Its here again! We are having a Seafood Throwdown at this amazing country fair in Unity Maine. Come join us and learn more about those underappreciated fish. Watch the chefs create beautiful dishes using local seafood and local produce! Experience the smells and join in on the tasting of this mystery seafood.
We will be at the Country Kitchen section of the Common Ground Fair, come on down and support your local fishermen, and farmers.

Its here again! We are having a Seafood Throwdown at this amazing country fair in Unity Maine. Come join us and learn more about those underappreciated fish. Watch the chefs create beautiful dishes using local seafood and local produce! Experience the smells and join in on the tasting of this mystery seafood.
We will be at the Country Kitchen section of the Common Ground Fair, come on down and support your local fishermen, and farmers.

Two local chefs will be competing against each other.

Chef Devin Finnigan from Aragosta in Stonington will be one of the chefs for the event.

Courtney Hill from Eventide in Portland Maine

This event will be judged by people in the community.

The Judges are:

One lucky audience member.

Ed Snell a local fishermen who has donated his daily catch to the Chefs for the Seafood Throwdown cook off.

Amanda Beal who is on the Board of NAMA.(her Bio is below)

Patrick Shepard who is a staff member of Penobscot East Resource Center of The Stonington Fisheries Alliance. (his Bio is below)

Emcee:

Aaron Dority will be the emcee giving you a play by play on the action.(his Bio is below)

Aaron Dority is the Downeast Groundfish Initiative Director with Penobscot East Resource Center since 2007. Located on the island of Deer Isle, in Stonington, Maine. Penobscot East works to secure a future for eastern Maine’s fishing communities by ensuring that fishermen become a voice for the diversity of fisheries and health of the eastern Gulf of Maine ecosystem. Penobscot East’s work is a mix of advocacy, education, and collaborative marine science.
Aaron has a Bachelor of Science degree in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Oregon. He lives in Blue Hill, Maine with his wife and their son.

Patrick Shepard grew up in Stonington, Maine, and fished commercially for lobsters with his brother, Matt, throughout his school years. Pat now works for Penobscot East Resource Center as their Fisheries Policy Associate. He runs their New Entrant Fishermen’s Program, helping small scale fishermen improve their operations through business planning and diversifying their fishing efforts by entering new fisheries and performing research on experimental fishing gear. Pat also runs Penobscot East’s Sentinel Survey Fishery, contracting with fishermen to monitor groundfish populations in the eastern Gulf of Maine using hook gear.

Amanda Beal‘s life-long love of food began on her family’s dairy farm in Litchfield, as well as on the coast of Maine where she has fond memories of digging for dinner alongside her grandfather in the clam flats. She has worked as a Sustainable Food Systems Research & Policy Consultant since 2009, focusing on sustainable food issues in Maine and New England, and is co-author of the soon to be published: A New England Food Vision: Healthy Food, Sustainable Farming & Fishing, Thriving Communities. Amanda is a graduate of the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy’s Agriculture, Food & Environment masters program. She is currently enrolled in the Natural Resources and Earth Systems Science (NRESS) Ph.D. program at the University of New Hampshire.