Legal Sea Foods President and CEO Roger Berkowitz announced at the International Boston Seafood Show on Monday that his seafood restaurant chain would offer its guests a farmed salmon product that has been certified sustainable.
True North Salmon will supply the Boston-based company with farmed salmon produced in Maine and eastern Canada that has been certified sustainable by Global Trust Certification. Owned by Cooke Aquaculture in Blacks Harbour, New Brunswick, Canada, the True North Salmon product bears the Seafood Trust eco-label.
“Our guests appreciate sustainably raised fish and they want to know where it comes from,” said Berkowitz. “Sourcing fresh fish from an eco-certified producer that farms just off the coast of Maine and Atlantic Canada is the right thing to do. It’s good for our economy and it’s a great ecological choice.”
Berkowitz added that Legal has been sourcing its farmed salmon from True North and Cooke Aquaculture for the past 10 years. Executive Chef Rich Vellante says the product is “sweet and light” and is a favorite among Legal Sea Foods patrons.
“Cooke Aquaculture is committed to farming fish in a sustainable manner from an economic, social and environmental perspective. The Seafood Trust certified eco-label identifies Cooke as being in compliance with strict international standards respecting quality, traceability and sustainable production methods,” said Glenn Cooke, CEO and founder of Cooke Aquaculture.
True North’s salmon is the only farmed salmon in North America to earn the Seafood Trust eco-label. “Every salmon site across freshwater, sea water, packing and processing has been assessed against the rigorous criteria of the standard through a process of annual or biannual site audits and assessments,” said Global Trust Technical Director Dave Garforth.
Also, Cooke announced that it signed a letter of intent to purchase the assets of Ocean to Ocean and its subsidiary Ocean King. Ocean to Ocean is an importer, frozen seafood distribution and marketing company based in Montreal.
The company produces value-added farmed salmon, tilapia and shrimp, as well as scallops and haddock.
Ocean King is a value-added seafood processor based in Philadelphia. It produces salmon pinwheels, salmon burgers and other niche products sold to retailers across North America. Together, the two companies have a combined USD 40 million in annual sales.
More coverage of the 2010 International Boston Seafood Show >