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Harnessing Consumer Preferences to Create New Markets for North Carolina Seafood - Year Two

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Principal Investigator Name: Susan Andreatta, Kenny Rustick
Project #: 07-ST-04
Funding Period Begin: 05/01/2007 End: 04/30/2008
Region: Central
Primary Category: Seafood Technology
State Funding: $35996.00

Summary:

The objectives for this project were to: recommend direct marketing options to fishermen, fish house dealers and the public to help sustain the local fishery industry; implement a Community Supported Fisheries (CSF) arrangement with interested fishermen; and obtain and monitor feedback from fishermen and fish house dealers on sales from the CFS arrangement.

From the previous year’s study it was determined that shrimp was the favorite seafood among the seafood eating public, therefore, shrimp were the targeted fisheries for this project.

Researchers met with fisher families, fish house dealers, rental property owners and managers for the first three weeks of the project. The purpose was to identify barriers that would make connecting fishermen to the consumer difficult or impossible. With the assistance of several board members of Carteret Catch a brochure was created advertising the CSF marketing arrangement.

Realty operations were contacted in person about displaying the brochures. A focus group was held with the participating fisher families to get their input on how they perceived the project went for them.

Unfortunately for the 2007 season there was no pre-sale shrimp order taken by any of the fisher families as was originally conceived by the CSF arrangement. Any number of reasons can be identified for why this project never really got off the ground including the lack of a local farmer’s market and the fact that it was the first year for establishing the CSF concept.

The fisher families already involved in direct marketing of their shrimp increased their sales to residents in their area and to those who regularly passed by their shrimp stands.