
Our tagline Southern Catch represents a commitment to strong fishing communities; fresh, local, sustainable seafood; and connecting seafood lovers and businesses with local fishermen.
MISSION: We work to protect the Southeast’s fishing heritage by advocating for sustainable year-round fishing rules, collecting better fishery science, and connecting consumers and businesses with fishermen, to improve the abundance and accessibility of local seafood.
VISION: We envision strong Southeast fishing communities that provide sustainably-caught local seafood year-round and pass the heritage on to future generations.
The South Atlantic Fishermen’s Association has eight board members.
President - Matt Ruby, Charleston, SC
Vice President - Phil Conklin, Murrell's Inlet, SC
Treasurer - Chris Conklin, Murrell's Inlet, SC
Secretary - Dave Thomas, St. Matthew's, SC
Larry Jones, Cayce, SC
Jack Cox, Morehead City, NC
To achieve our goals of sustainable fishery management, year-round seafood availability and uniting Southeast fishermen, our current key activities include:
“Under a catch share management system the public can feel good about eating local seafood. We could get fish to the consumer that is sustainable and harvested in the right way, and both the public and commercial fishermen can be proud of that. The race-to-fish style of fishing simply doesn’t afford us the same opportunity.”