$15M in state grants awarded to bolster Maine seafood dealers, processors

Courtesy / Office of Gov. Janet Mills From left, Hugh Reynolds, owner of Stonington lobster processor and dealer Greenhead Lobster; Gov. Janet Mills; and Alex de Koning, owner of Trenton shellfish company Hollander & de Koning, at the company's s plant on Tuesday.

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By Staff

Scores of seafood dealers and processors have received a total of over $15 million in new grants from the state to help increase the supply of Maine-harvested seafood, strengthen the companies’ ability to deliver to markets, and adds jobs throughout the seafood industry.

Gov. Janet Mills said Wednesday her administration awarded the competitive grants to 107 Maine seafood dealers and processors.

Businesses in every coastal county received awards. More than half of the grants were over $115,000.

The money was made available as through the Seafood Dealer and Processor COVID-19 Response and Resilience Program, established by the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan.

The program draws $10 million from the Governor’s Jobs Plan, $5 million from the federal Consolidated Appropriations Act, and $850,000 from other federal aid, according to a news release.

The Maine Technology Institute administered the program on behalf of the Maine Department of Marine Resources.

Mills made the announcement at Hollander & de Koning, a grant recipient and a sixth-generation shellfish company in Trenton.

“This funding enables us to purchase a machine that produces mussel packaging for retail,” said Alex de Koning, owner of Hollander & de Koning.

As a result, he said, the company will partner with its local distributor, Maine Shellfish, with plans to supply over 150 Hannaford supermarkets with fresh, local mussels starting next week.

Hugh Reynolds, a grant recipient and owner of Greenhead Lobster, a lobster processor and dealer in Stonington, said his company will use the money to complete investments in innovation that are expected to significantly increase the efficiency of its lobster processing operation.

Peter Handy, president and CEO of Bristol Seafood in Portland, said the grant to his company will help it recover from the negative impacts resulting from the pandemic and to build resilience for the future.

The money comes amid an “unprecedented level of uncertainty” that has affected the industry over the past two and a half years, said Patrick Keliher, commissioner of the Maine Department of Marine Resources.

“The need to modify product lines and business practices to accommodate a changing supply chain and labor challenges has put many of these Maine businesses in a difficult financial position,” Keliher said. “This program will help them overcome the adversity they’ve endured and build a strong foundation for a prosperous future.”

Maine’s seafood industry — including fishermen, aquaculturists, processors and dealers — employs thousands of people and generates about $2 billion per year, noted Mills.

The program will help dealers and processors upgrade their infrastructure, which in turn should bolster employment and market opportunities, she said.

Last week, Mills said her administration is reimbursing resident commercial fishermen, dealers, processors and aquaculturists for the cost of their 2022 licenses, as well as additional costs associated with licenses such as trap tag fees for lobster license holders.