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Appetite Suppression Meets Lifestyle Shift

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 03:42:52 GMT

GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro aren’t just reshaping waistlines – they’re rewriting the rules of food culture. What started as a medical breakthrough for diabetes and weight loss has exploded into a lifestyle movement. For the food and beverage industry, the ripple effects are everywhere.

GLP-1 users are dramatically reshaping food and beverage preferences. Compared to non-users, they show significant increases in consumption of certain items. For example, avocados are up 198%, frozen fruit by 145%, and non-alcoholic wine by a staggering 1,158%. There’s also a notable rise in demand for shelf-stable dairy alternatives (nut milks in cartons), energy drinks, and alcohol-free beverages. These shifts reflect a broader move toward functional, low-calorie, and wellness-oriented products.

Restaurants and bars are rapidly evolving to meet the needs of GLP-1 users, whose reduced appetites and shifting consumption habits are redefining the dining experience. Smaller portions have become a strategic opportunity. Concepts like Clinton Hall’s “teeny-weeny meal” and Cuba Libre’s GLP-1 support menu demonstrate that downsized dishes can still deliver strong revenue when paired with premium ingredients, thoughtful presentation, and smart bundling.

Other operators are following suit. Lulla’s aperitivo boxes offer curated mini-meals with high-protein bites and fiber-rich sides, designed for satiety. Fast-casual chains are experimenting with “snackable” formats — think protein-forward bento boxes, broth-based sipping cups, and fiber-packed salad shooters. Even hotel room service menus are being reimagined with GLP-1-friendly options like mini grain bowls.

To meet the needs of GLP-1 users, brands are rethinking their product and menu strategies. This includes offering high-protein, high-fiber, and zero-added-sugar items, expanding fruit and salad options, and developing alcohol-free beverages with GLP-1-friendly claims. Snack-size and bite-size portions that are nutrient-dense and satisfying, with every bite delivering flavor and value, are key.

Discreet menu design has also become key. Using language like “wellness portions” helps restaurants support GLP-1 users without stigma. Such language can also appeal to a broader audience, including older diners, health-conscious guests, and those seeking lighter fare. Some venues are even offering “portion personalization,” allowing guests to choose between standard, petite, or micro servings based on their needs.

Sustainable Seafood What is it and How Do I Choose it?

Mon, 01 Dec 2025 03:43:58 GMT

Making responsible seafood choices is one of the most important ways that people can contribute to healthier oceans. Thankfully, there is growing consumer demand for seafood that is both ethical and sustainable, and an increasing number of people want to ensure they are making responsible decisions when it comes to their seafood choices. The challenge is that the path to making sustainable seafood choices is not a clear one.

As consumers and ocean lovers, what are the best options? Here are some of the top questions people have about choosing sustainable seafood and some actionable tips to help navigate these complex issues.

What is sustainable seafood?

Sustainable seafood is seafood that is caught or farmed (also called aquaculture) with minimal environmental and social impacts. When done correctly, sustainable seafood sourcing prevents overfishing, minimizes incidental impacts to other ocean wildlife and habitats, identifies and protects essential fish habitats, and takes into account the social and economic impacts on the communities from which the seafood is sourced.

How to decide if seafood is sustainable?

The first step is to identify the source. Some restaurants, markets, and seafood companies have made sustainability part of their operations and will advertise where their seafood is from and whether it has any sustainability certifications, however, many places do not. Even though it may feel uncomfortable, or seems like an inconvenience, it is critical that folks ask questions about where their seafood comes from and if they don’t know their supply chain, the safest option is to avoid purchasing seafood there.

Once the source of the seafood is known, using one of the guides like those listed below determines if it is sustainable:

Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch (This guide has a mobile app)

Ocean Wise

Audubon G.U.L.F. (This guide is specific to the Gulf of Mexico region and has a mobile app)

EDF Seafood Selector

WWF Seafood Guides (WWF has multiple guides that are specific to different regions)

Another way to reduce the impact of your seafood choices is to choose seafood species that are lower on the food chain, like oysters and mussels, which tend to be better options for a variety of reasons, one being that these animals are a primary food source for other animals, and so they reproduce faster than predatory species like tuna.

Other options that are low on the food chain like domestic tilapia and catfish, clams, and sea urchins tend to hit most of the boxes on the sustainability checklist.

Encouraging Young People to Become Farmers

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 03:45:10 GMT

The movement to urban areas has been happening for decades. At the same time, a stable and secure food supply remains fundamental to society. Young farmers are now needed to replace the retiring workforce and utilize innovative technologies to increase global food production to feed a growing population.

A new generation of farmers, more digitally native and concerned with conscious living, could integrate new technologies and sustainable practices, contributing to the massive growth of regenerative agriculture.

Smart farming methods would mean that young farmers could take advantage of smaller land units with higher yields, incorporating innovations like precision farming, hydroponics, and vertical farming. Agriculture also offers the independence of being self-employed, appealing to a generation looking for autonomy in their work.

While the younger generation isn't necessarily against working in farming and agriculture - they do need the right opportunities and incentives. A successful shift will require a combination of economic incentives, education and training, technology integration, and cultural shifts.

Attracting young people to consider farming as a career in 2025 may also require re-imagining agriculture as a sector poised for technology-driven entrepreneurs. With Agtech training in digital farming tools, precision agriculture, and AI-driven farming techniques, young people now possess the skills necessary to modernize agriculture in ways unknown to previous generations.

A new UN report suggests that getting unemployed youth into agricultural jobs could change the future of food security, economic growth, and climate resilience, but coordinated action is needed to unlock their potential.

“Youth are the future of agriculture, and it’s essential to provide them with the skills, knowledge, and resources to succeed.”

~ Dr.Kanayo Nwanze

Former President, the International Fund for Agricultural Development

The global economy could soar by $1.5 trillion IF youth are empowered in farming.

~ United Nations

2025

Is the Carajillo Coming for Espresso Martini’s Crown?

Fri, 01 Aug 2025 03:46:27 GMT

In 2023, the Espresso Martini became the sixth most-popular cocktail in the US and, according to Pernod Ricard, online searches for the drink were up by 26% last year – but now Google data is suggesting that a new coffee-based cocktail may be about to take its crown.

In the bars and restaurants of Roma Norte, a lively neighborhood in Mexico City filled with cafes, shops, and the city’s most stylish residents, there’s a whole lotta shakin’ going on. But the espresso martini is not the drink of choice being strained into glittering glassware for thirsty drinkers citywide. Rather, it’s the Carajillo.

The Carajillo is a simpler drink, typically made with espresso and Licor 43, a Spanish liqueur, and often served over ice. Its distinct flavor profile, with prominent vanilla and citrus notes, results in a smoother and sweeter taste compared to the vodka and coffee liqueur in an espresso martini. With a lower alcohol content, the Carajillo also offers a more approachable option for those who prefer a lighter drink.

The Carajillo's origins in Spain and popularity in Mexico also offer a sense of global intrigue, appealing to consumers looking for something beyond the familiar.

While the espresso martini has been dominating cocktail and brunch menus for the best part of a decade, it appears that the Carajillo is beginning to make waves in the US, with Google searches showing a steady climb in its popularity, and Yelp data indicating a 118% increase in 2023.

If you were to take what industry pundits and cocktail aficionados are saying, the carajillo is emerging as a strong contender. Now that may be a bit dramatic, but, maybe you won’t be reading about how the espresso martini is having yet another “moment” this year. It seems like we’re told we’re in the midst of the espresso martini’s latest moment every time fall or winter comes around.

While the Espresso Martini is a modern classic that has been around for decades…it’s not “having a moment,” it has simply reached ubiquity.

The idea that, perhaps, a lesser-known coffee serve could have its moment this year is exciting. After all, all good things must come to an end and that includes the Espresso Martini Madness.

South of the border a better coffee cocktail is said to exist, and everyone in Mexico City is drinking it: the Carajillo.

New Ways to Add Life to a Small Scale Farm

Sun, 01 Jun 2025 03:47:41 GMT

Millennials and Gen Zs increasingly want to know the farm practices behind their food purchases. They are also looking for full supply chain transparency and asking what food companies are doing to combat climate change and food nutrition.

At the same time, technology and imagination have now created more opportunities for small scale farmers to develop profitable businesses. Rural farms, located in outlying areas of the country, are perfect for cultivating food crops, rearing livestock, and hunting.

For a farmer short on capital, there are many low-cost business ideas suited for rural areas that are easy to start as well. While these types of farm businesses usually earn less than other farms that invest in land and equipment, they continue to provide a steady stream of income.

Microgreens Farming

Microgreens are young vegetables or baby plants that are around 10 to 14 days old and one to three inches tall. They are the small edible vegetables that restaurants use in salads or as garnish. Chefs add them to create depth of flavor. According to Microgreens Farmer, a standard rack can produce $800 or more. The microgreen market grew from $1.91 billion in 2023 to $2.14 billion in 2024 with a CAGR of 12.2%, according to The Business Research Company.

For beginner farmers microgreens are easy to grow, turnaround time is high, and they require little investment to start. They can be grown indoors or outdoors, although, for year-round yield, a greenhouse is needed, which can get pricey. However, most microgreens like temperatures similar to our homes.

The Farm Stay Experience

Farm experiences, where a vacationer stays on a farm, actually participating in farm life, have been popular since the 1990s. Farm stays are about having a wholesome experience in a natural environment, which makes small farms well-suited, especially those with organic farming.

Usually, vacationers stay on the farm and help out with the chores, like feeding the animals. They may be treated to a tour or a small course on farming; others will simply take part in daily farm life like one of the family. Advertising can be done online or through services like Airbnb.

The bottom line is, small farms are often started for the love of the land, a desire to be self-sufficient, and an appreciation for the farming lifestyle. That doesn’t mean they can’t turn a tidy profit.

California: From Gold to Green

Thu, 01 May 2025 03:49:24 GMT

California's transition from a gold-rush boom to a green-focused economy involves more than just a change in industry. It reflects a broader shift in how the state values its natural resources and addresses environmental concerns. From the intense extraction of gold to the modern focus on sustainable practices, California's story is a testament to the dynamic relationship between humanity and the environment.

Gold gave the Golden State both its nickname and its agricultural legacy. The famous California Gold Rush of 1848 brought 300,000 people, drawn from other states and around the world by the heady promise of instant riches, to an undeveloped frontier that was still not yet part of the United States.

It was the greatest migration in U.S. history, yet wave after wave of its participants arrived in a territory that produced little of its own food. The growing gap between food supply and the hungry demands of hard-working prospectors was initially plugged by imports. Apples and wheat came south from Oregon, pork and beef west from Nevada and Texas, and Hawaii sent vegetables across the Pacific.

What few farmers California possessed before the Gold Rush dwindled still further as they too headed for the hills, hoping to try their luck at making their fortune. Shortages remained, reflected in historic accounts of food prices. ‘Exotic’ produce such as oranges – for which miners were willing to pay a premium, to combat scurvy – sold for one dollar a piece, the equivalent of nearly $40 today. It didn’t take long before many of the would-be fortune-seekers, rather than return home penniless, realised they could instead turn to farming and produce food for the still-growing population.

But the real shift to California’s farming prominence came with an 1884 court decision. It ended a bitter struggle between miners and farmers: who had more ‘right’ to use the landscape? Judges ruled in the farmers’ favor: food production came first. That ruling, recognising the significance of agriculture and the importance of avoiding pollution, is often seen as the spark that fired California’s ongoing regard for the environment.

Today, so large is the California agricultural economy alone, that it ranks as the world’s fifth largest supplier of food in the world. In 2024, the average Californian farmer fed 155 people, up from just 19 people per farmer in 1940. That makes it the powerhouse of U.S. agriculture, growing more than 400 commodity crops and generating 11% of U.S. agricultural value.

California supplies more than 30% of U.S. vegetables, 75% of its fruit and nuts, and is the country’s biggest milk producer, producing nearly 20% of the nation’s milk. And, of all crops grown in the U.S., 19 of them – including Almonds, Artichokes, Clingstone Peaches, Dried Plums (prunes), Figs, Garlic, Olives, Persimmons, Pistachios, Pomegranates, cannery tomatoes, Raisins, Sweet Rice and Walnuts – are grown only in California.

Tides Turn for Seafood More Fish are Farm-Raised than Caught in the Wild

Sun, 01 Sep 2024 03:51:08 GMT

For the first time in history, on June 7th, 2024, the United Nations reported that we now farm more seafood than we catch from the wild. At the same time, overfishing of wild fish stocks continues to increase even as the number of sustainably fished stocks declines.

This milestone was in many ways an expected one, given the world’s insatiable appetite for seafood. Consumption of seafood has grown at twice the annual rate of the global population since 1961.

Meeting this growing global demand for seafood was almost certainly going to necessitate an increase in aquaculture. As Dave Martin, program director for Sustainable Fisheries Partnerships, an international organization that works to reduce the environmental impact of seafood supply chains explains, “ Fishery production levels fluctuate from year to year, but it’s not like there are new fisheries out there waiting to be discovered, so any growth in consumption of seafood is going to come from aquaculture.”

Bryton Shang, CEO of San Francisco-based aquaculture tech startup Aquabyte, points out that, “The report highlights a huge potential for aquaculture to bring economic and food security to countries around the world.”

“There has absolutely been more action from regulators, nonprofits and businesses, and more conversations around the industry itself, that are evolving with new types of partnership developing,” Shang said.

As an example, the Walmart Foundation and Chilean salmon farmer Blumar Seafoods have partnered with The Nature Conservancy to experiment with co-farming seaweed as a way to improve fish-farm water quality. This uptick in crucial innovations and regulations has “accelerated the production of sustainably and ethically grown seafood,” Shang said.

While many problems have been linked to in-demand, intensively farmed species such as salmon and shrimp that rely on fish-based diets, farmed shellfish can, in contrast, actually improve the surrounding ecosystem, according to research published in Marine Policy. Farming herbivorous fish using indigenous Hawaiian techniques has also been reported to improve water quality and increase native fish populations.

“Producing food has impacts,” states Manuel Barange, director of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Fisheries and Aquaculture Division). “Aquaculture allows us to control and analyze what impacts we are prepared to accept and which ones we do not.”

In May 2024, the FAO agreed to a set of sustainable aquaculture guidelines to help states navigate these trade-offs.

‘Newstalgia’ on the Menu

Mon, 01 Jul 2024 03:52:36 GMT

Newstalgia, as the name implies, uses nostalgic items to create something new, and Gen Xers are taking it to new heights. Whereas nostalgia relies heavily on sameness to recreate an experience in an identical format, newstalgia seeks to improve upon items of the past.

Children of the ‘80s and ‘90s can probably rattle off any number of food items that defined their young lives. From Bagel Bites and Chef Boyardee to Freeze Pops and Fruit by the Foot to Hot Pockets and Lunchables, this was a generation that embraced processed and microwavable foods.

Granted, the foods that spark nostalgia in Gen Xers and millennials may not be the healthiest, but that doesn’t mean they’re not due for a comeback with the current generation just hitting adulthood. Everything old is new, and Gen Zers are embracing the end of the 20th century with fervor.

Food, it turns out, lends itself particularly well to the application of nostalgia because smell is the sense that is most conducive to nostalgic feelings. The nose is directly connected to the limbic system of the brain which houses emotions, so there is a strong link between odor and emotions.

Research studies found that the smell of baked goods was the first and greatest olfactory stimulus of nostalgia, while other cooking scents such as pasta, bacon and meatballs came in second.

Products that have been consistently popular for decades, that more than one age group might associate with their childhood, can also be particularly powerful inclusions. A crust made with OREO cookies, which have been sold since 1912, can invigorate a classic like Baked Alaska, for example, or make Boston or banana cream pie even richer and more flavorful.

As the median age in the United States continues to rise, bringing back concepts that resonate with nostalgic Gen Xers and baby boomers can be a clever strategy for restaurant growth in 2024.

Opportunities abound. Research has shown that Gen Xers are more likely to seek out premium experiences, travel often and regularly enjoy an alcoholic beverage than any other generation, while boomers are the least likely to say they are watching their budget.

Transforming Commercial Fishing with Computer Science and Artificial intelligence

Fri, 01 Mar 2024 03:54:01 GMT

The problem of unwanted catches has always been present in fisheries. In the EU, fishers must register all catches and bring them back to shore, which takes up time, space, and is very costly.

This is where artificial intelligence (AI) comes in. Researchers from Wageningen University and Research (WUR) in the Netherlands have joined forces with the Dutch fishing industry to develop an AI-based tool, Fully Documented Fisheries (FDF), funded by the EU.

The tool automatically recognises the size and species of each fish, streamlining the handling of fish and recording of catches on board vessels. Using a video camera that records the fish moving along the conveyor belt from the net unloading area to the hold of the vessel, an on-board AI unit decodes the video images to identify and record the species and size of each fish. This allows the fishers to quickly see if they were catching too many undersized fish or the wrong species, and effectively move to another fishing ground.

This project goes far beyond the existing systems. With this powerful algorithm, FDF makes it possible for the fishers to respect their landing and registration obligations, improve working conditions, and enable the fisheries to be more selective.

FDF not only improves the processing of catches on board and lessens the administrative burden, but it also monitors total catches in real time by size, species and weight, and generates detailed data that can be used for scientific purposes, stock estimates, research, and fisheries policy.

The project blends new technology to improve data collection in commercial fisheries, ultimately leading to sustainable fisheries. As Edwin van Helmond, fisheries biologist at Wageningen University and Research, says: “We have improved data, improved stock assessment, better research, better policy and, ultimately, a better fisheries sector. It’s really a win-win situation”.

America’s Favorite Seafood

Tue, 01 Nov 2022 21:53:17 GMT

Seafood consumption is on the rise in America, and between the health benefits, nutritional value and delicious taste, it’s not hard to see why. Here’s one perspective from The Healthy Fish on America’s favorite seafood species.

Shrimp tops the list of America’s favorite seafoods, with Americans eating a total of 1.27 billion pounds of shrimp a year. That works out to about 4.1 pounds per person.

Shrimp has become a popular choice because of its low cost and versatility. It is often added to salads or stews, or cooked on kebabs. It also has a reputation for being healthy, low in saturated fat, a good source of protein, and one of the best sources of vitamin B12. It is also bursting in potassium and other nutrients like iron and vitamin D.

The second most popular seafood in America is salmon, with Americans eating a total of 918 million pounds per year, or about 2.88 pounds per capita. Salmon’s taste and great nutritional content contribute to its popularity. It’s one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids and is often used in dishes like cedar plank fish and seafood corn chowder.

Tuna is popular due to its low-cost canned form and its protein content. At a total consumption of 701 million pounds in America, or 2.2 pounds per person, tuna is the third most popular seafood choice. It is used in ceviche and is often eaten raw in Japanese cuisine. Its texture makes it a favorite among sushi fans. It’s also a classic in sandwiches.

Tilapia is the fourth most consumed seafood, and its popularity is on the rise. Americans eat a total 440 million pounds per year, or 1.38 pounds per person. Tilapia fans love it for its versatility, its low cost and its mild and delicate flavor. It’s also popular for its nutritional value and health benefits. Just one serving of Tilapia has 21 grams of protein and is a good source of potassium, vitamin B12 and vitamin D.

Thanks to its versatility, Tilapia can be used in almost any recipe that calls for seafood, including lettuce wraps, tacos and soup. It can also be used as a healthy alternative in recipes that call for chicken.

Americans are trying to eat healthier, and consuming more seafood is part of their plan.

One-third (36%) of adults are eating more seafood in place of meat, according to Technomic's 2021 Center of the Plate: Seafood & Vegetarian Consumer Trend Report.

And two-thirds (67%) are looking for more recipes and new products to help them do so, per Mintel’s 2021 Fish and Shellfish—U.S. report.

Looks like consumers are catching the seafood wave. Three-quarters of consumers eat seafood at home or away from home at least once a month, and 46% have it at least weekly; only 12% say they never eat seafood, according to Technomic.

Restaurant Ownership

Mon, 01 Aug 2022 21:58:07 GMT

The restaurant business is not for the faint of heart ... or stomach. They have a high failure rate; approximately 60% of restaurants fail within the first year of operation and nearly 80 percent shutter their doors before their fifth anniversary.

Knowing why can help prospective owners avoid a similar fate. Often, the No. 1 reason is simply location — and the general lack of self-awareness that you have no business actually being in that location.

For example, that hip new part of town with cool shops and lots of foot traffic also comes with a price tag. And while it might be nice to sell meatballs right in the heart of everything, those meatballs had better be spectacular because the landlord doesn’t care if it’s your grandmother’s recipe. The landlord cares about rent — specifically that you pay it.

Location is just one of many reasons why the restaurant business is not for the faint of heart. And though it may arguably be the most serious concern, it’s just one more thing piled on to a mountain of obstacles that includes low start-up capital, inconsistent food and poor staffing.

Really, the list goes on and on, and it’s been that way since forever. But there is also now a very modern concern: technology.

It used to be that a restaurant could open fairly quietly. You had time to work out the menu and staffing issues, relative obscurity to find your voice and style, and months of experience to adequately adjust the flow and feel of the front and back of the house.

Now, you are one bad lasagna away from wallowing in the depths of Yelp hell. And in a world where buzz is everything, nothing spells trouble like the buzz of bad service and dodgy lasagna.

A Harvard Business School study found that just a one-star increase on Yelp saw a 9% revenue rise for a restaurant. And, what's more, restaurants with more reviews than an average eatery can see an increase of 82% more revenue, according to Womply research.

With 94% of U.S. diners claiming they’re influenced by online restaurant reviews essentially, it comes down to the fact that … reputation and revenue go hand-in-hand these days.

How Tuna Conquered the World

Sun, 01 May 2022 17:54:09 GMT

We swallow it in sandwiches. We scoff it up as sushi. Now the global appetite for tuna has become insatiable. Not only is it the world's most consumed fish, but the seven most commercially important tuna species are also one of the most economically valuable fish on the planet.

Tuna is now one of the great, healthy convenience foods of the modern age: unusual and expensive enough to be a treat; new enough to be fashionable and easy to cook.

While tinned tuna remains the workaday fish eaten by millions across the developed world, fresh raw tuna now reigns supreme in the culinary world, especially when it comes to sushi and sashimi.

From a nutritional standpoint, tuna is a treasure-trove of protein, vitamins, and healthy fats and, as a bonus, it’s a flexible ingredient that is tasty both raw or fresh off the grill.

If you’ve ever wondered how many calories there are in tuna or how it fits in with your resolution to eat a more balanced and healthy diet, just read on.

One 4 oz. serving of ahi tuna fish contains about 120 calories, 25 g of protein, 1 g of fat, and zero carbohydrates, which makes it an ideal food choice for people on a low-carb, high-protein diet. In addition, tuna is a good source of vitamin B, omega-3 fatty acids, potassium, vitamin D, phosphorous, selenium, and magnesium.

Tuna is g0od for weight loss, too. It reduces the levels of ghrelin – a hormone that stimulates hunger - so it fights cravings and keeps you feeling full longer.

While tuna is a powerhouse of nutrition, it can also improve your heart health and lower your blood pressure by balancing out the negative effects of sodium.

The protein in tuna has been found to boost your immune system and speed up wound healing by promoting the growth of new tissue, while the omega-3 fats reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer in men and breast cancer in women. The niacin in tuna helps lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and age-related decline in cognitive functions.

The fact is - canned or fresh - tuna is tasty and healthy; a winning combination in 2022.

Seafood Meets Grill

Fri, 01 Apr 2022 18:51:08 GMT

Fresh and frozen seafood hit record sales in 2021 and analysts at the National Fisheries Institute’s Global Seafood Market Conference (GSMC) at the start of 2022 expect the positive sales trend to continue.

“In terms of fresh seafood, we had a massive 2020, where we had so many new buyers come into the category, yet we still managed to stay close to that figure again in 2021,” said 210 Analytics Principal Anne-Marie Roerink. Household shopping trips for fresh seafood increased as well.

Roerink reported seeing more grocers merchandising packaged seafood salads, smoked fish, and a variety of seafood cakes, as well as convenient, ready-to-heat or ready-to-cook items like fresh salmon portions on a cedar plank, ready to be grilled.

Analysts now believe that grilling, which has been traditionally dominated by the meat category, offers a huge potential growth opportunity for retailers value-added seafood sales, according to Roerink. Americans spent USD 4.5 billion on smokers and grills in 2020. “With all that equipment sitting at the home, I think grilling is a massive opportunity for seafood to get involved in.”

Thanks to a shift in consumer lifestyle as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased interest in the health and immune-boosting qualities attributed to seafood consumption, the industry has a big potential marketing point. Seafood sales are predicted to remain strong throughout 2022, aided in part by seafood’s strong linkage to omega-3s in consumers’ minds.

Heart disease is now the leading cause of death in the U.S. and one of the foods most strongly associated with reduced heart disease risk is fish. It’s estimated that low seafood intake is responsible for about 84,000 American lives lost to heart disease each year, which makes seafood deficiency the second-biggest dietary contributor to preventable deaths in the U.S.

While eating fish has been proven to fight heart disease in several ways, at the present time only about one-third of Americans eat seafood once a week, while nearly half eat fish only occasionally or not at all.

This creates a unique opportunity for seafood suppliers to be one of the primary beneficiaries of consumers’ surging interest in eating healthier foods in 2022. Few things are as all-American as a summertime barbecue party - we Americans are particularly fond of them. It’s where Seafood meets Grill has powerful marketing potential.

A Safe Haven

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 19:59:23 GMT

No one knows how long this situation will last, but one thing you can do is send a message to your customers that your restaurant is a safe haven from the pandemic outside.

Make an abundance of caution part of your brand. Put language about your efforts on your site and in your booking flow. If you choose to put more space between tables, broadcast that on social media. Do everything you can to make guests seek out your restaurant as a place of refuge.

It’s a good opportunity to minimize no-shows by communicating with guests to confirm existing reservations, reassuring your guests of the precautions you’re taking, and offering any promotions you have to get them to complete the reservation: a complimentary appetizer, drink, loyalty rewards, etc.

In general, make sure your team has a plan in place for dealing with a sick customer. Protecting your employees and making the other customers feel safe remains your number one priority.

While some diners may end up going to restaurants less frequently during the lingering pandemic, they may still come together for notable calendar events, such as Easter, Passover, Mother’s Day, Graduation celebrations, and so on.

This is another reason why it’s essential to market your restaurant as a particularly sanitary environment: if you can convince guests that you’re offering a safe place, where better for families to meet?

And because so many businesses have pivoted to a remote working structure, you’re surrounded by a population of confined people going stir-crazy.

Think of it this way: this unfortunate crisis has ended up putting an entirely new daytime audience of locals close to your restaurant all day. People still want to connect and help one another out, and they’ll need a venue to do that.

Market your restaurant as a safe place to gather. Reach out to your local customers and encourage them to come in for a lunch promotion; print up T-shirts; make it a genuine place of social gathering — again, a refuge — and you’ll probably end up making them into long-term customers.

A Smoothe Sour Beer?

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 18:42:52 GMT

First, there was the fruited sour beer. Then, the milkshake IPA. Today, we greet the smoothie sour beer.

This trending brew is being fully embraced by some adventurous producers from Eugene, Oregon to Fargo, North Dakota, but perhaps the most important thing the smoothie sour is doing is pushing boundaries within beer making. “It’s taking the expectations and direction of beer in completely new ways, as well as the desire to use real ingredients to create flavors that are genuine and noticeable as such, as opposed to using flavorings,” says Dan Russo, Director of Brewing Operations at the Oakshire Brewing in Eugene.

The new smoothie sours tend to come in bright colors, looking more like something the kids in Hook ate than a beer. Drekker Brewing out of Fargo has become an ambassador of the style. The brewery makes them in all shapes and sizes, from pineapple, guava, and passionfruit to a sour that’s designed to taste like a PB&J. The Coconut Key Lime Pie beer blends lime, coconut, banana, granola, lactose, cream cheese, and vanilla. In short, when Drekker is short on brewing supplies, what it adds to the grocery list is not very common.

Making a smoothie sour can be quite challenging, reports Russ. Fermenting at such a high gravity with more acidity can be tough on yeast. There’s a balancing act, too, with so many ingredients involved. And, because much of this is new, there’s no real reference point. The processing of weird ingredients for the first time is always a challenge as well,” Russo admits. “There are no instructions on the internet on how to add 200 pounds of no-bake cheesecake mix to a beer. So you end up going through some trial and error. Usually it ends up working out OK. It’s definitely always a wild ride, but once you get it right with any of the weird ingredients, then the next time you go to do it it ends up being a piece of cake — sometimes literally.”

This trend, which is the continuation of an arc that began about a decade ago when goses and kettle sours grew in popularity alongside fruit-infused beers, reportedly draws on the addition of culinary ingredients to make beers that have as much bite as they do body.

This sub-category of beer has grown in popularity because consumers have started to appreciate, rather than fear, the different kinds of flavors found in hazy beer and unfiltered natural wine without being put off by drinks having a cloudy appearance.

This new epicurean-influenced beer style has started trending in the US and has been predicted to expand more broadly. Sam Johnson, who manages the two Seattle outposts for Great Notion, claims the smoothe sour beers have been enormously popular since the company started brewing them a couple of months ago.

“Outside the Box”

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 20:00:34 GMT

It’s no secret that the restaurant industry is experiencing a labor crisis, and increasing wages does not seem enough anymore. The average hourly wages for restaurant workers passed $15 for the first time this summer...and keeps growing, yet job growth remains stagnant, according to the latest jobs numbers from the U.S. Department of Labor.

Many operators are looking beyond the paycheck to figure out how to attract and retain employees, adding benefits like health insurance, PTO and transportation benefits. At the same time, there are a few operators that are going above and beyond to address the labor crisis.

Here is one restaurant group’s outside the box initiative to address the labor crisis in a creative way. Hot Springs Village, Ark.-based Xplore Restaurant Group is paying their student employees to do homework as they struggle to fill shift slots.

Owner Greg Jones told KARK, a local news outlet, that its restaurant group is down to about 20 employees and that staff have tried everything from employee referrals to thousands of dollars of online ads and newspapers, but nothing has worked.

Jones said he hires many student workers, but with more hours added to their schedule, the students found it difficult to juggle both work and school. So his executive chef came up with an idea he hoped would encourage more of his employees to stay and also attract new ones.

"I said, 'How about I make you a deal, you guys can sit upstairs for an hour before your shift starts on the clock, do your schoolwork, I'll feed you and then when you're done with your hour you can come downstairs'," Executive chef Drake Bielert told KARK. The students will also receive an extra $100 bonus if they receive an ‘A’ and an extra $20 for a ‘B’ grade.

The policy was put into place about three weeks ago, and CEO Greg Jones said it’s already made a difference. Employees have told him that with the adjustment they have been able to keep both their jobs and their grades up. He added that the new strategy has already helped the restaurant retain two student employees.

“Obviously, this increases our labor cost,” Jones told Nation’s Restaurant News. “However, it also allows us to attract some great employees who might be interested in a culinary career in the future. It’s also another way we can give back to the community by providing good jobs, school support, and teaching the kids a great work ethic.”

Happy Hour

Mon, 01 Nov 2021 15:53:38 GMT

Even the sharpest tacks among us don't tend to leave happy hour having learned

anything new about it. And even though learning isn't really the point, isn't it cool to

know that happy hours origins can be traced back to colorful naval slang, Prohibition,

and one newspaper article in Rhode Island?

History tells us that we can thank the U.S. Navy for the upbeat name. The first

documented & happy hours; in the United States were held by the Navy as early as 1914 --

but they had very little to do with alcohol.

For Navy sailors during the first World War, a & Happy Hour; was a weekly

entertainment program held to help alleviate the boredom that comes with life at sea.

News articles dating back to 1914 described the events as having live music, dancing,

movie showings or boxing matches.

It wasn't until Prohibition (1920-1933) that Americans began using the term specifically

for drinking. For those law-breaking Americans who wanted to imbibe in secrecy, a kind

of 20th century pre-game emerged. Friends would meet at speakeasies or someone's

home before going out for dinner, thus creating the cocktail hour. Eventually, these

civilians adopted &happy hour as a euphemism for that secret and festive hour.

Though Prohibition was later repealed, the concept of a happy hour stuck around. Some

think that a Saturday Evening Post article about the military in 1959, that mentioned the

Happy Hour, may have introduced the expression to the public. But, according to the

Oxford English Dictionary, it was a 1961 article in the Providence Journal that sparked

wide use of the term, referring to some Newport cops and their “‘Happy hour’ at the

cocktail bar.”

Eventually, in the 1970s and 80s, it was co-opted by the service industry as the

discounted food and drink specials we know today.

If you’re wondering what’s in it for the restaurateur, read on... While it might seem

counterintuitive to offer discounts as a way to boost sales, according to a 2018 Nielsen

study, U.S. bars and restaurants generate 60.5% of their average weekly sales from

happy hour – even with major discounts on the table.

Moreover, the average happy hour check is $68.99, which is $8 more than the average

check during other times of the day.

In other words, don’t underestimate the marketing power of a good happy hour deal,

and the fact that happy hour, for many, is considered the best hour because its tied

directly to that triumphant feeling you get when you realize that the work day is, in fact,

over!

Flexitarian Diet

Wed, 01 Sep 2021 15:56:18 GMT

Fexitarian, a term used to describe people who eat mostly vegetarian meals but still

consume some meat, tied as the No. 2 ranking diet in 2021, according to a recent U.S.

News & World Report.

“This is the first year we saw the flexitarian diet actually tie for No. 2. It has escalated so

fast and really gained momentum. Now it’s quite commonplace, particularly when we

look at the millennials and the younger Gen Zs.” These are the consumers between the

ages of 25 to 40.

U.S. News ; World Report annually lists the top-ranking diets related to health that are

evidence-based. The No. 1 diet is often the Mediterranean diet, heavy on vegetables, fish

and olive oil along with other healthy fare.

The other No. 2 diet this year, tied with flexitarian, is the DASH diet, standing for

dietary approaches to stop hypertension. It emphasizes fruits, veggies, whole grains,

lean protein and low-fat dairy while discouraging foods high in saturated fat such as

fatty meats, full-fat dairy foods and tropical oils.

As the term flexitarian pops up regularly in media outlets, it turns out that a huge

chunk of Americans consider themselves to be flexitarians because they are attempting

to add more plants into their diet.

One survey estimates that as many as 47% of Americans now consider themselves

flexitarians, while other studies place the trend closer to about one-third of consumers.

When asked why, people gave different reasons, but they tend to say it’s for personal

health or reducing their carbon footprint.

Consumers also report moving into a phase where they do a ‘portion’ of a swap. For

example, somebody loves burgers, so they’ll make a beef-based burger but actually do a

third of that patty with canned black beans or cooked lentils mixed in.

It’s sort of that flexible world of, “I’m not a vegetarian, but I’m working to increase my

vegetable intake and, to some extent, decrease my meat intake.”

According to Food Networks Healthy Eats, while plant-based dieting is still going

strong, many consumers just aren't ready to give up meat and other animal-based foods

entirely. So, for todays plant-based food consumer who still wants both – the

flexitarian diet is gaining a foothold.

Mysterious Blue Crab Shortage...Big-time Sticker Shock

Sun, 01 Aug 2021 15:57:53 GMT

Crab cakes were the top seller for Clyde’s Restaurant Group that operates about a dozen

restaurants in the Washington region, but the chain decided to yank them off the menu

this summer after crab prices tripled.

Bart Farrell, the vice president of food and beverage for the company, said, “We couldn’t

justify the price that we would have had to charge…We’re already absorbing high prices

across the board on all food items, but when you’re talking about a 300% increase on

your No. 1 item, there’s just no way that that has any sustainability.”

The prices have skyrocketed due to a shortage of blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay that

is something of a mystery. A winter dredge survey showed that the overall population

fell from 405 million in 2020 to 282 million in 2021, driven largely by a sharp drop in

the number of juvenile crabs. While it’s normal for the blue crab population to fluctuate

from year to year, no one is certain what caused this year’s steep decline.

Bill Sieling, executive vice president of the Chesapeake Bay Seafood Industries

Association, however, sees an easy explanation: “There’s good years and bad years.

There’s no exposé to be found, and there’s no evil person behind this. Crabs are scarce

this year because crabs periodically have been scarce, and prices are high because

everybody wants to buy crabmeat here.”

In Maryland, where the blue crab is the official state crustacean, many are simply doing

without what has become a high-end luxury food they cannot afford this year.

Bill Paulshock, the owner of Bill’s Seafood and Catering Co. in Perry Hall, Md. said,

“Listen, this affects everyone. Right now, a bushel of crabs is about $75 to $100 more

than they were this time last year. We’re really giving the jumbo lump away at cost.” But

he says he is keeping it on his menu even though it’s not a moneymaker for one reason:

“I’m not going to let one slack year make me lose my customers.”

Paulshock also has no doubt the crab population will improve. “Do I think they’re going

to come back? A hundred percent. In the Chesapeake Bay they are doing more things to

keep it cleaner, it’s a perfect environment for them…It’s just Mother Nature, the way the

wind blows. If we get the right wind and the right current, this bay will be loaded with

them.”

So, while it was a difficult decision for Bart Farrell to pull the top-selling item from the

menu at Clyde’s restaurants, he says, “We just felt the time was right.” And so far the

reaction from diners has been generally positive. “We’ve put a little blurb on our menu

indicating the reason for it...the conservation and the cost. And it’s helped that our

corporate chef came up with something new, a great shrimp-cake recipe,” said Farrel.

Need-to-Know Shifts in Guest Behavior

Thu, 01 Jul 2021 15:59:16 GMT

The pandemic changed the world in 2020, and how restaurants respond can make or

break them in 2021.

Expectations around the dining experience aren’t what they used to be. Going back to

the status quo won’t be enough, warns a recent article in Nation’s Restaurant News.

Understanding the new playing field around guest expectations and how your restaurant

can exceed them is vital to success in 2021 and beyond.

While off-premise dining dominated 2020, on-premise dining is predicted to be the star

in 2021. People are ready to get back into the world and dining out is at the top of that

list.

Pent-up demand is well documented, with 83% of adults saying they were not eating on-

premises at restaurants as often as they’d like – the highest level recorded in 20 years of

fielding this survey question, according to the National Restaurant Association State of

the Industry Report 2021.

Restaurateurs can not afford to miss out on this opportunity, and the key to doing more

with less, is technology. What might have been “nice to have” before COVID-19, has now

become “need to have”. And that isn’t going away. Technology can fill gaps in service

staff at a fraction of the cost while still creating an efficient front of house experience for

guests.

As customers head indoors, cleanliness remains a key priority. People can’t unlearn the

hard-habits of the last year. By giving visible attention to cleanliness and following the

public health guidelines restaurants can build trust with guests who see these efforts as

a concern for their well-being. Providing as many contactless experiences as possible is

another way to deliver on this expectation.

In 2021, speed of service is essential. Time is now seen as more valuable, with guests

demanding a higher level of efficiency in their dining experience. If a margarita glass is

empty, the expectation is for a second to be delivered to the table as soon as the first one

is finished. Time is of the essence for drink re-orders. And gone are the days of waiting

15 minutes for a server to bring your check to the table; customers want to pay and go.

The conclusion:

Guest Expectations Have Evolved – Have You?

The Seafood Menu

Tue, 15 Jun 2021 16:00:24 GMT

According to research firm Technomic, 51 percent of consumers who eat seafood at least

once a month say they would like more restaurants to offer a wider variety of seafood

dishes. As a result, operators are trying to satisfy this growing demand by offering

selections which appeal to an increasingly adventurous customer base.

This effort has gotten a boost because the availability of seafood has never been better

than it is now, causing some types of seafood to migrate from being a white-tablecloth

delicacy to a casual standard. Higher availability also means lower costs, so the options

for customers to eat healthy on a budget are a lot more plentiful. What was once

considered a luxury is now available to anyone.

Lobster, for example, has become a popular choice for sandwiches and rolls, while sushi,

once considered exotic, is being served in everything from the standard California roll to

specialty sandwiches like blackened white tuna with carrot, avocado, cilantro,

cucumber, jalapeño, and spicy mayo.

Shrimp is also being offered now in a variety of ways beyond popcorn or fried options.

It’s showing up increasingly in salads, sandwiches, pasta, kabobs, and even on pizza.

And because shrimp enjoys a healthy perception and is familiar enough to be

comfortable to many consumers, it’s opening the door for other seafood to be used in

burritos, tacos, quesadillas and other formats.

Offering fish that is less well known, like rockfish or redfish, also keeps costs down, yet

generates substantial consumer appeal. One fine dining establishment on the West

Coast offers a rockfish taco for $15, while fast casual and food trucks have been able to

offer that same item on their menus at the same price point.

Experts note that in the current market, consumers will order seafood as long as they

are presented with high quality, reasonably priced selections that offer them health

benefits and bold flavor.

Craveability

Sat, 01 May 2021 16:01:51 GMT

Did you know that 76% of consumers crave a food first, and then select a restaurant

based on that craving? If three out of four customers choose a restaurant based on their

current craving, what can be done to enhance a restaurant’s “craveability” quotient?

Below is a short list of some essential factors that can position your restaurant at the

front of consumers’ minds and drive them through your doors.

Let’s begin with Aroma. Have you ever been captivated by the aroma of fresh baked

bread when you walked into a bakery? Or the smell of pizza in the oven at your favorite

pizza parlor? It can stop you in your tracks. It excites you and taps into your emotional

cues making you want that bread or pizza even more than you did when you pulled up in

your car. Offering menu items that have a distinct aroma can really leave a lasting

impression and keep customers coming back for more.

Although you don’t have to turn your bar and grille into a pizza and ice cream shop, it

might not be a bad idea to experiment with new menu items that fall into one of the

most craveable categories (pizza, pasta, desserts). Even if it is just a highly craveable

appetizer or dessert that brings customers through your door, it will give you the

opportunity to sell them on some of your traditional menu items.

The way you prepare your food can be a great way to trigger a customer’s craving as

well. Many of today’s diners are more educated in the different ways to prepare food

thanks to shows like Top Chef, Chopped, and The Chew. It isn’t uncommon for

hardcore foodies to visit a restaurant simply because the food is prepared differently

than what they are used to. Experiment with new cooking techniques, flavors, textures,

and plating options until you hit on that highly craveable combination.

You can also drive craveability by creating a unique experience for your customers when

they walk through the door. From a dazzling cityscape to an expansive ocean, a beautiful

backdrop can take a meal from great to sublime. Any way you can make your restaurant

different will help your eatery stand out in positive ways.

Everyone has cravings and, more often than not, these cravings are driving people to

seek out foods that satisfy the taste or experience that makes them want more. Your

restaurant can benefit from these cravings if your menu has that one special item that

customers need to have.

Utilizing tips like these to increase your restaurant’s craveability quotient is well worth

the effort to keep your customer’s mouths watering at the very thought of your dishes.

Seafood Restaurants 2021

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 16:03:54 GMT

The culinary world has its own set of trends: how food is sourced, how food is made,

how it is presented, the restaurant environment, and the customer experience; these are

all part of culinary trends.

While we are all glad that 2020 is over, we now want to start brand new and fresh. That

includes the food we eat and how we experience our meals. Food trends typically change

as seasons change, however, the way we have lived and created culinary experiences

during a year of COVID shutdowns will definitely impact how we all go forward in 2021.

While restaurants have been hit harder than any other industry during the pandemic,

retail and grocery chains have done just fine because people are eating at home more

often. And the unexpected winner to emerge out of this homecooking shift has been

seafood.

“Seafood overall has seen a tremendous pandemic boost,” reports Anne-Marie Roerink,

founder and principal at research firm 210 Analytics. The biggest winners? Fresh lobster

sales increased almost 292%, crab is up 150.5%, clams are up 80.1% and snapper up

79.4%.

“In years past, the majority of seafood dollars were spent at restaurants (60%), but the

pandemic has prompted shoppers to experiment more with seafood at home and that

will benefit the category as a whole for years, if not generations, to come,” says Roerink.

The good news for seafood restaurants in 2021 is the opportunity they have to provide

some excitement for people who are tired of cooking and have been dealing with what

feels like Groundhog Day for over a year now. Their fatigue has created heightened

interest in more adventurous flavors. “People are exploring. There is palate exploration,

recipe exploration going on,” says Krishnakumar Davey, president of strategic analytics

at IRI.

When folks order restaurant foods now, “They want items they can’t easily make at

home, like sushi, lobster, shrimp tempura, lobster rolls and sandwiches,” says Kelley

Fechner, director of customer solutions at Datassential in Chicago.

The demand is there for creative, Instagramable specials designed to reel in pantry-

fatigued patrons seeking an excuse to put down their frying pans and enjoy can’t-miss,

can’t-make-at-home seafood dishes.

And with international travel quashed and Americans taking fewer long trips across the

country, the new domestic focus will be on creating interest in hyper-regional American

food. That means renewed interest in state-specific fish species from nearby waters.

What’s on the menu this year... seafood creativity...

Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making

mistakes, and having fun." ~ Mary Lou Cook

To-Go Cocktails - Here to Stay?

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 17:06:24 GMT

Governor Mike DeWine signed House Bill 669 into law on October 13th, making to-go

cocktails permanent in Ohio. Some areas are also trying to help restaurants by reducing

or waiving alcohol licensing fees as well.

In Kentucky, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear waived alcoholic beverage renewal fees for

restaurants and bars for 12 months in November, and in Pennsylvania, Democratic Gov.

Tom Wolf did the same, starting in 2021.

Some restaurants are viewing the move as a major boost during a difficult time. “It’s

been the most challenging year of our existence for sure,” said Shawn Freeman, general

manager of The Chocolate Bar on Euclid Avenue in downtown Cleveland.

“Especially with us, I think we offer a unique product,” Freeman said. “I think our

martinis and some of our cocktails, you might be able to try and make them. But some of

the products we use...you just can't get, and being able to have that experience at home

where you can have a crème brûlée martini that's spot-on, or a chocolate salted caramel

martini that's spot-on, it’s huge.”

Freeman estimated that when the restaurant was only doing takeout in April and May,

there were days when half their sales were from to-go cocktails. He also estimated the

restaurant had sold more than 1,000 to-go martinis since reopening April 8, which they

pour into plastic containers with tamper-proof seals.

“I think it gives you another option,” Freeman said of to-go drinks. “I think that we've

seen a lot of people who have [come] out. But then I've also had people who have told

me, ‘This is the first time we've been out.’ So, you know, its going to give people an

option. We love being part of all options.”

And, he believes it can help any business, not just those with a unique product that can’t

be made at home. “To-go cocktails are an exciting idea for people who don't feel

comfortable being inside restaurants. And I think that's a lot of people right now. Its

interesting to be able to hang out outside, maybe in a potentially prettier area or a nicer

area, and just hang out with your friends rather than being jammed up against the wall

in a crowded bar.”

“It creates an experience at home, something normal, something fun during such a

terrible time,” said White, a northern Virginia restaurant executive. “Our bartenders

make the drink, we send along the garnishes and the cup with the ice in it. You put our

cherry on top and the orange slice and it’s like you’re here.”

And although customers can’t order more than two cocktails per entrée or more than

four per order under the state’s rules, it still helps with the bottom line, and “We’ll take

any advantage we can get right now.”

Drone Technology

Fri, 15 Jan 2021 17:08:10 GMT

From the moment the first food delivery app went live, the food service industry was

thrown into a sudden state of evolution. Restaurant managers suddenly had to react and

adapt to an increase in orders from patrons who wanted or needed their meals delivered

to their homes or place of employment or miss-out on a sales source that was growing at

a rapid rate.

Today, it’s not uncommon for a person to have multiple apps on their mobile device, as

different restaurant chains have opted for exclusivity partnerships with specific food

delivery apps. Other restaurants choose to be accessible on multiple platforms – but one

thing is common across the board for this new way of getting food to customers: the

food is always delivered by a person in an automobile.

That, however, may not be the case for much longer.

Drone delivery–seen as a potentially cheaper alternative to traditional delivery because

it removes a labor piece–could very well enter the fray sooner than later, as the FAA has

finally issued rules for commercial drones.

At the same time, with companies like UberEats, DoorDash and Amazon always trying

to find ways to change their business model to provide better service for their customers

and higher profits for themselves, these advances are already being discussed, planned,

and tested.

For example, in October of 2018, The Wall Street Journal reported that Uber

Technologies Inc. - owner of the ride-sharing service app Uber along with the food

delivery service UberEats - had plans for a drone food delivery by 2021. The company

briefly listed a job opening for an operations manager for a drone delivery service called

UberExpress. The post stated that the company wanted to have functional drones by

2019 and start operating in select cities by 2021.

The job posting has since been taken down, but Uber reports that this new aspect of

their delivery service is still in early development. While this suggests that there are

more obstacles to getting a drone food delivery fleet off the ground than the company

planned for, Uber’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is still talking about his company’s desire

to use UAVs for a better customer experience and to help solve issues with urban

mobility.

So, although a new draft of the FAA rules is still months away from being approved and

implemented, the loosening of legal restrictions on drones remains great news for folks

looking forward to a time when they can actually have their pizza flown in before a big

game.

Hunting Elk in the Time of COVID

Tue, 15 Dec 2020 17:13:47 GMT

David Elliot, 37, first thought of shooting an elk to help feed family and friends back in

January when the United States reported its first novel coronavirus case.

An emergency manager at Holy Cross Hospital in Taos, New Mexico, Elliot had always

wanted to go big-game hunting and, with the pandemic spreading, there seemed no

better time to try to fill his freezer with free-range, super-lean meat. So for the first time

in his life, despite not owning a rifle or ever having hunted large animals, he put his

name in for New Mexico’s annual elk permit draw.

With some U.S. meat processors halting operations as workers fall ill, companies

warning of shortages, and people having more time on their hands and possibly less

money due to shutdowns and layoffs, Elliot is among a growing number of Americans

turning to hunting for food, according to state data and hunting groups.

“I understand some people might be driven by liking antlers or some sort of glory. I

don’t want to do that,” said Elliot, who was able to get a prized permit to shoot a female

elk in an area of Taos County where herds of the animal graze in vast plains studded

with extinct volcanoes.

Elliot plans to borrow a rifle and maybe even a horse to carry the elk back to his vehicle

after the hunt. “I want to make sure it’s a clean, humane shot, as much as possible, and

get a bunch of food.”

Then there is Nathanie Evans, a 38 year old middle-school teacher and town councilor,

who says he is hunting not just for food but to reconnect with himself at a time when he

is being asked to guide Taos’ response to the pandemic as well as teaching online

classes. “It’s been so important for me, being able to go out and kind of cleanse my

mental card and just go and be present, you really have to be present, and quiet and

listening.”

“Into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”

~ John Muir

The Blue Economy Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Wed, 02 Dec 2020 03:39:36 GMT

Impacts of COVID-19 Pandemic

Fish is the world’s most widely traded food commodity, but market disruptions as a result of the pandemic have already begun to change that. Consumers have dramatically increased demand for frozen and processed seafood while turning away from fresh caught products. This is a result of both a run on foods that may be kept through periods of isolation and a reflection of the fact that in many developed markets, like the United States, most consumers eat their fresh fish in restaurants and other public spaces that are no longer open.

In an attempt to predict what the long-term impact of the pandemic will have on the blue economy (sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem) the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) divided the industry into categories that are based on the duration of the fishing trips in each sector.

For example, vessels that return to shore each day are common in small-scale or near-shore industrial fisheries, as well as in artisanal fisheries throughout the developing world. These vessels do not run a risk of developing a COVID-19 outbreak while far offshore. However, by necessity, they rely on tightly linked shore-side networks such as local markets, commercial buyers, processors, families or communities that depend on the catch for food security. In all of these situations, social distancing can be impractical and outbreaks highly disruptive.

In contrast, fishing vessels that transship catch (transferring the catch from one vessel to another at sea) remain at sea for months to years at a time, therefore having limited risk of exposure to COVID-19. This has allowed boats that have been at sea since before the outbreak to continue operating relatively normally. Any actual outbreak at sea, however, would be catastrophic.

Vessels that fish offshore for weeks or months, but do not transship their catch, are common in fisheries around the world, including in the U.S. domestic fleet. The seafood sectors that rely on vessels in this class face the greatest challenges to effectively dealing with the risk of COVID-19. Leaving port with fisherman possibly incubating COVID-19, and then spending months at sea in cramped, crowded conditions away from medical help, is fraught with risk.

The COVID-19 pandemic has unquestionably created an exceptional crisis for fishing communities and the fishing industry as a whole. Understanding how the major fisheries worldwide fall into vastly differing categories clearly illustrates how the impacts also vary dramatically across the entire seafood industry.

Stranded at Sea by the Pandemic

Tue, 01 Dec 2020 17:15:40 GMT

Anthony Medina’s daughter was 5 months old when he left the Philippines and set sail

for the Indian Ocean in December 2018. For more than a year, his days have been a

monotonous blur of endless fishing on the Oceanstar 86, a 465-foot-long vessel with a

crew of about three dozen. As long as there was seafood for their nets, including tuna,

crab and squid, the crew members had to haul them in, clean and freeze them.

When their boat finally arrived in Singapore in March, 2020, Medina planned on

catching a flight home. But, because the boat has been isolated on the high seas and cut

off from the rest of the world, the crew had received only limited information from

senior crew members due to the language barrier between the Chinese management on

board and the Philippine, Indonesian and Burmese crew. “We didn’t have a signal out in

the middle of the ocean. We heard the captain saying something about a pandemic, but

we thought it was just a joke...” said Medina.

He was shocked to learn that a virus outbreak had closed borders and shuttered ports,

keeping him out of the Philippines and trapped on the fishing boat. “We were prohibited

from disembarking. Our airline ticket was canceled,” he said.

As of September, 2020, Medina and 37 other sailors were still in limbo, having been

anchored off Fuzhou, China for more than six months. Days seep into night and

boredom mixes with restlessness and despair. They have become men without

countries, castaways and captives in the narrative of an unrelenting pandemic.

“The shore is so near that we can see it from here. On the really bad days, we think about

jumping overboard and swimming to shore. Maybe we can be rescued,” Medina says. He

worries about the fate of the crew members and their families back home who depend

on their salaries. The crew’s contracts have ended, and they are uncertain if they will get

paid for working while quarantined at sea.

Through all of this, Medina and the other crew members endure sleepless nights;

waking up each day to the reality that they don’t have any more filtered water. “We boil

the water that comes out of the sink, but it’s brown and rusty and tastes bad.” With not

enough water to drink, they can’t even bathe to wash off the stench and slime of fish.

“Most urgent now,” says Rossen Karavatchev, fisheries section coordinator for the

International Transport Workers’ Federation, “is their survival. Being anchored in the

middle of the ocean for a long period of time is not tenable.... If you get sick on board,

sorry, you can’t get medical assistance and you can’t get out. If you die, you may be

thrown into the sea for a sea burial.”

An estimated 300,000 migrant seafarers like Medina are languishing, mostly forgotten,

on stranded vessels scattered across seas or in ports because of the pandemic, according

to the International Transport Workers’ Federation, a London-based trade union.

Meanwhile, Medina sits off the coast of China, with no way to get home to his daughter,

who is no longer an infant.

Seafood Revival in Philly

Sun, 15 Nov 2020 17:12:16 GMT

For a city near the sea, Philadelphia had a pretty weak seafood game, but these days it’s

in the midst of a seafood renaissance.

Back in the 1800s, catfish-and-waffle houses lined the Schuylkill River into Wissahickon

Creek. Shad fishing was once so popular on the Delaware, legend has it you could walk

across the river, boat to boat, and never get your feet wet. Yet, despite this history, and

Philly’s accessibility to oceans and rivers, it simply wasn’t a seafood town — at least not

in the way other cities like Boston, San Francisco and Baltimore are. What happened?

Seafood — whether we like it or not; whether it should be or not — has been a luxury,

and luxury (at least in the traditional white-tablecloth sense) was something Philly

restaurants had done away with since the 2008 recession. Instead, they invested in

approachability, in once-a-week restaurants that appealed to younger, less well-to-do

audiences.

Then, serendipitously, the pandemic brought Philly an entire summer of seafood shack

pop-ups, and every restaurant seemed to open with a raw bar. Now Philadelphia is,

without a doubt, in the midst of a seafood renaissance.

It’s been said that if you tried to keep track of every brand new restaurant in Philly, you

might go a little bit crazy. Among them, several seafood restaurants that opened their

doors, offering a mix of takeout, sidewalk/patio dining and indoor dining, have solid

potential:

Alma del Mar, the seafood restaurant featured on the most recent season of Queer Eye,

has a robust brunch and dinner menu, but standouts according to Yelp reviewers

include Marco’s Crazy Mango Salad (a mix of crab, grilled mango, greens, cilantro, red

onions with mango dressing) and Lobster Benedict.

At Mari BYO, a new Italian seafood restaurant, diners can bring a bottle of wine and

enjoy menu options like Octo Bucatini (octopus and calamari sautéed Sicilian style), Sea

Scallops (served with corn succotash and arugula) or Monk Fish (with mussels and

shrimp). Yelpers rave about the $40 prefix menu, which includes an appetizer, entree

and dessert.

And for those looking for a lighter seafood fix, Salty’s Seafood and Ice Cream Shack

offers steamed clams, peel and eat shrimp, lobster rolls, and grilled swordfish. Drink

options include cocktails, wine, beer, cider and margarita slush pops.

The Great Consumer Shift

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 04:33:12 GMT

Anyone who has hosted a game night over video chat or ordered groceries to be delivered at home for the first time understands how profoundly the COVID-19 crisis has changed our behavior as consumers. But which of these changes will stick?

Recent research by McKinsey and Co. provides a look at what consumers are saying they will continue to value as the coronavirus crisis evolves. The following issues were key:

Flight to online

Digital shopping is here to stay, as US consumers report an intent to shop online even after the COVID-19 crisis. While this shift to online shopping has been nearly universal across all categories, high-income earners and millennials are leading the way in shifting spending online across both essential and nonessential items.

Shock to loyalty

Consumers are switching brands at unprecedented rates. The crisis has prompted a surge of new activities, with an astonishing 75 percent of US consumers trying a new shopping behavior in response to economic pressures, store closings, and changing priorities. This general change in behavior has also been reflected in a shattering of brand loyalties, with 73 percent reporting that they intend to continue to incorporate the new brands into their routine.

Need for hygiene transparency

US consumers have already changed their behavior in response to hygiene concerns. There is strong intention across the United States to continue contactless activities, however, with 79 percent of respondents reporting that they plan to continue or increase their usage of self-checkout after COVID-19.

Back to basics and value

40 percent of US consumers say they have reduced spending in general and expect to continue to cut back on nonessentials specifically...reflecting their profound discomfort about the state of the economy.

Rise of the homebody economy

Americans are spending more of their at-home time on domestic activities, media, and news. The intention to eat at home more even after COVID-19 has reportedly strengthened significantly over the past three months. 73 percent of respondents reported not being currently engaged in out-of-home activities.

As retailers contemplate the changes in consumer behavior, they will need to adjust their strategies and execution to adapt to these new norms.

Good News Ahead

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Sun, 02 Aug 2020 03:35:45 GMT

There was good news for seafood restaurants in DoorDash’s mid-year Deep Dish, a national consumer survey that polled 2,000 Americans on their eating behavior from January 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020.

While Door Dash customer’s favorite cuisine was Mexican food, with 40% reporting that they missed Mexican food the most while staying at home, seafood turned out to be a close second at 34% and was more popular than Mexican food on the West Coast!

“Our data has shown us that there has been a wide variety of cravings across the U.S with sushi and seafood becoming increasingly sought after on the West Coast.”

For example, in Seattle, the top ordered food was seafood with items including sushi rolls, fish and chips, and tartar sauce topping things off, while Los Angeles saw spikes in sushi ordering of California, spicy tuna, and rainbow rolls.

On #Trending, shrimp tacos showed a 997% increase, ranking #11 on their list of the ‘Top 20 Foods on the Rise in the second half of 2020.

And although Mexican food was the food people reported being the most excited to eat when they resume normal restaurant routines, selected by 21%, the West Coast disagreed again: their top response was sushi, edging Mexican food 23% to 18%.

Older Millennials, those 25–34, also agree: they selected sushi 23% of the time, compared to 21% for Mexican.

These Deep Dish national survey results also found that all the additional time spent cooking during the pandemic has tired people out, and the number one dish people are tired of cooking is chicken, selected by 41%. Over 25% of those surveyed also reported ordering more food when they ordered takeout just so they would have leftovers.

So the results are in…people miss eating out! A full 88% of respondents said that they are “excited for the day when I can eat restaurant food the same way I could before Covid-19.”

And on the West Coast that sentiment bodes well for seafood restaurants!

Seafood Trend Picks Up Steam during COVID-19 Pandemic

Sat, 01 Aug 2020 16:17:19 GMT

The coronavirus pandemic has turned daily life on its head: the corner office has given

way to the kitchen table, and the classroom has been supplanted by the computer

screen. Dining patterns have been similarly disrupted, as consumers have rediscovered

their stovetops and ovens.

A major beneficiary of this shift has been seafood, which Nielsen reports was the fastest

growing supermarket category during the last week of May. Buoyed by escalating meat

and poultry prices, purchase volumes jumped a whopping 48% over the previous week

and 26% over the prior 13-week period, offering restaurants the opportunity to use fish

and shellfish as the base for some intriguing menu innovations.

Because Americans are often unfamiliar and/or intimidated by the prospect of

preparing seafood at home, they have traditionally opted to leave seafood preparation to

chefs. This has proved to be a major boon to chefs who are stepping up their seafood

game and coming up with innovative take-out selections.

Restaurants like Bellagreen, an eight-unit, fast-casual operation based in Plano, Texas,

have come up with summer specials like paleo mango salmon tacos, made with trendy

tajin — the Mexican chile-and-lime combination seasoning — then topped with

shredded jicama, fresh mango, cucumber and mixed cabbage. It’s served with cilantro

and citrus-honey vinaigrette atop an almond-flour tortilla.

In Huntington Beach, Calif, the Lazy Dog Restaurant & Bar is serving their newly

created sesame crusted Ahi Tuna finished with a coconut-curry cream sauce, while the

ginger soy salmon dish sports a sweet soy glaze, stir-fried vegetables, sesame seeds,

green onions and steamed rice.

In New Orleans, restaurants like Molly’s Rise & Shine, are offering diners sardines and

bagel chips, which includes a deluxe tin of sardines, hot cherry peppers, chimichurri

cream cheese, capers and red onions — a sly take on the classic bagel-and-schmear

combo.

Looking ahead, attractive specials like these are being designed to reel in pantry-

fatigued patrons seeking an excuse to put down their frying pans and enjoy can’t-miss,

can’t-make-at-home seafood dishes.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 03:40:08 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here's a question sent in by a couple from New York City:

We always look forward to dinner at Brophy Bros when we’re in Santa Barbara. We’re wondering if the city has plans to open additional areas beyond State Street for restaurants to serve food outdoors? This idea took off in NYC and seems like a perfect fit for restaurants along the waterfront in cities like yours.

It is a great idea and some waterfront cities have already done just that. In San Diego, Matt Awbrey, the mayor's chief of civic and external affairs, shared a proposal on Twitter for changes in "temporary outdoor business operations" that allow for expansion of outdoor dining "within the public right of way, private parking lots and public space and parks.” Sidewalk cafe permits, temporary street closures, and constructed seating in pedestrian plazas are all part of the proposed measure which would waive current permit requirements.

In San Francisco, the mayor called their new plan the “creative solution that will give our businesses more space to operate safely and shift some of our street and sidewalk space to protect the economic and physical health of our entire community."

The Golden Gate Restaurant Association (GGRA) joined in with a petition to allow restaurants to apply for permits that would temporarily utilize "a portion of the public right-of-way" - open spaces around businesses including sidewalks, parking spots and "full or partial streets."

In Charleston, SC, Loggerhead's Beach Grill, a popular oceanfront bar and restaurant, reopened its patio seating and was able to expand even more dining setups out into the parking lot.

"We have the biggest location as far as folks to sit outside, and we've also turned our outside parking lot area into outdoor seating to maximize our capacity," said Mike Van Horn, the restaurant's manager. “Now that restrictions have been lifted, folks come out here in droves -- and it hasn't slowed down."

Across the country it appears that folks are finding it just so refreshing to be eating out after so many months stuck at home.

Innovation

Wed, 15 Jul 2020 16:19:46 GMT

A famous English proverbs states, “Necessity is the mother of invention.” The wisdom of

this is easy to see in real time as restaurants around the country race to adapt to the

COVID-19 crisis. This pandemic is illustrating both the resolve and inexhaustible ability

of restaurants to innovate and find new business avenues as they shift their entire sales

models overnight.

Several creative restaurateurs have moved from fine-dining to drive-through. Canlis in

Seattle, Washington, for example, has been a beacon of fine dining in the Pacific

Northwest for over 70 years. Recently, they reinvented their business structure and

narrowed down their menu. By morning, they’re selling bagels and breakfast

sandwiches. By evening, the menu switches over to burgers, salads, and ice-cream, all

available via a drive-through operation. And so far, their ability to evolve is paying off.

According to reporting from Esquire, one morning Canlis sold out of nearly 500 bagels

in 90 minutes!

Enthusiasm for the drive-through concept pairs up well with new market research data.

A recent survey by Datassential found that “most consumers would still consider getting

food from the drive-thru, often viewing their car as an additional protective barrier

from other people.”

And for those who don’t want to get in their cars, Canlis is also running a dinner delivery

service, with a winnowed-down menu of one single meal option that changes on a daily

basis. While a far cry from their former business, their new model is allowing Canlis to

continue purchasing from their local farm suppliers and employ their 115 member team.

Meanwhile, Saint Dinette in St. Paul, Minnesota is employing a similar plan. Considered

a Midwest leader in fine dining, Saint Dinette released a new menu on Friday exclusively

for takeout, curbside pickup, and delivery. They simplified their menu to sandwiches

and sides and even offer “combo meals.” Comfort foods like hotdogs and cheeseburgers

dot the menu. This is not to say they’ve tossed their refined culinary skills to the

wayside—Saint Dinette’s PB&J is stuffed with foie gras, mixed nuts and preserves!

So, although this is a peculiar and challenging time for everyone, it’s lucky that the

restaurant industry is full of so many creative, imaginative individuals who are pivoting

to meet the needs of our society.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Thu, 02 Jul 2020 03:42:23 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here's another question from the local Californian we heard from last month:

I mentioned 2 weeks ago that I was really missing my Brophy Bros. ‘fix’, and I imagined that I wasn’t alone. Now that you are open again, I’m wondering whether most folks were like me and went right back to their ‘favorites’, or are many diners venturing out in new directions?

That’s a great question and one we have some actual statics on. Some good news for independent restaurants and mom-and-pop businesses came in the latest survey of consumer behavior conducted by Zagat. The restaurant guide polled 6,775 people on their interests, habits, and concerns around the impact of the pandemic on restaurants and dining out. While the results showed a definite level of safety fears, it also revealed a great deal of nostalgia for folks’ favorite food haunts.

Among the most interesting takeaways for the restaurant industry is that most people are going to be slow to warm up to the idea of dining out again (only 7% said they'd dine in a restaurant within a week after reopening, while the majority would wait 3–4 weeks or more to dine in after reopening). However, independent restaurants that comprise the colorful fabric of neighborhood dining may have a leg up in attracting customers back.

When asked what establishments they had missed the most during lockdown, 57% of people chose "favorite neighborhood spot", followed by 33% voting for "favorite fine dining restaurant", 8% voting for "cocktail bar", and only 2% for "go-to fast food/fast casual chain". These results show that people will clearly flock to their favorite small neighborhood businesses first, so it appears that these types of restaurants will see a resurgence in sales in the first few months after reopening.

And, a final piece of data reveals that people will overwhelmingly choose outdoor seating as the most important factor in feeling safer when dining out. 77% of respondents said that outdoor seating would make them more likely to dine in a restaurant, but 67% did respond that reduced indoor seating would make them more likely to dine-in.

So...if you indulge your urge for that Brophy ‘fix’ this week and find yourself seated outside on the deck, be assured that lots of folks see it just the way you do!

AZ Restaurants Look to Earn Customers Trust as Dining Rooms Reopen

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Tue, 02 Jun 2020 03:44:46 GMT

Restauranteur Sam Fox owns 60 restaurants in Arizona and around the country. He has said that social distancing requirements needed to open full service again will restrict the number of customers that can come in and limit the amount of money a restaurant can make. But Fox insists that you have to start somewhere.

"Our organization is OK opening a little slow,"Fox told 3TV/CBS 5. "We want to build the guests' confidence and the public's confidence in what we are doing, and that it is safe for everyone. Our goal is not to lose money. Our goal is to get back to even and, once we figure out how to get back to even, then we'll figure out how to make money."

"When this first happened and we converted to to-go only, our business was about 15-percent of our normal business. Which was obviously nothing. We've been able to grow collectively, we're almost at 40-percent."

But Fox wants to do it on his time schedule. That is something that even Governor Doug Ducey eluded to when he extended Arizona's stay-at-home order on April 29: "What good would it be to reopen our restaurants if leaders like Sam Fox said we're not going to participate." Fox admits being “very surprised to hear the governor say my name."

Although Fox could have already reopened restaurants in both Georgia and Texas, he says those states did not give restaurants enough lead time. "For us, and that's Fox Restaurant Concepts and nobody else, we need the time to get our people back in, get our restaurants ready for social distancing. Get all of our sanitize processes in order, we do a lot of checklists. Just making sure that we're truly ready to have people welcomed in in a a safe manor. So for us, that's two weeks."

To launch the reopening, Fox created: A LETTER FROM SAM, that begins:

To our valued guests,

“Great Hospitality, Every Time,” has always been at the heart of this company, and during this COVID public health crisis, we have had to redefine “hospitality.”

I’d like to share how we are opening our restaurants with the safety of our guests and employees in mind. We are taking the approach of “slow and safe” to ensure we have thought of every detail when it comes to reopening. Please trust, we won’t do anything without an abundance of caution.

The letter goes on to specifically describe the new changes and procedures that have been put into place.

Reopening In Florida

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Sat, 16 May 2020 03:46:37 GMT

Downtown Sarasota restaurant Duval’s Fresh. Local. Seafood. adapted quickly when Florida restaurants were ordered closed except for takeout and delivery; merging operations with sister restaurants Element and Plaza Bistro-n-Tavern..

Duval’s has now reopened for dine-in under the current Florida state guidelines that allow 25 percent indoor capacity and social distancing of at least six feet for inside and outside dining. Element and PBnT will remain closed, while Duval’s still offers takeout and delivery.

Jim Abrams, who heads the American Dreams Restaurant Group that operates all three restaurants, discussed how Duval’s has been handling this challenge in an April 29 interview: “We will reopen Duval’s — that will really give us a kind of test case to see what the demand is for inside seating or even outside seating, and then we’ll go from there. The other restaurants, they just could not survive. At Element, for instance, you’re trying to have as many seats as you can effectively fill and hopefully then have a couple of turns at night. At 25 percent capacity, those numbers just aren’t going to play out.”

“We are still doing family-size meals to-go, and Easter was a huge day for us at Duval’s. We did almost as much in carryout and delivery on Easter as we did last year from seating, but not at all our restaurants combined.

“As far as staff now, I made the decision early that we would continue to sustain employment disproportionately to what the demand was. So we’re sitting on a combined labor pool right now versus what we had before of about 30 percent, while we’re only doing 10 percent of the revenue we did before. We’re not making any money; we lose money every day that we’re in operation. My labor costs and food costs alone exceed what my sales are each day, but it was done in an attempt to do my very best to keep as many people employed as I could.

“I don’t think anybody can predict what the demand will be two weeks from now, so it’s simply the unknown as to how one prepares for it. We don’t want to over-prepare and then have to lay people off right after we called them back. I don’t want to manage the business, attempting to take as much benefit of the Paycheck Protection Program loan as I can, and then simply lay people back off. So I’m not going to bring people back unless I know that I can support them, even though we do have the loan, even though that portion alone could be forgivable.”

Simply put…”It’s very difficult to manage into a future that is not very clear.”

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Sat, 02 May 2020 03:48:36 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a man from California:

Having the opportunity to eat fresh seafood on the deck at Brophy Bros. is something I have enjoyed for years. The arrival of the pandemic has changed that. Now, as the news is filled with talk of ‘reopening the economy’ after the coronavirus crisis subsides, I am wondering what we might expect to see happen.

What will happen remains a matter of speculation, of course, because the world has no past experience dealing with a pandemic of this scope. We can, however, look and see what can be learned from China’s attempts at economic reopening.

According to a recent article in Barron’s, the early numbers from China’s recovery are in, and they don’t bode well for the U.S. economy as it grapples with the fallout from the current crisis.

The ruling Communist Party says the outbreak is under control, but the damage to Chinese lives and the economy is lingering. Getting back to business has not been easy with many millions of workers still wary of spending much money, or even going out.

Some cities have resorted to handing out shopping vouchers, such as the eastern city of Nanjing, that gave out electronic vouchers totaling 318 million yuan ($45 million) via smartphones to spend at restaurants, bookstores and other merchants. The state media has also begun broadcasting images of government officials eating in restaurants to try to reassure consumers.

The biggest drop has been at restaurants, where spending is down about 46% from where it was a year ago. Spending on meals was actually lower in March than it was in February...despite the economy’s reopening.

The ruling party has told companies to keep paying wages and avoid layoffs. Private companies were promised tax breaks, low-cost loans and other help, but state media reports say bureaucracy is slowing the flow of aid. One month after China announced a plan for the staggered reopening of the economy, only half of the country’s small businesses have reopened, and it isn't clear how many companies might close for good under the pressure of paying rent and wages with no revenue.

So as the U.S. begins to think about reopening the economy, the latest figures from China show that lifting restrictions doesn’t mean a quick recovery. “What is not fully back, or is completely missing, is the demand," says Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics. Consumers need to be reassured that their health and jobs are protected.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Thu, 16 Apr 2020 03:56:09 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a couple from New Mexico:

My wife and I have always loved our yearly trips to Santa Barabara with a stop at Brophy Bros. for some great fresh salmon. That obviously won’t be happening this year, so we are naturally wondering how the salmon fisherman are handling this pandemic.

In Alaska, salmon is kind of a big deal. More than half of the fish caught in US waters come from Alaska, and about a third of those fish are salmon. The salmon season in Alaska runs from May through September and, during that time, fishermen pull in a majority of their annual income - over $657.6 million in 2019.

Alaskan fishing towns rely heavily on seasonal crews. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development estimates that more than 20,000 workers are brought into the state each year to work in the seafood industry. With travel restrictions in place, questions remain as to whether essential workers will be able to travel to work in the processing plants this year.

Captain Shannon Ford, a fourth generation salmon fisherman says, “I’ll admit, I’m extremely stressed and worried” about the coronavirus impact. “Sales are already down, and we count on a big bump from markets starting in order to fund the season.”

Despite the outlook, Ford remains stubbornly optimistic. “My family weathered it before, surviving the Great Depression by fishing and trapping, and we'll do it again now”. She has fished through broken feet, a pregnancy, and personal tragedy. However, for her, the idea of missing a season is sickening. “If we can't go, I have no idea how I'm going to cope with this mentally and emotionally.”

Up here in Alaska, “We define ourselves and our families by the cycle of the salmon, and our part in it. Salmon are the defining central factor that supports everything else in this region,” she says.

Yet, despite the tough times, Ford believes the fishers will persevere. “We are at the mercy of a thousand changing parameters. We are used to gathering all available information, paying attention, and trying to make the best guess decisions that we can. When plans A-Z fall through, we start over with A-1 and keep going. If there is anyone who can weather this, it's us!”

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Mon, 16 Mar 2020 03:58:13 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a couple from New Mexico:

My wife and I love the California coast, so eating at Brophy Bros. overlooking the harbor was quite a treat. Although we live inland, we are big fans of seafood and try to eat it several times a week. Are there any innovative solutions being considered in the US to increase our aquaculture industry and hopefully improve its rather negative public perception?

The future of fish farming may very well be indoors, according to news in the Scientific American. New advancements in water filtration and circulation are making it possible for indoor fish farms to dramatically grow in size and production.

On a projection screen in front of a packed room in a coastal Maine town, computer-animated salmon swim energetically through a massive oval tank. A narrator’s voice soothingly points out water currents that promote fish exercise and ideal meat texture, along with vertical mesh screens that “optimize fish densities and tank volume.” The screens also make dead fish easy to remove, the narrator adds cheerily.

The video is part of a pitch made by a Norway-based firm, Nordic Aquafarms, for an ambitious $500-million salmon farm they have plans to build in Belfast, Maine, complete with what Nordic says will be among the world’s largest aquaculture tanks. It is one of a handful of projects in the works by companies around the world hoping these highly mechanized systems will change the face of fish farming—by moving it indoors.

If it catches on, indoor aquaculture could play a critical role in meeting the needs of a swelling human population, says Erik Heim, Nordic CEO. He believes it could do so without the pollution and other potential threats to wild fish that can accompany traditional aquaculture.

Michael Timmons, an environmental engineer at Cornell University, who has studied aquaculture for more than 20 years, admits that “there’s always some risk, but the risk of the land-based system is a small percentage of the risk of an outdoor system.”

Although land-based farms may be years away from being profitable, there are new land-based project being announced every week. The list is long, with over a half a million tons of salmon projected to be on the market in a decade.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Mon, 02 Mar 2020 05:00:14 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a man from Missouri:

I always love stopping at Brophy Bros. for a great seafood meal when I’m in Santa Barbara. Looking out at all the fishing boats in the harbor got me wondering about the seafood supply here in the US. Why is it that, as a nation, we seem to be going backwards regarding the growth of aquaculture while the rest of the world surges forward?

Your impression is correct. The US aquaculture industry is on life support. Globally, aquaculture production represents about 50 percent of all seafood produced for human consumption - but not in the United States. Not even close. Since 1996, production has been decreasing or flat and, compared to other seafood superpower nations, one might say that the US has virtually no aquaculture industry at all.

According to Mike Rust, (NOAA) National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration fisheries scientist, there is a patchwork of policies at the federal, state, and local levels that actually conflict with each other, making it difficult to grow the U.S. aquaculture sector.

Rust gives the example of a Washington state shellfish farmer who waited 15 years for a site permit due to a delay by the Army Corps of Engineers’, delays in Endangered Species Act (ESA), the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act certifications, and delays in updates to the State of Washington’s Shoreline Master Program. Finally, out of patience, this grower leased a site in Canada.

The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that most Americans have come to perceive only the potential negative effects of marine aquaculture without the offsetting positive effects. Because fish and marine waters are traditionally seen as public resources, NGOs (Non-Government Organisations) have been able to systematically and effectively oppose marine aquaculture and successfully influence public opinion against it.

While the decline of US fisheries and conservation efforts have also played a major role in shaping aquaculture here in the states, the bulk of U.S. aquaculture now actually comes from freshwater farms that involve relatively low-value species like catfish and carp. These indoor fish factories filter all of their water and recycle nearly all of their waste which, from an environmentalist’s point of view, is the perfect kind of fish farming, with no pollution spewing into open water.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Sun, 02 Feb 2020 05:05:07 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a woman from Indiana:

I love fresh seafood of all kinds, so whenever I’m in Santa Barbara my restaurant of choice is always Brophy Bros. Back home I’ve noticed that the people I talk with seem to have very confused, almost contradictory ideas about seafood, especially any type of fish they perceive as “farmed.” Do you see this as a nationwide phenomenon, or is it unique to the midwest?

No, Americans nationwide seem to have very mixed opinions about seafood, particularly farmed seafood. Early growing pains with aquaculture such as disease outbreaks and environmental offences have contributed to this dynamic of negative public opinion towards the growth and expansion of domestic aquaculture.

According to a 2015 survey by the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA), almost 50% of survey respondents had a negative perception of farmed seafood because of concerns about quality, food safety and environmental impacts.

Surprisingly, though, a recent survey showed that consumers simultaneously underestimate how much farmed fish they are actually eating! The National Fisheries Institute reports that of the “Top 10 List” of seafood consumed in the United States, 6 of the top 10 fish consumed are fully or almost fully produced by aquaculture.

The U.S. ranks as the largest importer of seafood in the world, and more than half of Americans’ favorites—including shrimp, salmon and tilapia are farmed. This love-hate relationship with aquaculture remains a huge barrier to aquaculture’s growth and development in the United States.

So the confusion and ‘contradictory ideas’ you’ve observed on your friends back in Indiana are very real and nationwide. Kimberly Thompson, program manager at Seafood for the Future, says: “We need to ensure that consistent, accurate information, packaged in a culturally acceptable and approachable way, is delivered to American consumers. That means working to eliminate the myths that make seafood scary and then inform consumers how to prepare seafood.”

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Thu, 16 Jan 2020 05:03:30 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a woman from Rhode Island:

After enjoying some delicious ahi tuna at Brophy Bros. recently, it dawned on me how limited and predictable most of our seafood choices are in this country. Why is this?

To understand why Americans cherish and eat certain seafood but disregard others, it is essential to start from the beginning. As the first European settlers colonized the Americas, they were greeted by an abundance of fish we can only dream of today. However, because seafood was so easy to catch, it was quickly seen as ‘poor man’s food’.

Lobster is a good example. Lobster was initially so abundant in the 1600s and 1700s that colonial Americans came to loathe it. Indentured servants in Massachusetts became so sick of lobster that they added clauses in their contracts that limited lobster to only three meals a week!

It wasn’t until the 1870s, when tourists from New York and Washington discovered lobster, that it gained widespread popularity and prices soared. For most other seafood, however, convincing the average American to switch their negative perception has continued to be a tough sell.

During World War 1, even the US government tried by launching an extensive campaign urging every citizen to eat seafood in support of our troops. But by framing seafood consumption as a patriotic duty, the government further lowered America’s taste for seafood and, after the war, seafood consumption declined.

It wasn’t until Japanese immigrants introduced sushi to mainstream American consumers in the 1970s that our negative perceptions of fish began to shift. As sushi grew in popularity throughout North America, it became a symbol of class and educational standing. When The New York Times covered the opening of a sushi bar in the elite sanctum of New York’s Harvard Club in 1972, sushi became a hallmark of the sophisticated, cosmopolitan consumer class.

But now, as coastlines teeming with endless seafood are a distant memory, and fish populations struggle as we get ever better at catching what remains, Americans will be challenged to overcome the habit of eating the ‘tried and true’ and hopefully turn to more plentiful but underappreciated options.

Q & A

chris@talktooliver.com (Chris Collins) — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 05:02:02 GMT

Every two weeks we endeavor to answer any and all questions that our guests send in. If you have visited Brophy Bros. in Santa Barbara and have a question, please send it along to brophybros.com.

Here is a question from a local Californian:

I am a regular at Brophy Bros., so my dedication to consuming large amounts of fresh seafood is self evident. What baffles me is that with all the scientific evidence available now about the health benefits of adding more seafood to our diets, it seems like very little is being done to make people more aware of it. Why is this?

Federal agencies are actually meeting now through March to define U.S. dietary guidelines for 2020-25, and a high-powered group of doctors and nutritionists are making sure that the health benefits of seafood are front and center.

For the first time in the 40-year history of the program, the dietary guidelines committee has posted the questions they are going to consider. They include: the role of seafood in the neurocognitive development in pregnant moms for their babies and in the diet of kids from birth to 24 months directly.

Tom Brenna, chair of the advisory council of non-profit Seafood Nutrition Partnership, says, “We really got jazzed when we saw those questions because we wanted to figure out what the committee would find when it does its literature search on what medical evidence is out there...and boy, did we find a lot!” There are over 40 studies that address the two committee questions, showing that omega-3 found in seafood is highly valuable for brain and eye development.

“The brain and the retina in the eye are actually omega-3 organs! As calcium is to the bones, omega-3 is to the brain,” says Brenna. “For centuries fish has been regarded as ‘brain food’ and a plethora of studies have shown that seafood can prevent or relieve dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and reduce depression, among other things. This kind of data is exactly the kind of human study the dietary guidelines focus on. They are not cell studies, not rat studies, they are based on real studies on humans. It’s direct evidence. That’s why we are so excited.”

Benna admits being baffled when asked “Why such positive health messages have not ‘stuck’ in the U.S. Unlike the meat or dairy industries, who use sustained, national campaigns such as ‘Where’s the Beef?’ or ‘Got Milk?’, the seafood industry has never banded together on its own behalf.”

He is hopeful that putting the spotlight on seafood’s health advantages will help highlight the message and that national media will show more interest. “We’re generating the ammunition for the policy guys; there’s only so much that the science guys can do, and boy we have spent a lot of time doing it. We can lay the evidence in front of the policy makers. They have to implement it.”