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<\/a>Representatives from 21 member organizations and three regional councils serve on the Council. \u201cIt\u2019s unique in that not all states have a formal way for the di\u00adfferent organizations working on food systems to collaborate and share information and resources,\u201d says Angel Cruz, the Council\u2019s coordinator and the academic and extension initiatives manager with the Center for Environmental Farming Systems at North Carolina State University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Council\u2019s history also makes it unique. Established by the state legislature in 2009, the program\u2019s members valued the collaboration enough to reorganize and continue even after the legislative mandate expired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cEarly in the pandemic, the Council leadership team began exchanging information about the food system challenges we were seeing \u2014 the pinch points where food access and distribution were getting stuck \u2014 and that\u2019s when we began meeting weekly,\u201d Cruz says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The loss of restaurant and other food service markets shook the commercial fishing industry to its core in the first half of 2020. A Rutgers University study noted that prior to the pandemic, restaurants pulled in 70% of the money spent on seafood in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The study surveyed commercial fishermen in states from Maine through North Carolina and found that two-fifths of the fishermen did not go fishing for portions of the March-to-June 2020 timeframe due to market disruptions tied to the pandemic. Nearly all the fishermen who did continue to fish reported a decline in income compared to previous years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, NOAA Fisheries reported an overall 23% decrease in landings revenue for species in the Southeast during the first six months of 2020 compared to 2019. Black sea bass revenue fell by 65% and dolphinfish (\u201cmahi-mahi\u201d) by 53%, declines that reflected closings of \u201cwhite tablecloth\u201d restaurants, where both species are popular.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Incorporating direct sales to consumers into business models helped soften the blow for local seafood producers and farmers when wholesale demand slowed. \u201cPeople were already looking for local foods because often local foods are healthier and fresher than food from other states and other countries,\u201d Nash says. \u201cBut the popularity of online sales and home delivery programs accelerated with the pandemic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Local food producers often can adjust to market changes faster than national food systems because they usually have less volume of product to move, shorter supply chains, and serve smaller areas. However, not all small business owners have the technological skill to develop a strong online marketing presence and reach new customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To help address that challenge, the North Carolina Local Food Council created a student intern program called Remote Internship to Support Enterprises for Local Foods (RISE), which North Carolina Sea Grant co-sponsored. The project paired seven paid college students skilled in digital technology with local food producers, farmers markets, and food hubs to develop websites, videos, newsletters, and social media posts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe internet allows producers to create a brand, tell their story, and directly connect with customers on a personal level,\u201d says Sienna Zuco, a student intern from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition to working with several local seafood companies to help build websites designed to meet marketing goals, Zuco created tutorials so clients can update product information, add blog posts, and make other changes as their businesses grow. After graduating in December, Zuco began working as a communications assistant for the Council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Susan Hill, co-founder of Down East Mariculture in Williston, wanted to improve an existing website to attract more online traffic and feature stories about the history of the business and the town. \u201cSienna and the RISE project helped us take our website to the next level and tell our story,\u201d Hill says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In Engelhard, Diamond Shoal Shrimp Company did not have a website, and co-owner Patrice Clarke was looking for a way to promote shrimp cakes, the company’s new product. \u201cOur shrimp cakes meet what customers are looking for now,\u201d she says. \u201cThey\u2019re easy to order online and prepare at home, trends that took off with the pandemic and are likely to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sea Grant plans to follow up with RISE clients in the seafood industry to evaluate the economic impact of the project and to identify any additional outreach that could help local producers adjust to digital platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nash and Cruz say much of the energy of the North Carolina Local Food Council lies in the networking opportunities it fosters. Nash points to a new grant that will add seafood producers and retailers engaged in direct marketing to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture\u2019s Visit NC Farms app that connects consumers with local farms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat partnership came about because of the Council,\u201d Nash explains. \u201cServing on the Council has allowed me to connect with other people working on direct marketing projects and discuss how we can raise the visibility of seafood producers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cruz recalls that in some areas the amount of food going to food pantries and banks increased by up to 300% when restaurants, school cafeterias, and other food service industries closed or operated at reduced capacity under stay-at-home orders. However, many charitable organizations lacked adequate cold storage space for perishable goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat was one of the pinch points, one of the challenges, the Council heard about,\u201d she says. Council members connected food charities with Sysco Corporation, and the company\u2019s refrigerated delivery trucks, idled by the pandemic, became cold storage facilities in food pantry parking lots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now there are initiatives underway to permanently increase cold storage facilities in the state. \u201cThat\u2019s not something the Council directly did,\u201d Cruz explains, \u201cbut I think we helped create that change by sharing data.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Council\u2019s website is a resource for information on local food and local food councils. Comprehensive guides to North Carolina\u2019s oysters, strawberries, and shrimp point consumers to local sources and feature videos, profiles of local food producers, and recipes, including many from Mariner\u2019s Menu, Sea Grant\u2019s guide to preparing seafood dishes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Consumers can also read stories about \u201cfood champions,\u201d people going the extra distance to promote local foods, like chef Ricky Moore, known for the use of North Carolina seafood at his restaurant, the Saltbox Seafood Joint in Durham.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cruz says that Council members gained valuable experience after addressing critical food system vulnerabilities tied to the pandemic. \u201cIn the future, I think we will continue to be involved in different ways, including finding long-term solutions to making our food system more resilient and more prepared for future pandemics, climate change, and other challenges,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nash notes that the U.S. became a net importer of food in 2005, and has remained one since \u2014 which is why the North Carolina Local Food Council will always be a crucial resource for groups that want to build or strengthen local food economies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have the graying of the commercial fishing fleet and of farmers too, and we need to show younger people that these businesses can be profitable,\u201d he says. \u201cOtherwise, we are going to lose access to local foods.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to collaborating with the North Carolina Local Seafood Council during the pandemic, North Carolina Sea Grant immediately began an award-winning public service campaign. Not only did the campaign highlight existing and new avenues for consumers to purchase the state\u2019s seafood, it also provided strategies and tips to consumers for both seafood preparation and preserving freshness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These initiatives supported the state\u2019s seafood industry during a dire economic period and provided lasting resources for consumers and businesses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHow to Freeze NC Seafood,\u201d the cover story from the summer 2020 issue of Coastwatch, touted alternative strategies for seafood consumers, highlighting how to preserve and prepare fresh seafood. This also appeared as part of the online Currents series. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/freeze-fresh<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Consumer surveys indicated a widespread desire for seafood recipes, which we provided online through the Mariner\u2019s Menu site, as well as a regular feature online and in print in every 2020 issue of Coastwatch. North Carolina Sea Grant partners, such as the National Marine Fisheries Service, regularly used and promoted these recipes. In addition, Carteret County News Times featured Mariner\u2019s Menu recipes in a calendar that the paper published in December 2020. Visit MarinersMenu.org. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Leveraging the popularity of Mariner\u2019s Menu, in 2020 North Carolina Sea Grant also developed 13 Mariner\u2019s Menu posters, which news media in turn published in newspaper food sections around the state, including outlets in Dare County at the coast and Chatham County in the piedmont, as well as 919 magazine in Raleigh. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/menu-poster<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n In print and online, North Carolina Sea Grant also published the 2020 \u201cSeafood Availability Posters,\u201d which highlight dozens of species and their availability by month and by region of the North Carolina coast. These posters represented a fresh update to information consumers have relied on for years as the popular series has evolved since the 1970s. Coastwatch also carried the posters. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/seafood-availability<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year, enhanced webspace and a new print and online brochure touted farmed shellfish and promoted the availability of shellfish from North Carolina farmers. This broadened availability helps supplement the otherwise more limited seasonality of shellfish caught during wild harvests. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/wild<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n For the first time in 2020, \u201cA Primer on North Carolina\u2019s Seafood\u201d offered webspace that provides information on North Carolina fisheries, consumer safety and health tips, strategies for seafood preparation, cultural resources, and more. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/seafood-primer<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Throughout the pandemic, North Carolina Sea Grant social media feeds also regularly emphasized and amplified key seafood consumer awareness campaign messages and themes, as well as a wide array of new and existing resources (for example, through \u201c#FishyFriday\u201d). Visit @SeaGrantNC<\/a> and facebook.com\/ncseagrant<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n From the start, \u201cNorth Carolina Sea Grant\u2019s COVID-19 Resource Hub\u201d provided an immediate portal to resources for seafood consumers, marine science educators, and seafood industry owners and employees. Visit go.ncsu.edu\/covid-hub<\/em><\/a>. In July, North Carolina Sea Grant\u2019s Barry Nash, Katie Mosher, and Vanda Lewis received a Grand Award, top honors from the 2021 APEX Awards for Communication Excellence, for spearheading the Seafood Consumer Awareness Campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Read More:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>North Carolina Sea Grant’s Seafood Consumer Awareness Campaign <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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