The National Fisheries Institute’s Crab Council announced on 18 December that Brice Phillips, the director of club store sales at Phillips Foods, was elected as the new chairman.
Phillips has immediately taken over as chair of the 10-year-old council, which promotes and finances blue swimming crab sustainability efforts across the globe. The funds – provided through grants by the World Bank, Walton Family Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and the Seafood Industry Research Fund – funds fisheries improvement projects in India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
“It is a pleasure to welcome Brice Phillips into this new role,” NFI Crab Council Executive Director Ed Rhodes said in a release by NFI. “Brice has an infectious energy and emphasis on the future of the fishery. His vision starts with five and 10-year considerations, not just the status of the stocks tomorrow and the next day. We look forward to his leadership.”
Members of the council represent companies that import roughly 85 percent of the blue swimming crab consumed in the U.S., according to NFI.
“These companies have taken responsibility for their industry’s future by pledging resources, commitment and funding to the future of crab,” NFI said. “The council’s membership embodies a new balance of business and harvest, adopting sourcing policies while funding projects that benefit the resource and communities where they are active.”
Phillips said he looks forward to the new role as chair of the council.
“The NFI Crab Council is one of the most successful precompetitive collaborations in seafood,” said Phillips. “It has a storied past and a bright future. That may involve new policies, new focuses, new investments and new partnerships. Whatever the next chapters bring, they will certainly involve committed companies that are willing to put crab sustainability first. I am excited to work with partners who are dedicated to this mission.”
Photo courtesy of Brice Phillips/LinkedIn
