Just in time for the holidays, the Alaska Marine
Conservation Council is once again offering residents of the Anchorage area,
Homer and Kodiak its “Catch of the Season” Kodiak tanner crab gift packages. Customers
can pre-purchase boxes of the crab and pick them up after the crab has been "sustainably
harvested" by local fishermen.
AMCC is a community-based non-profit organization dedicated
to sustaining the health of Alaska’s fisheries on behalf of fish harvesters and
coastal residents who rely on them. This is the third year AMCC has carried out
the Kodiak tanner crab program, and the first year Homer will be included in
the list of locations for pickup of crab boxes. All proceeds from the program
benefit AMCC’s efforts in Kodiak and participating fishermen get a higher price
for their catch than they otherwise would.
Theresa Peterson, Kodiak outreach coordinator for AMCC, said
the tanner crab fishery is extremely important to the diverse fishing portfolio
of Kodiak’s small boat fishermen. AMCC has worked closely with Kodiak fishermen
for nearly a decade on protection of local tanner crab stocks.
Peterson herself is an active harvester whose family depends
on access to fisheries for crab, salmon, cod and halibut to make a living.
The program offers 10 and 25 pound boxes of tanner crab,
which include a “story of your catch” guide to share with family and friends,
telling the who, what, when, where and how of the catch, along with what AMCC
is doing to protect the fishery for generations to come. More information is
online at www.akmarine.org