Vilnit recently visited one of the first restaurants to sign up for certification: The VIN 909 Wine Cafe, at 909 Bay Ridge Avenue in Annapolis. There, Justin Moore, one of the owners (shown in the picture at top), prepared one of his specialties: a blue crab roll on brioche with creamy shellfish bisque.

“What we are going to do is follow up behind the restaurants and we are asking for them to show us invoices every now and then to prove that they actually are using Maryland crab meat, if they are going to be part of this program,” Vilnit said.

So far, 40 restaurants have signed up for the voluntary “True Blue” program being run by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Participating businesses can display an official “true blue” crab logo with a Maryland state flag image on their menus if they agree to occasional inspections, according to Stephen Vilnit, Director of Fisheries Marketing for the state agency.

This weekend, Maryland officials are launching a new program that will help consumers know whether restaurants that sell “Maryland-style” crab cakes are actually selling crab from the Chesapeake Bay, or imported meat from Asia.

First he seared a brioche roll, brushed with butter, on a hot metal plate. Then he scooped into the rectangular boat his magic ingredient.

“Now I’m going to add the crab to the roll,” Moore said, working intently in the tiny kitchen. “To our crab mix we add some aioli, which is sort of like a garlic mayonnaise and some chives. Then lemon juice. And then mostly crab, because crab is the main ingredient here.”

VIN 909 is unusual. Even before the “True Blue” program, it used only Chesapeake Bay blue crabs in its crab dishes, according to Moore. The names of the other restaurants and stores participating in “True Blue” are listed at the bottom of this page.

Here’s the big picture: More than 90 percent of the crab meat sold in Maryland is not from the Chesapeake Bay, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Over 40 million pounds of crabmeat is imported into Maryland each year, while only about 600,000-700,000 pounds a year are produced the Bay region, according to the state agency.

Many restaurants advertise “Maryland-style crab cakes,” but instead serve the meat of a different species: blue swimmer crabs from Indonesia and Southeast Asia. Even when people buy live blue crabs in Maryland, they are often from Florida, Texas, or Louisiana, especially in winter.

Vilnit said the lack of transparency for consumers in the existing system extends beyond crab to a variety of fish.

“Seafood fraud is definitely a problem in the industry --whether it be tuna or crab meat or whatever else the species may be, there is deception going on,” Vilnit said.

The “True Blue” program is designed to ensure more truth in labeling on menus, at least for blue crabs.

Why do many restaurants sell imported crab? It’s cheaper – sometimes half the price, because of low overseas labor costs. But imported crab is generally not as fresh, because the meat is shipped hundreds or thousands of miles. And to some diners, it tastes less rich than Chesapeake crab, because crabs from hotter climates do not store fat for winter hibernation as local crabs do, Vilnit said.

The $13 blue crab rolls that we lunched on at VIN 909 tasted delicious. They were creamy and light, with a savory amount of fat.

“Oh, yeah,” Vilnit said, biting into the snowy heaps of meat on the toasted roll. “Definitely very good.”

The crab rolls are shown in this photo, with the dish held by restaurant co-owner Moore (right) before being devoured by Vilnit (left) and me.

Buying local crab supports local watermen and crab processing plants, Vilnit added. For example, VIN 909’s crab was purchased from the family-owned J.M. Clayton Company of Cambridge, Maryland, which was founded in 1890, making it one of the oldest crab picking houses in the world.

Now, you may wonder: Okay, buying local crab is good for the local economy. But wouldn’t encouraging people to eat more Chesapeake crabs put a troubled species at risk?

Not according to Dr. Thomas Miller, Director of the Chesapeake Biological Lab and an expert on blue crabs.

Dr. Miller said the Bay’s blue crab population has tripled since 2007 because of restrictions that Maryland and Virginia imposed on catching females. Dr. Miller said this rebound demonstrates the Bay can support both a seafood industry and healthy crab populations as long as crabs full of fertilized eggs continue to be protected.

"If we were to stop fishing altogether, the blue crabs would do a lot better,” Dr. Miller said. “But I think we would lose a cultural history and an economic impact that crabs can certainly provide. And so I think it would be wrong to suggest that we cannot have a sustainable blue crab fishery in the Chesapeake Bay."

So you can eat with a clear conscience -- and now with clear idea of where your meal came from.

By Tom Pelton

Chesapeake Bay Foundation

(Top two photos by author. Bottom photo from Chesapeake Bay Program)



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The following is a list of businesses participating in the “True Blue” program, as of March 18, 2012, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Tommy’s Downtown Baltimore MD

Frank’s Seafood Jessup MD

Ricciuti’s Olney MD

Olney Grill Olney MD

The Prime Rib Baltimore MD

Casion’s Eat Place Washington DC

Vin 909 Annapolis MD

Zeffert & Gold Baltimore MD

Gertrude’s Baltimore MD

A Cook’s Café Annapolis MD

Miya’s Sushi New Haven CT

Woodberry Kitchen Baltimore MD

Atwater’s Baltimore MD

Atwater’s Catonsville MD

Atwater’s Towson MD

Ploughboy Kitchen Baltimore MD

Atwater’s Baltimore MD

Conrad’s Crabs Parkville MD

Today’s Catch Columbia MD

Mountain Pride

Angelina’s of Maryland Brooklandville MD

Wit & Wisdom Washington DC

Sam’s on the Waterfront Annapolis MD

Wild Orchid Annapolis MD

13.5% Wine Bar Baltimore MD

Whole Foods Annapolis MD

Whole Foods – Tenley Town Washington DC

Whole Foods – Mt. Washington Baltimore MD

Whole Foods – Georgetown Washington DC

Whole Foods –Silver Spring Silver Spring MD

Whole Foods – P Street Washington DC

Whole Foods – Harbor East Baltimore MD

Whole Foods – Friendship Heights Chevy Chase MD

Whole Foods – Foggy Bottom Washington DC

Whole Foods – Bethesda Bethesda MD

Whole Foods – Kentlands Gaithersburg MD

Whole Foods – Tysons Falls Church VA

Whole Foods – Charlottesville Charlottesville VA

Whole Foods – Springfield Springfield VA

Whole Foods – Reston Reston VA

Whole Foods – Vienna Vienna VA

Whole Foods – Short Pump Glen Allen VA

Whole Foods – Old Town Alexandria VA

Whole Foods – Fair Lakes Fairfax VA

Whole Foods – Arlington Arlington VA

Whole Foods – White Flint Rockville MD

Bon Appetite Management Company Palo Alto CA

Jimmy Cantler’s Riverside Inn Annapolis MD

Garden & Garnish Trappe MD

Island Bar & Crab House Piney Point MD

Kettle Hill Baltimore MD

Grist Mill DC Washington DC

Dino DC Washington DC

McFaul’s Ironhorse Tavern Towson MD

Ryleigh’s Oyster - Federal Hill Baltimore MD

Graul’s Market - Ruxton Towson MD

Passionfish Reston VA

The Shark on the Harbor Ocean City MD

The Prime Rib Baltimore MD

Alewife Baltimore MD

Cleaver Co. New York NY

Landmarc: Ditch New York NY

Landmarc: Plains New York NY

Graul’s Market – May’s Chapel Lutherville MD

Hilton Garden Inn, Solomons Solomons MD

Cove Side Crabs Baltimore MD

Portside Tavern Baltimore MD

Hooked Seafood & Sushi Sterling VA

The Manor Tavern Monkton MD

