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The second annual Seafood 101 program begins this week, celebrating not only Pacific Northwest seafood, but the centennial of Fishermen's Terminal in Seattle. Educating children and their families about seafood's numerous benefits is the theme of the 2014 program, which kicks off with the Fishermen's Fall Festival this Saturday, Oct. 4.

2014 930 seafood101-logoWhat better time to promote U.S. seafood than in October, which is, after all, National Seafood Month? The Seafood 101 program is a regionally focused education effort that began last year. It's once again offering a variety of activities that highlight seafood's health benefits and its value to the region's environment and economy. Program events will culminate at Pacific Marine Expo, slated for Nov. 19-21 at the Century Link Field Events Center in Seattle.

Seafood 101 aims to educate families about seafood's nutritional benefits. The program also demonstrates how NMFS, the industry and community leaders are working together "to maintain a safe, sustainable and viable fishing industry," says Seafood 101 co-organizer Rebecca Reuter, communications specialist with the Alaska Fisheries Science Center. "Seafood 101 hopes to achieve this through education programs, cooking demonstrations, tours of our port and fishing vessels plus other free activities."

A special 12-page Seafood 101 supplement ran in the Seattle Times on Sept. 28, and it will be published in the Anchorage Daily News on Oct. 5. The supplement, which features stories on the value of seafood and the fishing industry, will also be distributed to Puget Sound region classrooms as part of the Times' Newspapers in Education program. Last year's award-winning supplement was distributed to more than 44,000 students and nearly 1,000 educators in Washington state.

That's good stuff. We're all for programs that promote nutritious (and delicious), fresh, local, sustainable seafood and the efforts of U.S. fisheries managers and harvesters to keep fish stocks healthy. We're pleased to again be among the program's sponsors.

Want to learn more about the Seafood 101 program? Visit our Seafood 101 spotlight page.

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