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Blue North is a sustainable natural resources company that features fishing as a primary enterprise. Blue North was founded by Michael and Patrick Burns who ventured from upstate New York to Alaska a generation ago. Once they landed in Alaska and started fishing, Mike and Pat Burns decided to settle in the Pacific Northwest to pursue their passion. Then they bought boats, upgraded them, and put one of the most efficient and sustainable hook-and-line fleets on the clean waters of the North Pacific. Today, Blue North still catches one Alaska cod at a time, and it continues to invest in sensitive, sensible and state-of-the art fishing in order to sell the highest-quality frozen-at-sea products around the world.

The fisheries division of Blue North consists of eight frozen-at-sea longliners that primarily target green-rated Alaskan cod with 100% onboard coverage using federal government observers. These vessels focus on quality, as opposed to quantity, and each fish is individually hooked and handled. Freezer longliners are specifically designed to avoid bycatch and have the ability to carefully release any unwanted catch back into the sea with minimal damage.

Blue North is well experienced with providing consistent quality, personalized service, and excellent customer relations.

Humane Harvest Initiative

The Humane Harvest Initiative™ (HHI) was launched by Blue North in 2015 to help increase recognition within the industry that fish are sentient beings deserving of the same treatment standards that are already in place for livestock. The HHI is driven by both ethical concerns and strong scientific evidence that shows that lower-stress methods of harvest directly correlate to a product with higher quality, more consistency and a longer shelf life. Blue North’s pioneering Humane Harvest fishing method immediately immobilizes the fish at harvest, putting the central nervous system to sleep prior to processing so the fish feels no stress or pain. Blue North first introduced Humane Harvest cod to chefs because of their shared respect for the resource and understanding of quality and flavor. Today, Humane Harvest is available to customers at quality grocery retailers and restaurants.