SeaShare

Fishermen's Finest is proud to be part of the SeaShare family; here's an update from Jim Harmon to the Amendment 80 fleet

 

The Prohibited Species Donation Program

SeaShare has always been driven by fishermen and processors.  We started with an Experimental Fishing Permit in 1994, to retain valuable fish that were being thrown overboard. 21 years after our start Alaska, SeaShare remains the only organization authorized by NMFS to retain those fish and use them for hunger-relief…   3.6 million pounds so far from the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska. 

2015 Donor of the Year

The annual North American Seafood Expo is an important event for SeaShare.  Our board members connect with seafood professionals from around the world.  We also get to recognize some of our most generous partners.  I look forward to the annual Alaska Go Wild reception, sponsored by the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute.  This year’s event had extra significance:  SeaShare board president Glenn Reed recognized Trident Seafoods as our 2015 Donor of the Year.  Everyone at Trident Seafoods supports SeaShare, and their long-term example has had a magnetic effect across the industry.  Thank you, Trident!

Partnership with Feeding America

SeaShare focuses on programs and projects that generate high quality protein for hungry families.  We would not be successful without the many partners at Feeding America who safely and efficiently distribute our seafood products.  We work strategically with the Chicago office, as well as leading affiliates in WA, OR, CA, AK, and MA to reach food banks and feeding centers across the country.  Donated seafood was shipped to 28 states last year.  

National Fisheries Institute

We are proud to work with, and for, the largest seafood association in the country.  Their members make generous donations throughout the year.  SeaShare consolidates and tracks them.  The 2014 class of Future Leaders generated over 120,000 pounds for SeaShare.  They also raised $27,000.  And they volunteered at the 3 Square Food Bank in Las Vegas last January!  Each class has been different, but all share a passion for seafood and a genuine desire to help us feed more people.  We now have over 150 Future Leader alumni working for SeaShare. 

I look forward to publishing the results from the 2015 class at the end of this year.

The At-Sea Processors

That success also led to our partnership with the At-Sea Processors.  Last year alone they donated 400,000 pounds of frozen whitefish blocks.  These weren’t excess, or old, or damaged…. They were first-run, prime products that were generously donated to help feed more seafood to more people.  Thank you, APA!

Donation Volumes

For those interested in metrics, here are some recent results:

·         1.89 million pounds                            high protein seafood donated in 2014

·         117 donation “jobs”                             last year.  All coordinated and tracked by Mary

·         130+ donors                                         seafood, processing, and support services

·         2.8 million servings                             distributed in Alaska 2012-2014

·         200 million servings                           total since 1994.  Reached sometime last Fall

New Website and Marketing tools

Thanks to the generosity of the Pacific Seafood Processors Association, we were able to implement a new Creative Plan last year.  Nonprofits have a hard time raising $ for marketing, so we were thankful that PSPA understood our need and bankrolled the project.  We now have a beautiful new website, new videos, and a social media presence.  We launched last December, with a “Share the Sea” campaign that raised over $125,000….. enough to access over 1 million seafood servings.  If you haven’t visited the website yet, please take a look.

SeaShare has aggressive plans for 2015, building on the successes reported here, and using the new online tools we’ve developed.  Hunger-relief used to rely on gleaning ----- finding excess and under-utilized food.  It has evolved into a complex, creative process that combines generosity and resources to generate the large volumes needed to keep food bank shelves filled.  More often than not, there are unavoidable costs involved.  SeaShare is fortunate to have the support of our seafood partners, along with a loyal base of foundations, corporations, and individuals. We’ll continue to provide an efficient network that maximizes the results for everyone.  Our overhead remains <4%. 

Thank you for all that you do to help us improve nutrition for thousands of struggling families.  

Sincerely,

Jim Harmon

Fishermen's Finest & SeaShare ~ a team of excellence [feeding those in need]. Our names say it all.