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Hands-on, Practical Demonstrations Set 2016 Summit Apart

This year’s Louisiana Fisheries Forward (LFF) Summit will feature new, practical demonstrations to help fishermen, dealers, processors and others in the seafood business be more efficient, economical and ultimately successful. Scheduled for March 1, 2016, 8:30 am to 4:00 pm, at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner, La,, this free event will run as an expo with an ongoing trade show (agenda attached) focused around four major themes: new gear/vessel maintenance, food/value-added, fisheries biology/management and safety.

“Considering recent reports on health issues with seafood imports, and the PROTECT Act introduced by Congressman Charles Boustany, it has never been more critical to help our local industry be more productive,” said Thomas Hymel, “Our goal is to offer hands-on, practical training and information to bolster and support our local commercial fishing professionals. If they succeed, then we have a greater supply of quality, sustainably caught Louisiana seafood for consumers to turn to, rather than relying on imports of questionable origin.”

Food/Value-Added Products
New to the Summit event is a focus on seafood for consumption and alternative markets. Vendors, such as Louisiana Department of Health & Hospitals, Certified Louisiana Wild Seafood program, and LSU AgCenter Food Incubator and School of Nutrition and Food Sciences, will talk about the ins and outs of micro processing, retailing value-added seafood items, and the regulations required to do so.

A special buyers panel will discuss alternative seafood marketing; often referred to as seafood direct marketing, it involves fishermen taking on one or more steps in the typical supply chain of buying, processing and distributing their catch, bringing them closer to seafood consumers. Panelists will share insights and answer questions; they include seafood processor/distributor Chalin Delaune, Tommy’s Seafood; seafood farmers market/direct marketing expert Wendell Verret, Port of Delcambre/Delcambre Direct Seafood; grocery buyer Brad Horton, Breaux Mart; chef Dana Honn, Carmo Restaurant; and institutional buyer Travis Johnson, Tulane/Loyola Universities.

“Trends fueling U.S. seafood department sales include value-added seafood products, smaller package sizes and shoppers’ increasing demand for wild domestic seafood,” said LSU AgCenter’s Pamela Hodson. “We want our fishermen, and dealers, to be able to take advantage of new markets for their seafood, so participants will be able to talk to experts about what is needed to get into alternative markets.”

The linchpin of this new ‘foodie’ section is a seafood cooking competition featuring seafood harvested by local fishermen. Certified Louisiana Seafood wholesalers will present and process wild caught fish typically not found on restaurant menus.

Several Certified Louisiana Seafood chefs will then prepare and present dishes featuring those fish, including Lindsay Mason of Cristiano’s, Vidak Sparr of Dick and Jenny’s, Devan Giddix of Bourbon House, John Martin of Tableau, Eric Cook of American Sector and Jason Seither of Seither’s. Certified Louisiana Seafood chefs Dana Honn of Carmo, Peter Sclafani of Ruffino’s, and Mike Brewer of Manning’s will judge dishes on presentation, taste, and creativity.

Safety
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) demonstration has been a popular staple of past Summits, but this year’s presentation offers valuable information with ‘live action’ training. In addition to appearances by a rescue helicopter and state-of-the-art response boat from Station New Orleans, Coast Guard Fishing Vessel Safety Specialists will be on hand to show fishermen how to properly use a VHF/DSC radio unit and live flares, how inflatable life rafts work (newly required on certain vessels), and how to make emergency repairs using the USCG damage control simulator. When the water valves on the simulator are opened, fishers get a chance to practice emergency repairs under very realistic circumstances—rubber boots and rain gear provided!

The University of New Orleans School of Naval Architecture will present a demonstration on vessel stability. While this is vital information for current boat owners, it is especially timely for any fisherman planning to build a vessel as new stability requirements for certain size vessels are likely to be in effect from the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015.

New Gear/Vessel Maintenance
The equipment available to harvest seafood is constantly changing and improving. Demonstrators and trade show vendors will showcase the latest equipment, from a new wing shrimp trawler and off bottom oyster cages, to new trends in refrigeration like nano-ice and flake ice. Delgado Community College and Nunez College will cover maintenance of marine electrical and marine hydraulics, respectively. The LFF Seafood Quality Training Lab is a mobile trailer designed to show commercial fishermen advanced onboard refrigeration technology—a pre-chilling system, which rapidly takes the heat out of just-caught seafood; and a brine freezer and plate freezer, which drops seafood temperatures to below 32 degrees in a flash.

Fisheries Biology/Management
A new feature for Summit, biologists with Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) will present examples of biological sampling done in the field to make fisheries management decisions. The Sea Grant Oyster Research Laboratory staff will educate participants on the concepts of private oyster seed production, off-bottom culture and on-board chilling using ice. Crab shedding and shrimp black spot research demonstrations by Louisiana Sea Grant will provide on-the-ground training in these specific best handling practices.

The Summit is part of the Louisiana Fisheries Forward initiative, a voluntay education program for the commercial seafood community. A collaboration of LDWF, Sea Grant and LSU AgCenter, LFF was established with the goal of improving the economic success and environmental sustainability of the commercial fishing industry. The Summit is co-sponsored by Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board, Louisiana Shrimp Task Force, Louisiana CrabTask Force, and Louisiana Oyster Task Force.

Though free, participants should register online, in advance, at http://LaFisheriesForward.org/Summit to secure a seat and lunch ticket.