned to the docks loaded with fish and nowhere to put them. With the option to export internationally halted, and not enough storage to preserve their catch, fresh seafood was left to rot on the boats.
In a press release, the American Tunaboat Association says that canned fish are also being negatively impacted, even though sales are 30% higher than last year. As people stock up on shelf-stable seafood in the short term, Talley says the albacore tuna fleets are panicking because most of their crews are foreign. Travel restrictions mean there are not enough trained workers to sustain domestic demand when their season kicks off in June.
On March 25, the Senate passed its $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill which allocates $300 million to support fisheries and aquaculture. However, when that money will be dispersed, and who will qualify, remains unclear. “It’s like the same old song and dance that we’ve heard for years,” said Toriumi, “I need it tomorrow. Actually, we (as an industry) need it tomorrow.”
Crab season was delayed this winter because of high whale presence and concern about high domoic acid levels. Once cleared, Toriumi’s 33-foot boat encountered dangerous weather and his traps came up with few crabs. The bigger fishing boats had already swept through. Due to risks of whale entanglement, the commercial crabbing season was also nearly called off, but a recent meeting (on March 25) of the California Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group determined risks were low and the season could continue.
For now, local fishermen like Toriumi are forced to prepare for salmon season, which would start in May, without guarantees or assurances that conditions will improve by then. The recreational salmon season has been delayed, as most recreational fishing in California has ceased. Toriumi anticipates he will likely have to take his boat out by himself. “If the price is what I’m hearing it’s going to be, there’s no way I’m going to drag someone along with me for 15 to 20 hours, four days in a row … and pay them peanuts,” said Toriumi. Nozicka says he will not be taking his boat out at all without anyone to buy his catch.
Roughly 90% of California’s seafood is either exported or sold to restaurants, both markets which disappeared seemingly overnight as shelter in place orders took effect. Though some restaurants have maintained takeaway and delivery options, many buyers and processors have also closed or consolidated to protect their workers.
As these businesses shut their doors, a door has opened for delivery services. Toriumi sells his catch to Real Good Fish, a sustainable seafood delivery service that started providing a direct-to-consumer market for the Monterey and San Francisco Bay Areas eight years ago.
“We’ve seen an increase in our business as a result of the shelter in place,” said CEO Alan Lovewell. His company is delivering more seafood to more customers than ever before, thanks to the dramatic increase in supply coming from fishermen needing to shift to the at-home market. “There’s a reason why a lot of people don’t do what we do,” Lovewell said. “We live in an Amazon world — customers have high expectations and we have had to learn how to do it.” Their customer base has expanded in the last couple of months from just the local regions to now include seven states. ‘But there is still an imbalance with more seafood than subscribers”.
Real Good Fish plans to donate fresh seafood to some of the regional schools so that they can provide more meals to the students depending on that food source.
Representatives from the Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust and the fishermen themselves say there is still some hope coming from this situation. The collapse of the regular market provides an opportunity to rebuild the local food system and shift the dependency off imports. “I can make a trip and feed a town,” said Nozicka. “Monterey could be fed.”
For those seeking local seafood and hoping to support fishermen in the area, California Sea Grant lists open fish markets at https://bit.ly/39IeY5D. The Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust website (https://bit.ly/347q2YQ) also identifies local seafood suppliers and has resources available to fishermen looking to pivot to selling directly to consumers. Other delivery services like Real Good Fish, include H&H Fresh Fish Co. and Ocean2Table.
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Struggles of state fishermen intensified by coronavirus - Monterey Herald
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