Feeding Rhode Islanders

As a result of the pandemic, food insecurity has risen significantly and people are in need now more than ever. In addition, the fishing industry faces unique challenges as a result of COVID-19. The onset of the pandemic resulted in the dramatic decrease in consumer demand and closure of most of the supply chains, leaving many fishermen tied to the docks. To address some of these challenges, The Commercial Fisheries Center of RI with support from  Eating with the Ecosystem, and the Rhode Island Food Policy Council developed a pilot seafood donation program to supply healthy and fresh seafood meals to Rhode Island families in need by purchasing seafood directly from RI seafood businesses. So far, we have been able to provide various community organizations with fresh whole fish and we have also produced multiple batches of fisherman's stew donated to food pantries.  

Thank you to our partners for helping to make this program possible 

• Eating with the Ecosystem 
• The Rhode Island Food Policy Council  
• Rhode Island Fishermen 
• Handrigans Seafoods 
• The Town Dock 
• Narragansett Bay Lobsters 
• Bucktown 
• The Genesis Center 
• Jonnycake Center 
• The MLK Community Center  
• African Alliance of RI 
  
• Women’s Refugee Care 
  
• Refugee Dream Center 
  
• Sunrise Forever 
  
• George Wiley Center 
  
• Alliance of Rhode Island South East Asians for Education 
  
  

You can help support this program by joining us for the next Cook a Fish, Give a Fish online seafood cooking class or by donating directly to the program below. ​​

Donate to the Seafood Donation Program

Cook a Fish, Give a Fish

​Sharpen your knives and your cooking skills with “Cook a Fish, Give a Fish!” - a new program designed to connect Rhode Islanders with the fish caught in their backyard, the local fishing community, and each other! Sign up for a virtual seafood class, where a talented local chef will show you how to prepare and cook a fish that was caught not too far from your home! the profits from these classes go directly toward the CFCRI seafood donation program to donate seafood to Rhode Island families who need food assistance during the pandemic.

Learn more & sign up for an upcoming class

Upcoming Classes: 
Session 7: November 11th ​- The chef for this Cook a Fish, Give a Fish online seafood cooking class will be Noah Cain! Noah is the sous chef at the Coast Guard House in Narragansett. His menus always feature a variety of local seafood and he is a big supporter of the local fishing industry. He also creates incredibly delicious food! Noah trained at the former French Culinary Institute in Manhattan. He Worked for restaurants and private clients in NYC, Paris, and Hamburg. 

This class will focus on whiting aka silver hake. Whiting is actually one of Rhode Island's top landed species and it's so tasty! A smaller fish that is often sold whole, whiting has a very delicate flaky white meat and mild flavor that can be paired with a wide variety of flavor combinations. During this class Noah will guide you through the process of turning Whiting into a delicious dinner that will make it one of your new favorite fishes! 
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***Early Bird pricing will also be available for this session until November 7th, so get your tickets now!!