Seafood subsistence, fish recovery, and informal livelihood dimensions of Salish food species
Presentation Abstract
The Salish Sea supports diverse seafood practices. Noted for its commercial fishing activities, the Salish Sea also supports important cultural, subsistence, and noncommercial food systems. Incidental by-catch, seafood waste products, culturally-important species, and other seafood with little commercial value (i.e. “trash fish”) might play a key role in addressing hunger and food insecurity, as well as support social and cultural practices. This paper discusses noncommercial wild ocean food practices through a focus on subsistence use and food recovery networks (i.e. "gleaning" efforts). For example, between 1990 to 2010 vessel landings in Puget Sound ports recorded over 30 million pounds of fish and shellfish being kept for personal use. Elsewhere, chum carcass discards were diverted from Salish waters to regional food banks as a novel approach for utilizing lower-value salmon species for emergency food security. Other examples include incidental by-catch utilization in regional food systems. This oral presentation analyzes mixed socioeconomic datasets: (1) quantitative data on personal use by Puget Sound commercial harvesters; (2) qualitative data using open-ended interviews with key individuals involved in (a) seafood recovery through food bank donations, and (b) by-catch utilization.
Session Title
Session S-10H: Salish Sea Foods: Cultural Practices, Sustainable Markets, and Environmental Stewardship
Conference Track
Social Science Plus
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2014 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
Start Date
2-5-2014 1:30 PM
End Date
2-5-2014 3:00 PM
Location
Room 607
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Seafood--Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Seafood industry--Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Geographic Coverage
Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Seafood subsistence, fish recovery, and informal livelihood dimensions of Salish food species
Room 607
The Salish Sea supports diverse seafood practices. Noted for its commercial fishing activities, the Salish Sea also supports important cultural, subsistence, and noncommercial food systems. Incidental by-catch, seafood waste products, culturally-important species, and other seafood with little commercial value (i.e. “trash fish”) might play a key role in addressing hunger and food insecurity, as well as support social and cultural practices. This paper discusses noncommercial wild ocean food practices through a focus on subsistence use and food recovery networks (i.e. "gleaning" efforts). For example, between 1990 to 2010 vessel landings in Puget Sound ports recorded over 30 million pounds of fish and shellfish being kept for personal use. Elsewhere, chum carcass discards were diverted from Salish waters to regional food banks as a novel approach for utilizing lower-value salmon species for emergency food security. Other examples include incidental by-catch utilization in regional food systems. This oral presentation analyzes mixed socioeconomic datasets: (1) quantitative data on personal use by Puget Sound commercial harvesters; (2) qualitative data using open-ended interviews with key individuals involved in (a) seafood recovery through food bank donations, and (b) by-catch utilization.
