#134 One Fish At A Time - Eryn Domeyer, Trefin Foods

Published: Nov. 23, 2022, 6:05 p.m.

b'You might say Eryn Domeyer and her husband got \\u201chooked\\u201d on fishing originally as a hobby, then as a sport, before it became a business for them. After getting married, they moved back to the Pacific Northwest and were invited by friends to do some Albacore tuna fishing. They loved the excitement. Soon, they were keeping score with their friends in how many fish they could catch and even entered some fishing tournaments. Because they were good fishers, they had more catch than they could eat, so started giving it away to friends and family. After they had been told their fish was the best their friends had ever tasted, the entrepreneurial question popped up: \\u201cWould people actually PAY for our fish?\\u201d. So in 2014 they began fishing and selling Albacore, halibut and salmon out of Ilwaco, Washington. The trio offering is what spawned the name Tre-Fin; three kinds of fish. Then in 2019 they expanded their harvest to ling cod, rock fish, petrale and more. Commercial fishing for salmon did not work for them after awhile and the company switched to sablefish as a replacement. The company has an official designation as a Community Supported Fishery, CSF, making their fish on your dinner plate a hyper-local event. It works like this: Customers sign up as members of the CSF and pre-order and pre-pay for a certain amount of fish, usually in five or ten-pound boxes. This gives the fishers not only a goal of fish to catch so they don\\u2019t over-fish, it also gives the company and employees financial security for their season. Then from July through October, the Tre-Fin crew goes out on one boat, in and out each day. They line fish, meaning they only use a pole and catch one fish at a time. Each catch is brought into the boat using a gentle net, not a piercing gaff. Each fish is handled by a person, not a machine, and each is hand-cut, fresh frozen and sealed for the freshest meal possible. The boxes of fish delivered are of the same weight but not always the same number of cuts, or loins as they are called. Since no two fish are alike and since they are custom cut, they loins vary a bit in size and shape, but that is the hand touch, authenticity and specialness that customers are looking for from Tre-Fin. Members can order one kind of fish or an assortment and there are multiple pickup locations in Oregon and Washington during certain days and times to get their fish. Home deliveries also are possible. The stability of a CSF also allows Tre-Fin to deliver quality fish at a slightly lower price than other markets. The creed of Tre-Fin\\u2019s founders is simple: Sustainable fishing. They only catch the number of fish that have been ordered, they only fish for healthy stocks and they only fish their local waters. This is a very powerful concept that provides conscientious consumers with a mechanism to enjoy eating fish harvested in a responsible manner. Website: https://trefinfoods.com/. Instagram - @dayboattuna. Facebook -@Tre-Fin Foods. Our hosts: Twitter - @sarahmasoni and @spicymarshall, Instagram - @masoniandmarshall.'