Community Supported Fisheries (CSF)
My Mom sent me this article the other day about Community Supported Fisheries from Maine Food & Life magazine. Everyone knows by now about CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and in a more limited context the meat CSA like the one we had joined from Stillman's at the Turkey Farm, but this is an entirely new idea and I'm wondering why it took someone so long to come up with it.
Right now I can only find it happening in Mid Coast Maine and until we are up there for more time when Mom and SD retire, we'll have to wait to take part.
What do you think needs to happen to make this work here in Mass? Has our fishing industry dried up so much that we have no fisherman left to come in to the docks with their catch? Have the waterfront properties become exclusive resorts and condo complexes over run by developers leaving none of the wharfs and docks left to be worked by fisherman with their own boats? Do we still have enough of a fishing industry locally to make this work? I did find this article from a Gloucester based paper from last fall, but in all my circles I still haven't heard more about it.
Day in and day out in my local market I see people buying the same two or three fish, salmon, tilapia and cod and going home to likely cook the same it in the same one or two ways they know how. I really wish my local markets would branch out and carry more interesting choices, offer customers advice on ways to cook these other fish. Sure Captain Marden's in Wellesley does that, but other than that market, there really aren't many old fashioned fish stores around. I really can't stand to see the prices WF charges for the fish they slather in some random ingredients and give a fancy title too. So little of the case is devoted to any fish other than the holy trinity and never mind THINKING about buying fish in a Star or a Shaw's or a Stop & Shop where it often sits directly on the ice and looks as grey and worn as an old T-shirt.
I'm in the midst of working with my fishmonger now to come up with a four part class on fish and I really hope that we can get people to branch out and try new things. And if anyone hears about a local CSF in Mass just sign me up!
Tilapia is jsut beginning to appear here, in a few shops, sold as a frozen in-marinade/butter ready-to-cook product. I've never seen it sold as a fresh fish in the UK (probably because it's not caught in our waters).
I won't/don't buy farmed fish (eg salmon) as there are many doubts about the balance of omega 3/6 in it due to the poor cheap food it is often fed, and the dreadfully overcrowded living conditions it is kept in, or anything that is currently over-fished, such as cod.
Doesn't leave much...
Posted by: Blue Witch | January 21, 2009 at 12:08 PM
My mother-in-law swears by the fresh fish at Steamers on Watertown Street in "the Lake."
Posted by: Karen | January 25, 2009 at 10:50 AM
We buy our fish from them for create a cook.
Posted by: Jo | January 25, 2009 at 12:22 PM
I run a small cafe, and have always been wondering this myself, I try to source as best I can, but what it comes down to is getting cryovac'd filets from companies that attain the clean fish seal of approval. And the product is great but I still would love to get fresh fish locally. Also I loved your latest japanese/chinese post. Some of my favorite dishes and some new ones I wasn't aware of.
Posted by: Alex | April 08, 2009 at 10:41 AM
http://www.cleanfish.com/ if you were interested
Posted by: Alex | April 08, 2009 at 10:41 AM
The CSF out of Port Clyde is the only one I know of in New England. But they're gaining in popularity around the U.S. I know there's interest from other fishermen in New England to start their own CSFs. In every case I'm familiar with a local university or non-governmental organization (NGO) has been instrumental in helping start the program.
If you'd like more info about the Port Clyde guys, I wrote an article for my blog recently: http://sustainableoceanproject.com/2009/11/09/maine-fishermen-think-outside-the-net/
Posted by: Braddock Spear | November 10, 2009 at 06:39 PM
I found one! But I'm not sure if you can sign up for this season anymore.
Here's the link to information about the Cape Ann Fresh Catch program: http://namanet.org/csf/cape-ann-fresh-catch
Posted by: Braddock Spear | November 10, 2009 at 10:09 PM