\Sj[^ 



_ J. .^ _. J ^ Dmotion 



(Continued /nim p 1) 



imiately 750 million pounds of fish are discarded an- 

 nually. A study by the North Carolina Division of 

 Marine Fisheries indicates that some 4.6 to 6.3 

 pounds of fish are discarded for every pound of 

 shrimp caught alonx Pamlico Sound. 



Do these fish have to be wasted? Sea Grant marine 

 advisory agent Skipper Crow doesn't think so. He 

 views discarded fish as a resource that could be con- 

 verted into dollars. "I am absolutely convinced," 

 Crow stresses, "that there is no fish today that you 

 can't sell. It's just a matter of promotion." 



Like any commodity, the selling of fish is in- 

 timately tied to the law of supply and demand. 

 Without demand there is no incentive to create a 

 supply. Though perfectly edible (in fact, delicious), 

 croaker, spot and mullet have never been in high de- 

 mand because few consumers are aware of their food 

 potential and high protein value. As a result, fisher- 

 men have continued to go after the more traditional, 

 higher yield species, such as flounder, shrimp and 

 crab, while croaker and spot have been relegated to 



the "underutilized" category. According to Crow 

 through massive educational and promotional efforts 

 a significant demand could be created for thes< 

 species by exposing previously untried markets to thi 

 products. He suggests that once one market ii 

 created, other "spin-off markets for other un 

 derutilikcd species will naturally follow suit. Couplet 

 with existing operations. Crow contends these "new' 

 fisheries will stimulate year round job opportunitiej 

 in regions historically faced with only seasonal em 

 ployment. 



Southeastern coastal marketing specialists an 

 currently working in coordination with the Gulf an( 

 South Atlantic Fisheries Development Foundatioi 

 and the Coastal Plains Regional Commission to ex 

 plore market possibilities for such underutilized 

 species as croaker, mullet and Spanish mackerel in II 

 major Midwestern cities. Preliminary indication 

 suggest the potential is 'tremendous." A. Pau 

 Alisbrook, marketing specialist with NortI 

 Carolina's Department of Commerce, recently re 

 turned from a marketing conference in Chicago. H 

 notes that while the potential there is good, the rea 

 marketing success will depend upon whether or no 

 North Carolina fishermen are willing to gear up fr 

 the kind of product the consumer wants. 



"It has to be convenient. A housewife is simply no 

 going to want to bother with a fish in the round. 

 Alisbrook adds, "There is a market for underutilize 

 fish, but it has to be prepared in a particular manne 

 from the consumer's point of view." 



Traditionally North Carolina fishermen have gon 

 along with what he terms the line of least resistance"- 

 simply icing and boxing the fish, and shipping them i 

 the round to the wholesaler. But Alisbrook stresses ths 

 to develop a market for certain underutilized specie 

 such as the croaker, the fishermen will have to great! 

 expand their processing efforts. 



Fisherman Charles Jones of Newport agrees wit 

 Alisbrook that the keys to the underutilized markt 

 are processing and diversification of operations. An 

 while he admits that he will someday have to mak 

 this change, he has strong reservations about the ha 

 million dollar investment he predicts will b 

 necessary to gear up for processing. "The-e are s' 

 many other ways of making money that we realli 

 don't need that market," he explains. i 



Glenn Hieronymus, who runs an operation out v 

 Wrightsville Beach, thinks that there is great poteil 

 tial in the underutilized fish market. "I'd like to cj 

 it," but he adds, "the price of the ice and labor is 

 high that it's absolutely not feasible to bring it in. . 

 know I can get 5* maybe 8^ a pound for it [in t\ 

 round]. But when they're out there catching shriir 



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