Profiles

Mary Smith

Mary Smith is the Director of Marketing for The Plitt Company in Chicago, Illinois. The Plitt Company started out as a shellfish house in 1916 and, for years, was the region's only source for East Coast shellfish. The company now carries a vast array of seafood products from around the world. Since she joined Plitt in 2000, Mary has educated Plitt's customer base on seafood sustainability.

What is your favorite seafood?
Raw oysters. East Coast, West Coast, it doesn’t matter – as long as they are fresh and cold!

What's the most popular seafood item that the Plitt Company offers?
Wild Alaskan salmon. We have a fantastic selection of wild salmon from different areas of Alaska that we source direct from fishing families. Our customers appreciate the personal connection to a historically well managed fishery, and are glad to support a sustainable way of life for some really wonderful people. Not only are we able to offer our customers the freshest and highest quality wild salmon from areas like the Copper River and Kodiak Island, but we have built lasting relationships with some of the finest fishermen in the world who we are proud to call friends.

How did you get interested in the issue of sustainable seafood?
It would be impossible to work in this industry without developing a healthy respect for the products we are sourcing, and it’s only natural to want to protect this amazing resource. I have always been a conservationist and it’s great to be able to see ideas of sustainability go hand-in-hand with sound business practices.

How would you describe your philosophy on ocean conservation?
I believe that we need to work as a living component in the natural world; it’s a beautiful thing to participate in the circle of life and that includes using the ocean’s bounty to our advantages. However, we have the responsibility to take care of this bounty, to protect and manage it so that we can continue to function together into the future.

How has your philosophy changed what fish you offer?
As a company we have continued to use our economic impact to drive development of both wild catch fisheries and aquaculture. We believe that by using environmental and social sustainability to drive our purchasing decisions, we have the greatest positive impact on those who are directly affecting the resource.

We also work hard to promote those fish that we believe are coming from the most well managed fisheries possible; whether its our Marine Stewardship Council-certified (MSC) wild Alaskan salmon, halibut, and black cod or our wonderful selection of farmed shellfish, or a locally produced rainbow trout.

Have your customers noticed?
Absolutely! Our customers are incredibly well educated and curious about the seafood industry. They count on us to be a step ahead of what’s happening out there when it comes to sustainability issues, and they look to use for education on those issues.

Do you feel it limits what you can offer?
No. I think one can build a wide and varied selection of seafood that reflects all kinds of positive management opportunities. There are so many great choices available to us – from well managed wild caught fish from around the world to a variety of farm raised fin fish and shellfish. The list seems to be growing longer every year – just look at how the MSC has been able to increase its certified fisheries – by volume and by selection.

Have your seafood purveyors worked with you in sourcing sustainably caught seafood?
Absolutely. Our purveyors are always ready to answer even the most detailed questions about chain of custody, fishing methods, ingredients in feed, or whatever. They are patient and thorough with us, and more and more are proactive with providing the information we need.

What trends have you noticed in seafood in the past 10 years?
People are more and more curious about the details of their fish. No longer are we just selling salmon, we are selling wild Alaskan king salmon from the Yukon River. They want to know who caught the fish, how they caught it, where they caught it and when. As technology improves we can communicate all these details quickly and effortlessly.

I think health concerns – both for the negative issues that people hear about regarding mercury, PCBs, etc. as well as the positive issues like omega-3’s – are becoming more and more important to people.

Why do you support Seafood Choices Alliance?
Seafood Choices Alliance has been instrumental in connecting us with customers, purveyors, NGO’s, and individuals that have been integral to our growth within this industry. The yearly Seafood Summits have been such a great opportunity for education and relationship building. The Summit is also a great time to celebrate the myriad of successes we have all had – its easy to get bogged down in all the problems around us, the Summit is wonderful way to take some time to celebrate our successes and re-energize ourselves.

Seafood Choices is also a great source of information for ourselves and our customers – I can’t tell you how many times I refer people to your website as a fantastic resource of all kinds of information.

Posted July 23, 2007

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