Addressing a large audience during his keynote address at the Pacific Marine Expo in Seattle, Washington on Thursday, 17 November, Bob Desautel, the president and CEO of Global Seas and Nina Fisheries, said technological advances are rapidly changing the fishing world.
Global Seas, a Seattle-based fishing company, recently purchased a new pollock fishing boat, the F/V Defender. Equipped with machinery that allows it to pump its catch onboard and a hold capacity of 2.2 million pounds, the F/V Defender is now the newest and highest-capacity boat in the U.S. wetfish fleet.
The pumping technology is “changing the trawl world,” Desautel said.
New boats and technology updates can be costly, Desautel admitted, but he said the investment is worth it.
“Some of these things pay for themselves, and others are worth it because they increase safety,” he said. “You gotta make it a priority.”
The next technological advancement that will revolutionize the fishing industry will be mechanical sorting of catches while still in the water.
“It is coming to the point where non-target species can get removed mechanically,” he said. “I would love to see that.”
Desautel also called for fishermen and those involved in the seafood industry to become better “fish ambassadors.”
“We’ve done a piss-poor job of promoting the consumption of fish,” he said. “I challenge everybody to become better fish ambassadors.”
