What to Expect on Our Local Seafood Tour
New years bring new beginnings, and as we move into a new decade we all start a new cycle of growth. We here at Monterey Bay Food Tours have had an incredible past two years launching and growing our Old Monterey Food Tour, and we’re excited our company has an opportunity to expand and bring on a new tour!
Tickets are already on sale for our Local Seafood Tour, but we wanted to take a minute to let you know just what it is and what you can expect when you join us on that tour as opposed to our classic one.
Get Hooked Monterey Bay Restaurant Week
This year, we’re excited to put our best fish forward by participating in the second annual Get Hooked Monterey Bay Restaurant Week. The purpose of this week is to educate diners on what sustainability means. Most of the consumers who eat seafood aren’t aware that it has to travel over 5,000 miles to get to them, and understanding just where your seafood comes from is an important aspect of your diet.
On top of that, the awareness is meant to build a better future for the Monterey Bay fishing industry, and the participating restaurants will offer seafood that’s traceable back to the very fisherman that brought it to them. Be sure to check out their list of participants — some of which you may even recognize if you’ve joined us on tours in the past.
Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust
The Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust is one of the most prominent and influential faces of sustainability in the Monterey Bay. Their primary goal is to advance the social, economical, and environmental sustainability of the seafood harvested from the bay. Marine biology is a central part of our growth, and their research and conservation efforts help us move forward into more sustainable living. The fishery has been an integral part in the growth of our seafood harvests, and their continual efforts of putting the environment first have made a huge impact on the food we fish and sell.
We appreciate what we’ve learned from the fisheries trust, and they’re working hard to make sure we keep access to the West Coast groundfish trawl fishery for many years to come. With the help of the Monterey Bay Fisheries trust, the West Coast groundfish trawl fishery has gone from being declared a federal disaster to becoming one of the most highly regulated fisheries in the world.
What is Sustainability?
Photo Credit ©David Hills
Sometimes, the word “sustainability” can throw people for a loop. What does it mean? Is it bad to eat food that isn’t sustainable? How can you really know if what you’re eating is sustainable or not?
While the actual definition of sustainability covers avoiding the depletion of natural resources to maintain an ecological balance, that really boils down to one major fact: Anything that is local is sustainable.
That in and of itself is a broad statement, of course, but the core of sustainability covers the need to protect the natural environment without hindering our current way of life. This is another reason that shopping local and supporting local businesses is so beneficial, and not just for economical purposes. Particularly with groups such as the abovementioned fisheries trust, sustainability is a way to ensure that we drastically reduce carbon emissions as we continue to discover and develop the technology needed.
So, Just What Can We Expect on This Tour?
Photo Credit ©David Hills
Anyone who’s joined us for a tour in the past knows we love education and fun facts just as much as we love eating, and the local seafood tour is no exception! From learning facts about the ocean we’ve got from the fishermen themselves to bits and pieces about the cannery industry that made us famous in the first place to tasting how fresh food can really be, our local seafood tour has a little something for everybody.
Like the Old Monterey Food Tour, the Local Seafood Tour partners change on a rotating basis, but the base expectations will always be the same: Pairing food with drinks, trying the best of local products, and enjoying the scenery as we look out over the bay. We’ll meet at the San Carlos Beach before we begin our meander down Cannery Row, and participants who have been on our Old Monterey Food Tour will also get the chance to physically see Monterey’s Tasty Olive Bar and Carmel Honey Company.
All profits from the debut tours during Get Hooked Week (Thursday 1/23/20 and Saturday 1/25/20) will be donated to the non profit program Get Hooked. After Get Hooked Week Monterey, $5 from each Local Seafood Tour will be donated to the Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust.
Photo Credit for the cover image is also ©David Hills.
