Warm welcome to Roger Burleigh, our new Marketing & Supply Chain Manager!

March 6, 2018

Roger Burleigh, Marketing & Supply Chain Manager

The Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust is excited to welcome Roger Burleigh as our new Marketing and Supply Chain Manager. Roger, who starts on March 19th, will be responsible for rebuilding local and regional markets for local seafood as part of our new Fish Hub program, which seeks to aggregate demand, coordinate logistics, and promote sustainable, Monterey Bay landed seafood.

With a B.A. in Environmental Studies and Biology from Bowdoin College in Maine, Roger’s career has spanned many facets of sustainability. For the past seven years he has channeled this passion into changing food systems by developing a unique supply chain for Marczyk Fine Foods, a chain of high-end grocery stores in Denver, Colorado. In his position as Senior Supply Chain & Marketing Manager, he managed about 85 business partnerships with local farmers, seafood wholesalers, start-up food companies, brokers, and national distributors. A key focus for Roger has been to develop the strategies and platforms that connect consumers to the story behind their food – something that will be critical to his work rebuilding consumer awareness and demand for Monterey Bay seafood.

Having worked both as a buyer and a seller, Roger has an appreciation for the needs of all parties, and an understanding of the details involved with sourcing, pricing, purchasing, processing, packaging, marketing, transporting, and selling perishable food products, including staple foods as well as seasonal or “off the beaten path” products. His experience will be particularly relevant as the Trust works to promote fish like Dover sole and Chilipepper rockfish, which were once mainstays in Central Coast markets, but have been replaced by cheaper, foreign imports.

“Roger’s expertise in food systems, supply chain management, and marketing, combined with his passion for seafood and sustainability, make him a great fit for this job,” said Sherry Flumerfelt, Executive Director. “We are excited by the fresh perspective and hands-on experience that he brings to this position.”

There is a great deal of enthusiasm in the Monterey Bay region for buying sustainable seafood, and yet it is difficult to find local fish in local and regional restaurants and cafeterias. At the same time, local fishermen have to compete in a global marketplace, with seafood like tilapia from China, or shrimp from Thailand. This position is part of the Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust’s new Fish Hub program, which aims to identify barriers in local and regional seafood markets, and forge new market relationships, opportunities, and sales for sustainable seafood landed in Monterey, Moss Landing, and Santa Cruz. The program complements the Trust’s efforts to protect local access to historic fishing rights, attract new, sustainable fish landings in Monterey Bay ports, build stewardship and leadership in the fishing community, and educate the public about the importance of supporting the local fishing industry. The Marketing and Supply Chain Manager position is funded, in part, by the City of Monterey, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

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The Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust (MBFT) is a nonprofit, founded in 2014, working to ensure that Monterey Bay’s coastal communities benefit from active, working waterfronts and local, sustainable seafood for years to come. With a mission to advance the social, economic and environmental sustainability of Monterey Bay fisheries, MBFT envisions thriving and sustainable fisheries and fishing communities in the region. To learn more about MBFT, visit https://montereybayfisheriestrust.org/.