Inventory of North Carolina Fish Houses: Five-Year Update.

摘要

In 2006, the North Carolina legislature established a study committee to examine the loss of working waterfront and public access sites along the coastal shoreline. In support of that effort, we undertook a statewide inventory of wholesale seafood packing facilities, known locally as fish houses (Garrity-Blake and Nash 2007). Our inventory indicated that the number of fish houses fell by almost a third from 2000 to 2006. This research represents a five-year update of the initial fish house inventory. We wanted to examine if North Carolina continues to lose domestic seafood packing capacity and to what extent. We asked how those in operation are adapting to ongoing challenges that affect the seafood industry. We explored whether recent waterfront access legislation and initiatives are perceived by the industry as beneficial and delivering positive results. We found that the state continues to lose domestic seafood packing capacity, but at a slower rate compared to the real estate boom period of 2001 to 2006. We calculated a net loss of nine fish houses from 2006 to 2011, or a 9.78 percent reduction, compared to an almost 30 percent reduction from 2001 to 2006. Overall, we calculated a net loss of 47 facilities from 2001 to 2011, or a 36 percent decline in the last decade. Reasons for fish house closures include depressed domestic market prices undercut by unprecedented levels of imported seafood, declines in high-volume fisheries due in part to tighter fisheries restrictions and quotas, and a labor crisis. Transitioning from high volume to more localized, diverse markets and expanding into retail trade and local foods markets are some key strategies employed to increase profit margins. New initiatives such as branding programs and property tax breaks for waterfront fish houses were also cited as positives in a depressed economy. 4 Quality Seafood, Cedar Island, North Carolina.