Event Partners

MEET!

Our local fishermen will be at the festival, giving you a chance to meet those working in our community.

When you think about "sustainable seafood," think local first!

In 2009, changes to federal law changed the way commercial groundfish fishermen operate in the northeast. They were strongly encouraged to join together and form harvest cooperatives, referred to as "Sectors."  

Sectors are non-profit organizations that have the right to harvest a share of what fisheries scientists determine to be a "sustainable total allowable catch" of up to 14 different groundfish stocks found throughout the northeast United States ocean territory.  

These sectors offer the real opportunity for more locally caught seafood to stay local, as fishing boats can more easily adapt their catch to local needs during different times of the year.

And because the public now knows exactly when and what fishermen catch at sea, consumers can be confident that they are not only purchasing the freshest and healthiest form of protein available--but that it is also being harvested in a manner that will preserve our precious fish resources for generations to come.

Learn more about NH's two Sectors, and who is fishing for what, at their web site, http://www.nhfishsectors.org

Shellfishing, for lobsters for example, is not included in the Sectors. There are lots of lobster boats and shops out there. They will be happy to talk with you about where your shellfish comes from, and who is fishing for it.

TASTE!

At the festival, restaurants, markets, and schools spotlight fresh, locally landed species and how they can be deliciously prepared and purchased. And check out our demonstrations on how to select and prepare fish for your own kitchen. We'll send you home with more opportunities to enjoy healthy, nutritional seafood provided by our local food system.

Our chefs work hard to serve signature meals featuring local fish year-round. For Fishtival,  we challenge them to try something new. In September, they will each be assigned a different locally-caught fish species at random (via lottery) to prepare at the event. Come taste the results! 

100 Club - haddock

Black Trumpet - lobster meat

Blue Mermaid - bluefish

Jumpin' Jays - cod

Little Bay Oyster- oyster

Old Salt - hake

Portsmouth Brewery - mackerel

Seaport Fish - monk

Philbrick's Fresh Market - flounder

Hebert Brothers Seafood - native shrimp

Portsmouth Lobster Co. - whole lobster

106 Kitchen and Bar - squid

Rebuilding our local food system is the work of many organizations and individuals in our community, including the following Fishtival partners:

Granite State FISH
NH Fresh and Local, www.NHSeafood.com
Seacoast Eat Local
Slow Food Seacoast and Slow Food UNH
Seacoast Growers' Association
Seacoast Local

LEARN!

Splish-splash your way through activities designed to connect visitors with our healthy marine ecosystem, all hosted by environmentally oriented non-profits in our community whose mission aligns with that of the festival.

ENJOY!

Seacoast-based entertainers, artists and heritage-based non-profits enliven the day and showcase the enduring influence of our fishing industry on our heritage, culture and good times.

INVEST!

A diverse, robust local fleet can make dollars go 'round.

Travel anywhere on the Seacoast and you'll see fishing boats along the shore. But where to eat their fresh, local fish? Looking for the NH Seafood Fresh and Local brand is a start, but about 11 million pounds of fish, including just over 3 million pounds of finfish, lands on the New Hampshire coast each year, and nearly all of it leaves the state after being unloaded on the pier. That's dollars driving down the road.

NH Fish and Lobster Festival is just one effort among many aiming to shift that balance.

What would that accomplish? In addition to preserving taste, tradition, public access to our ocean commons and food sovereignty, it would help create jobs.

A recent study in Vermont showed that if Vermonters substituted local products for only 10% of the food they import, it would result in $376 million in new economic output, including $69 million in personal earnings from 3,616 jobs.

Right now, less than 5% of the food we eat in New Hampshire is grown or harvested here. So there is plenty of room to make a shift. In 2006, the Maine state legislature updated Maine's Food Policy to include a goal for Maine to grow at least 80% of the food residents eat by 2020. We could do the same.

The best way forward is to invest in local resources, including locally owned and independent businesses. Multiple studies have shown each dollar spent at local independent businesses, on average, generates at least three times more direct local economic benefit than dollars spent at an absentee-owned business.

Restaurants generate an even larger multiplier because they are labor-intensive and, therefore, much of that $100 spent goes to local payroll. If they are serving food and fish sourced from local producers, the numbers go even higher still.

Seacoast Local co-founded to NH Fish and Lobster Festival one of their specific initiatives to increase the capacity of our food system and its role in developing our local, living economy. Learn more about the work Seacoast Local is doing to build strong local economies at www.seacoastlocal.org.

THANK!

We are incredibly appreciative of the commitment from numerous individuals, foundations, businesses and government to make this a delicious and fun day of learning available to our whole community.

Major support has been provided by locally owned, independent businesses striving to strengthen our community through their practices.

In particular, we thank Smuttynose Brewing Company for their sponsorship of the festival and commitment to our local community. Independently owned since its founding in 1994, Smuttynose brews over 20 different styles of beer for distribution in 19 states, including its best-selling Finest Kind IPA and international award-winners Robust Porter and Big A IPA. In 2010, the company's 31 employees worked together to brew, package and sell nearly 30,000 barrels or 1,000,000 gallons of all-natural, unfiltered, honest-to-goodness beer from its brewery in Portsmouth.

 

 

 

 

Seed funding to support boat tours and wayfinding has been provided by UNH Sea Grant.

 

 

 

Generous services and in-kind support are provided by Seaport Fish, F/V Rimrack, participating restaurants, markets and schools, educational non-profits, our cultural community, fishing families, and Seacoast Growers' Association.