Last updated on July 29th, 2024 at 05:20 pm
The Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) has honored Hannaford Supermarkets with one of three inaugural “Gulf of Maine Tastemaker” awards, recognizing local businesses for their exceptional contributions to the seafood industry.
Hannaford was recognized in the “Local” category for having “consistently worked with more than 20 local suppliers to ensure customers have access to local seafood whenever and wherever they shop.” GMRI also cited Hannaford’s direct work with fishermen and women by supporting and participating actively in fishery improvement projects.
GMRI’s “Gulf of Maine Tastemaker” awards recognize businesses that are dedicated to celebrating and promoting local seafood from regional waters and fostering a sustainable regional seafood economy. The GMRI also recognized other companies at the same event – North Coast Seafoods, Atlantic Sea Farms and the South Portland School Nutrition Program.
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“Hannaford Supermarkets has been walking the local walk for nearly a decade,” GMRI noted in its award recognition.
“This support highlights their passion for sustainability and underscores their role as a driving force in promoting the vibrancy of the local seafood economy. As a longstanding GMRI partner, Hannaford exemplifies local businesses that have a steadfast commitment to bolstering the local seafood economy.”
Nate Jewell, seafood category manager for Hanford Supermarkets, said the company is “thrilled” to receive the recognition.
“Hannaford is deeply committed to supporting local suppliers and helping our customers discover the incredible variety of local, sustainably-sourced seafood from Gulf of Maine waters,” he said. “We thank GMRI for this honor and look forward to continuing to advance seafood sustainability standards in the years to come.”
Forty-two percent of Hannaford’s seafood is sourced locally. In 2010, Hannaford began work with GMRI to vet and audit all seafood products sold at its stores on a continuous basis to ensure they are fully traceable, come from responsible sources and meet strict criteria in Hannaford’s seafood sourcing policy, which requires all seafood products sold at its stores to meet key sustainability criteria.
For each seafood product, information is required from suppliers, including how and where fish were caught or farmed and whether the fish is sourced from a fishery or farm that is certified to a Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative-benchmarked standard, engaged in a Fishery Improvement Project or assessed as low risk by GMRI. Hannaford continues to work with GMRI to validate all new seafood products and collaborates to enhance both environmental and social sustainability in seafood.
Hannaford also partnered with GMRI last year to develop a multilingual Gulf of Maine Seafood Guide to help familiarize new Americans with fresh local offerings, while further developing the market for sustainable, local seafood. Available at all Hannaford seafood counters, the guide features colorful images of whole fish and shellfish and information about local seafood offerings, including flavor profiles, health attributes and cooking tips.
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