BECOME A SEASONAL COMMUNITY COOP 'FISH SHARE' MEMBER
Our Catch in Your Hands
Don't Miss The Boat Next Season!
We were blown away at the community response to our very first
Winter Season 'Fish Share' Program.
If you weren't able to get on board in time, please join our newsletter to stay up to date on all the Coop's happenings.
And don't forget - you can still purchase local catch directly from the source at the Coop Kitchen!
Thursdays from 3-6pm
95 Commerce Park, Chatham
*Word to the wise - Don't drive through the puddle!
About Our Membership Program
Decide ahead of time how much seafood you want to eat (aka your "share") during a 3-month season and pay for your share upfront to help fishermen shoulder the risk of their trips out to sea. When you're ready for some seafood, choose what you want from a selection of current local catch plus a variety of our in-house specialty products. Order what you want, when you want, and pick up your selection of delicious local seafood at one of several seasonal pick-up locations. Since you've already paid, all you have to do is cook, eat, and enjoy!
HOW IT WORKS
1. GET ON BOARD. Sign up to become a Seasonal Member and pay before the season starts in order to secure your share of the catch.
2. WE FISH FOR YOU. Our cooperative’s fishermen hit the seas knowing your membership helps shoulder the risk of upfront costs and guarantees a fair price to the boats.
3. CHOOSE YOUR CATCH. Browse our website and choose from our selection of local seafood as well as our in-house cooked and specialty items you won’t find anywhere else. Order the products and quantities you want at the frequency you want.
4. PICK UP YOUR DELICIOUS SEAFOOD. Collect your order of Chatham Harvesters seafood at multiple locations. You can order weekly or at whatever frequency works for you.
5. BUY DOWN. Our program is a buy-down system so just make sure to spend down your credit by the end of the season.
MORE ABOUT BECOMING A SEASONAL MEMBER
1. SHARE SIZE AND COST. This is a buy-down system where you decide how much seafood you will eat during the 3-month season and then pay upfront. Our minimum membership payment for the Winter Season is $100 (about $8/week). You decide how much you want to spend per week and what species you’ll eat. Just make sure to spend it all by the end of the season.
2. MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS FOR THE WINTER SEASON. As a Community Coop Member you'll receive exclusive updates and get first dibs on fresh landings such as sea scallops. You'll get a members-only invite to our in-house seafood cooking demo where you'll get to meet and talk with some of our fishermen. You'll also receive your own Chatham Harvesters tote bag, unique and locally inspired recipes, our monthly newsletter with more in-depth member-only content, plus an invitation to our annual Chatham Harvesters Local Seafood Fest.
3. BE PART OF A GROWING COMMUNITY. When you join CHC as a community member you become part of an exciting effort to build a better seafood system - one that's fairer for our fishermen and healthier for both our fish-loving community and our ocean.
*Fair Warning: You might, on occasion, be earnestly moved by the deeper connection you feel toward the ocean and the fishermen who willingly risk their lives to feed you. You may also experience a growing sense of adventure when eating seafood and delight in your ability to distinguish quality seafood from some of the other stuff that's out there. None of this is guaranteed, but more than a few folks have echoed these sentiments.
WHAT TO EXPECT
1. About the FISH: You'll be able to decide which seafood is right for you. Our Winter Season will include items such as sea scallops, monkfish medallions, skate wings, hake, and dogfish filets, plus our specialty items such as Chatham clam pies, monkfish chowder, smoked mackerel, and shark bites. See our current list here.
2. About the FISHERMEN: We're all independent, owner-operator, family fishermen who live and work on Cape Cod. We want to get to know you and you to know us. We guarantee full traceability back to the boat. Our mission is to connect our community more directly to how we fish, where we fish, when we fish, and why we fish.
3. About FLASH-FROZEN FISH: All our seafood products for the Winter Season will be flash-frozen, which means freezing at peak freshness through a state-of-the-art method that suspends the seafood in its most flavorful and nutritious state. If you thaw your seafood correctly, it will be just as nutritious and delicious as the day it was caught.
THE PICKUP LOCATIONS
Choose the pickup location most convenient for you. Every time you order you'll have the option of choosing to pick up at any of the following locations throughout the season:
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Pickup Location #1: Chatham Harvesters | 95 Commerce Park, Bays 7+8, Chatham | Thursdays 3-6pm
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Pickup Location #2: Body Strong | 11 Chicks Way, Chatham | Tuesdays 3-5pm
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Pickup Location #3: Chatham Works | 323 Orleans Road, Chatham | Wednesdays 3-6pm
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NEW. Pickup Location #4. Lighthouse Keepers Pantry | 173 Main St, Yarmouth | Mondays 1-4pm
* Other locations will be added throughout the season as permitted
THE PURPOSE OF OUR COMMUNITY SEAFOOD COOPERATIVE MEMBERSHIP
Our membership program aims to promote a positive relationship between fishermen, consumers, and the ocean by providing high-quality, locally caught seafood to members in a way that helps support a thriving fishing community. Inspired by the community-supported fishery (CSF) and community-supported agriculture (CSA) movements, these models help share the risk of food production through pre-payment methods while also strengthening relationships to food producers. The first CSF on Cape Cod was started in Chatham in 2006, and similar CSF programs have since been started across the United States with support from the amazing Local Catch Network.