SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The University of Rhode Island Fisheries Center, along with Rhode Island Sea Grant, Eating with the Ecosystem, the Commercial Fisheries Center of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Seafood Marketing Collaborative, announced Tuesday that a new smartphone app is being adapted for local use to help fishermen reach possible customers to help sell their catch.
The app, called FishLine and developed in California by Phondini Partners, allows fishermen to post what fish they caught on a given day, their prices, sale locations and hours for consumers in the hopes of connecting their catch with seafood customers. URI said the app also offers recipes for meals on certain species and how those fish are caught.
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While the R.I. Department of Environmental Management allowed fishermen to sell their fish direct to customers from their vessels as a means to support commercial fishing during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, fishermen were still having issues connecting with consumers, URI said. URI fisheries scientist Mitch Hatzipetro said the local seafood market “tanked” when the pandemic hit Rhode Island, causing restaurants to temporarily close back in the spring as a result.
“When DEM offered the pilot project that allowed for dockside sales, some of the fishermen were leery of the idea because they weren’t sure how to reach potential customers,” said Hatzipetro, who led the app project with Eating with the Ecosystem Program Director Kate Masury, in a statement. “The app can help them do that.”
URI said more than 12 fishermen were using FishLine to market their food and the app was downloaded by more than 500 customers. The university also said that Hatzipetro is working with local fishermen to better use the app and help spread the word about the app to local consumers.
This isn’t the only initiative to help the seafood industry and to those in need. In June, Eating with the Ecosystem, the Commercial Fisheries Center and the Rhode Island Food Policy Council created a virtual online cooking class series that raised money for families impacted financially by the pandemic.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
