Category: Fisheries

Lobster Rolls for 1 Billion

| Posted in Fisheries

Business representatives from China were in Portland yesterday to learn more about the Maine lobster industry. (PPH)

“I want them to understand Maine lobster is better than Australia and New Zealand lobster, that we produce enough to export to China, and that it is a sustainable fishery — which is very important to China — and that they and we can make a lot of money with trade going that way,” Cutler said.

The delegation included Ning Gaoning, chairman of COFCO; Paul Liu, president of Ceroilfood, a subsidiary of COFCO; and Fang Fenglei, Hopu’s chairman.

For additional reporting listen to this news piece from MPBN.

Lobstering Ban in S. New England Considered

| Posted in Fisheries

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is mulling a 5 year ban on lobstering south of Cape Cod to rebuild stocks.

The area once accounted for as much as a quarter of the Northeast’s total catch, but it’s just 5 to 7 percent today. The population peaked in the late 1990s at an estimated 35 million lobsters, but the stock plummeted to around 13 million by 2003. Scientists have never pinpointed a cause, but possible culprits include overfishing, an oil spill in Rhode Island in 1996, a disfiguring shell disease, and pesticide-polluted runoff.

New Rules for the Fishing Industry

| Posted in Fisheries

Today’s Maine Sunday Telegram includes an interview with fisherman Rob Odlin about upcoming changes in regulation of the fishing industry.

Rob Odlin holds down seven different jobs.

He is a shrimp boat captain, gill net groundfishing boat captain, sea urchin diver, charter boat captain, tuna boat captain, landlord and movie producer.

These days, his movie career is looking the most realistic.

Winter Points in the Phoenix

| Posted in Fisheries

The Portland Phoenix has published an article about my favorite Maine oysters, Winter Points.

Hennessey’s dad and uncle started farming and harvesting oysters in the mid-’90s as a way to help pay the taxes, and, what started as a side business has become a full-time career for Hennessey and his cousin and business partner, Ryan Curran.

Rowan Jacobson, author of A Geography of Oysters, describes Winter Points as “four-inch oysters filled with brine and brothy umami richness. So rich and firm, with a hint of sweetness on the finish” and quotes chef Daniel Boulud who called them “the Burgundy of Oysters”.

Red Tide & Bartender Bash Reports

| Posted in Fisheries, Distilling & Cocktails, Events

Today’s Press Herald has a report about scientific research on predicting the severity of red tide in the Gulf of Maine this summer.

Sea-floor sampling for the seed-like cysts of Alexandrium fundyense, the organism that causes red tide, shows a 60 percent increase compared with the substantial bloom of 2005, researchers with the Gulf of Maine toxicity project reported Wednesday.

Thursday’s paper also has an article about next week’s Bartender’s Bash, a cocktail competition that’s part of Maine Restaurant Week.

The rules are simple. Each participating mixologist was given two instructions: Use Cold River Vodka and adhere to the theme of ”Celebrating the Spirit of Maine.” Beyond that, the bartenders’ imagination is the only limit.

Red Tide & Bartender Bash Reports

| Posted in Fisheries, Distilling & Cocktails, Events

Today’s Press Herald has a report about scientific research on predicting the severity of red tide in the Gulf of Maine this summer.

Sea-floor sampling for the seed-like cysts of Alexandrium fundyense, the organism that causes red tide, shows a 60 percent increase compared with the substantial bloom of 2005, researchers with the Gulf of Maine toxicity project reported Wednesday.

Thursday’s paper also has an article about next week’s Bartender’s Bash, a cocktail competition that’s part of Maine Restaurant Week.

The rules are simple. Each participating mixologist was given two instructions: Use Cold River Vodka and adhere to the theme of ”Celebrating the Spirit of Maine.” Beyond that, the bartenders’ imagination is the only limit.

The Only Constant Is Change So Eat Soup

| Posted in Fisheries, Profiles, General News, Under Construction

The Food & Dining section in today’s Press Herald provides insight on:

  • Bresca’s plans for offering lunch services and expanded menu to include “European and classic American pastries and tarts”
  • the New Orleans-style sandwich shop Po’Boys & Pickles that opened on Forest Ave in late December
  • El Rayo‘s delivery service
  • the plans for Havana South which is under construction on Wharf Street
  • Walter’s under construction bar Gingko Blue
  • the transformation of Bangkok Thai into Boda which “will feature homestyle Thai cooking and Thai street-vendor specialties”
  • and information on a new seafood CSF

There’s also a nice profile of the Kamasouptra soup delivery services in Avery Yale Kamila’s Natural Foodie column this week.

With the snow piling up and the wind howling around the house, who couldn’t use a steaming bowl of soup? Even better if it’s delivered piping hot to your door.

Enter Kamasouptra, the Portland-based vegetarian soup purveyor which makes house calls.

Chicken and Scallops

| Posted in Fisheries, Farming

Today’s Press Herald includes an article on new rules that would regulate small scale chicken farms

[Organic farmer Rick] Stanley is among a number of small poultry producers planning to speak against the proposed rules at a hearing at 10 a.m. today in Room 208 at the Cross Office Building in Augusta. The issue highlights how the booming demand for locally grown and produced food can collide with the regulatory framework set up to ensure its safety.

The newspaper also reprinted a piece from the Bangor Daily News about the Maine scallop industry

“When the water is warm, they swim right through the water like Pac-Man,” he said, referring to the classic video game. “This year, I’ve seen quite a few small scallops. You know, little guys, 1-inch, 2-inch scallops. I’ve heard from other people around the state that they’re seeing some small scallops, which we haven’t seen in many, many years.

“I hope it bodes well for the future,” he added.

Ready Bros Negotiating Maine State Pier Space

| Posted in Fisheries

According to an article in today’s Press Herald Ready Lobster Co is in the process of inking a deal with the city to lease part of the Maine State Pier for their wholesale lobster business.

The council will decide Monday whether to lease a portion of the large shed at the end of the city-owned pier to Ready Seafood Co. for $100,000 a year.

Although the 3,000-square-foot tank might be the closest thing to an aquarium that Portland ever sees, the operation would be strictly industrial.

The company, now located behind Becky’s Diner on Hobson’s Wharf, would move to the Maine State Pier and use the new facility for wholesaling, packaging, shipping and processing.

Digging Clams & Harvesting Shrimp

| Posted in Fisheries

The Maine at Work article in today’s Press Herald tags along with Tim Downs as he digs clams in Scarborough.

“It’s important to keep the hole clean, so you can see where the clams are at,” Downs said.

Once he had a hole dug, he began digging up mud more strategically, looking for air holes the clams had made, and placing two of his four tines on either side of the hole so as to not pierce the clam. Then he’d flip a chunk of mud over, and more often than not, find clams.

“We’ll get this one next year,” said Downs, holding a clam that looked less than 2 inches long, which means the state deems it too small to keep.

Today’s newspaper also includes an article on the 2009-2010 Maine Shrimp Season.

Northern shrimp are believed to be so plentiful in the Gulf of Maine that regulators have declared a full six-month fishing season for a second straight year. And, unlike last year, fishermen and dealers are hopeful that there will be enough of a market to make money on the small pink crustaceans.