NAGS HEAD, N.C. — The sound of live music, sizzling local seafood, family fun, and good conversation will all be on display at the 13th annual Outer Banks Seafood Festival on Saturday in Nags Head. But the event is also about much more, it's about helping educate the community and visitors about what the fishing industry is going through every day.
"When I first started there was an amazing fleet, very traditional fleet, of hook and line, rod and reel caught sustainable commercial tuna fishermen, and they're gone. They're out of business. I have not seen one in 10 years," said Jack Graham, a commercial fisherman and charter boat captain in the Outer Banks.
Graham has been a commercial and charter fisherman for more than 15 years, primarily fishing for tuna. He shared that he's seen firsthand much of the local industry disappear.
"We've been dealing with what's known as depredation where a tuna fish is on a hook and it's consumed by a larger shark. They've been basically put out of business by this issue," said Graham.
Another issue the Outer Banks fishing industry faced this year was from elected leaders in the state. A ban on shrimp trawling in all inshore fishing waters and within a half mile of the shoreline. The bill was ultimately killed in the North Carolina House.
"That's one of the things that we're excited about being able to really showcase at this year's because the potential shrimp trawl ban, and in case everyone is not aware of this, would have literally put a centuries old industry out of business. How many people shrimp, it's not necessarily that, it's what happens economically and socially to our coastal communities, and how close we came to something like this happening when it's not necessary," said Woody Joyner, president of North Carolina Watermen United.
The seafood festival will sport 14 restaurants serving local seafood, live music all day, vendors, cooking demonstrations, a kids zone, mullet tosses, and much more. The south side of the venue will be all about education of the industry, where visitors can learn more about what our fishermen face every day.
"We're going to feature over a dozen organizations and giving you the chance to talk with their representatives about our marine ecosystem. Please come to the educational area in the fishing village to see how our local fishermen supply everyone with with our local seafood, which is some of the best in the world," said Joyner.
The educational aspect is what the Outer Banks Seafood Festival's mission is all about.
"It's to promote the Outer Banks seafood industry and the hard working men and women that are out there bringing the seafood to the table. And a lot of people don't appreciate the hard work and what they have to go through. So we like to put the focus on that," said Richard Hess, chair of the Outer Banks Seafood Festival Committee.
At the end of the day, this is a generational industry made up of families who have always called the Outer Banks home.
"A lot of different organizations can tell you about the sustainability and environmentally, what we have to do to take care of of our ecosystem. And the fishermen, we're just a part of the ecosystem, and that's all we want to be," said Joyner.
The event will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday at the Soundside Event Site in Nags Head. For more information, head to the event website here.
