| A
voice for the fish and seafood industry throughout New Jersey
January 1 marked the inauguration
of the Garden State Seafood Association, a statewide organization of commercial
fishermen and fishing companies, related businesses and individuals working
in common cause to promote the interests of the commercial fishing industry
and seafood consumers in New Jersey.
The Association’s primary goal
is to assure that our marine resources are managed responsibly and that
all of the people in New Jersey, whether as anglers or as seafood consumers
will be able to enjoy the bounty of New Jersey’s rich coastal and offshore
waters for generations.
That is our pledge to those who
catch fish as their livelihood, to those who go fishing for recreation
and for the millions who enjoy eating seafood in restaurants and at home.
New Jersey commercial fishermen
have a proud tradition of harvesting our ocean waters. Commercial
fishing is an important industry in the State, is a significant part of
our State’s economy and is critical to maintaining the unique character
of the Jersey shore.
GSSA members care about the environment
and the waters in which they fish. They care about their industry
and the consumers they serve. Yet, the industry has come under assault
– some misguided groups and individuals have been waging a war against
commercial fishing and against the consumers who enjoy Jersey Fresh seafood.
For example, legislation that would effectively ban the catching of menhaden
has been proposed in the New Jersey Statehouse, as has legislation mandating
seafood consumption health warnings in fish markets, restaurants and supermarkets.
Negative press appears too often in the local newspapers.
That’s why GSSA was formed.
Headquartered on State Street in Trenton, GSSA serves as the eyes, ears
and strong voice of New Jersey’s commercial fishing industry.
Public policy makers need to know the facts and the truth about fishing
issues which impact the commercial industry and the people of New Jersey.
GSSA will provide that and much more!
| "Commercial fishing, one of the oldest and
most respected of professions, has provided the cultural cement that has
held our coastal communities together for generations. Up and down both
coasts the impact that the commercial fishing community has had on forming
the character of our port cities is obvious. The Fish Pier in Boston, the
Fulton Market in Manhattan, Fishermen's Wharf in San Francisco and similar
locations all serve as a center for tourism and commerce for the surrounding
communities. But they provide much more than atmosphere, fresh seafood
dinners and colorful backgrounds for family snapshots. They provide jobs,
they generate income and, most importantly, they serve as tangible reminders
of our connection to and dependence on the sea.
As our society becomes more urban, more technologically
oriented, and farther removed from our connections to the land and the
sea, we tend to loose sight of the traditional values that have served
us so well for generations. Land that was at one time inviolate because
it was prime farmland is now at the top of someone's list for development
into a subdivision or strip mall. Coastal waters that were once recognized
as rich and renewable sources of fresh seafood are now considered the exclusive
playgrounds of well-to-do yachtsmen, sports fishermen, scuba divers, eco-tourists
and jet ski jockeys. Their productivity is suffering accordingly. Our goal
is to reestablish the connection between the seafood on your plate and
the coastal or offshore waters that produced it." |
Garden State Seafood Association
212 West State Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08608
Beverly J. Lynch, Executive Director
Paul N. Bontempo, GSSA Government
Relations
Telephone:
609-392-6174
Telefax:
609-392-6347 facsimile
Nils Stolpe, Communications Director
Telephone:
215-345-4790
Telefax:
215-345-4869
|
