Local fish vendors share struggles with pricing, imports, and regulations

By Andrew Roberto
andrew@mvariety.com
Variety News Staff

AT a public meeting at the Crowne Plaza on Oct. 4, the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council heard directly from fishing vendors about the challenges they face.

A release from the WPRFMC called the event a “community consultation” and said it was aimed at “strengthening connections with fish vendors and exploring ways to improve markets, pricing, and seafood safety.”

Alex Min of WPRFMC said the organization wanted to hear about a wide range of issues impacting fishing vendors, who he described as “key points of contact” for fisheries.

“You’re seeing a lot of different fish coming to you and through you,” he said. “We think that’s a really important thing to record and make sure your voices are heard.”

Arnel Obando, a resident, said one thing affecting fishermen — and therefore fishing vendors — is the prohibition on monofilament fishing nets. On Saipan, it is illegal to fish with a tekken (gill net) or chenchulu (drag net).

For Obando, this is a “loss of opportunity.”

“There’s abundant fish in the islands but to no avail — we cannot catch,” he said. “For me, if in 12 months — why doesn’t the government put some months in the year [for net fishing]? Why doesn’t the government make a law that lets fishermen use nets just two months in a year? Just give a designated place where the net can be used.”

He said it is “good for future generations” to keep corals protected from the dangers of lost monofilament nets, but added that fishermen — and therefore the vendors they sell to — are losing out on certain species like milkfish or atulai.

Obando also suggested imposing a tax on imported fish, saying it would incentivize the purchase of local fish.

“If the price is almost the same with the outside fish and the fish we have on the island is fresh, if they impose a higher tax on the imported fish, then the cost to the consumer goes up,” he said. “They choose which is the best. If the price is almost the same, if I’m the consumer, I’m going to buy local fish.”

Rachel Ramirez of Brag’s Fishmarket said pricing is a major challenge. She shared that she purchases fish wholesale from fishermen for around $3.50 per pound, but sometimes has to sell it for as low as $2.50 per pound at retail if the fish doesn’t move quickly enough.

“When there’s leftover fish for the day, the market asks us to lower the price,” she said. “We have very minimal profit, but we don’t have a choice but to give them the price they want.”

To keep fish sellable, she said she sometimes freezes it. She also posts fresh fish for sale on Facebook Marketplace buy-and-sell pages, hoping her post gets approved quickly so customers can come purchase it.

For her part, Eva Moises of Te’s Fish Market said requiring fishermen to hold a business permit in order to sell fish to vendors is a barrier.

“Sometimes they don’t have a permit to go and sell this fish to the market because they lack money to spend,” she said. “So some vendors cannot get [fish, and] the fishermen don’t have a choice but to sell the fish at their home.”

Moises said to avoid losing fish to spoilage, her business will sometimes make it into lunch plates for sale.

Min said that workshops that could benefit the region include teaching residents more “value-added product” methods such as canning, making fish jerky, cooking, and more.