Prospects For Massachusetts Community Supported Fisheries

Abstract

Marine fisheries across the globe are challenged by unsustainable industrial fishing practices resulting in the depletion of fish populations. Fish become global commodities, traded and shipped all over the world, accumulating thousands of food miles and benefiting companies and food processor many miles from the fishery itself. Community Supported Fisheries (CSF) were created in the last ten years as a solution to unsustainable, industrial fisheries practices that undermine marine environmental health and local fishing jobs, communities and cultures. Closely related to the land-based Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model, CSF seek to minimize the distance between producers and consumers, offering fresh and local fish to consumers and allowing for greater profits remain in local fishing communities. CSF are smaller in scale and support more environmentally sustainable fishing practices. This model has spread throughout the United States over the last decade with no two CSF being identical. Through personal interviews with two local Massachusetts CSF, I document the evolution of these CSF. I assess the implementation of sustainable fishing practices and consider whether the CSF model promotes the sustainability of people and planet. I examine barriers and threats to CSF success; information that will be relevant to those interested in starting their own CSF. Finally, I examine CSF marketing strategies and consider how they employ localisms (local identities, branding) to market themselves to the nearby communities based on their local surroundings and demographics.