The homely cousin of Salmon gets a boost through marketing

By Stephanie Ariganello

It’s a bit of an unsung hero, the Great Lakes whitefish. The shy, somewhat reclusive cousin of salmon and trout - with its humped back and snout face - is not necessarily a looker. But the humble, silvery-brown fish has quietly sustained people in the Great Lakes for thousands of years.

With concerted marketing efforts over the last three years the whitefish may finally get recognition it deserves, making a name for itself across the Great Lakes and beyond. In its wake, the marketing program has bolstered local fishing economies in Michigan and created a sustainable market for the fish.

The aim of the marketing program is to recognize the Great Lakes whitefish’s attributes as a nutritious and tasty fish from the deep waters of the Great Lakes. The project started as unassumingly as the whitefish itself – with a grant application.

Ron Kinnunen, Michigan Sea Grant extension agent based in Marquette, explained that when NOAA National Sea Grant College Program offered a Fisheries Extension grant he and his colleague Chuck Pistis thought this might be a perfect fit.

“We put together the grant – to make the fishery stronger and to let people know about Great Lakes whitefish,” he said. “And we got it. It took off from there.”

One of the key components to make the project a success from the start was in creating a partnership with Michigan’s commercial fishing industry and other organizations to form a stakeholder steering committee.

The first efforts were working with Michigan State University’s Product Center for Agriculture and Natural Resources and hiring a market research firm. The firm brought the industry together – different groups of fishermen, suppliers and wholesalers, chefs and average consumers – in order to determine what the needs and wants of the industry were. After researching the problems, the positives and the predicted future of the whitefish industry, a multi-faceted plan was hatched. Developing a brand and packaging, setting up a web site, creating advertising, administering blind taste tests and directly marketing whitefish to individual groups such as the food service industry were all parts of the overall effort.

A Matter of Taste

Great Lakes whitefish prefer to swim in the company of fellow whitefish in the dark, cool depths of the Great Lakes, sometimes retreating as deep as 200 feet as summer heat climbs. The Great Lakes easily accommodate their deep-sea proclivity. It’s this that contributes to their delicate, clean taste as opposed to inland lake whitefish like those harvested in Canada, said Kinnunen.

“Our fish come out of the Great Lakes,” he said. “Those from Canada generally come from one of six inland lakes and that can create off flavors – depending on the environment of the lake. For example, the type of algae whitefish consume and how shallow the lake both can impact the flavor.”

In blind taste tests performed at Michigan State University, tasters chose Great Lakes whitefish 2 to 1 over comparable whitefish harvested from inland lakes in Canada.

Freshness also makes an impact.

“Our product is not traveling three days or more to be processed,” Kinnunen said. “They go straight from the lake to processing close to home, which leads to a superior product. When you look at Great Lakes whitefish packaging, it will say where it’s from and where it was processed. Other whitefish, sometimes they’re more well-traveled than me. Though they’re caught in Canada, if you look closely at the packaging, you’ll see that they’ve been shipped to China to be processed.”

Many restaurants throughout Michigan and now the Midwest have chosen to use Great Lakes whitefish exclusively – for everything from fish frys to high-end, New American cuisine.

Executive Chef Hans Burtscher with the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island said he likes using Great Lakes whitefish because they’re delicate in flavor and are versatile in the way they can be prepared.

But the allure of the whitefish goes beyond flavor. Pistis, one of the other organizers of the effort, said Great Lakes whitefish has a kind of all-inclusive appeal.

“It’s the history, the culture, the families who have fished for generations – it’s the connection to our state that adds value to supporting the whitefish,” he said. “It fits right into ‘buy local’ philosophies, and it’s environmentally sustainable. All of those things extend the value and drive people to look not only for ‘wild caught’ on the package, but also ‘product of Michigan’.”

Part of the marketing effort has been to connect the average person to Great Lakes whitefish as well. Several grocery chains throughout Michigan have started to carry premium, frozen fillets, and the fresh and smoked fish are now being sold at local farmers’ markets throughout the state.

The Results Thus Far

One development from the project is a higher-end product called Legends of the Lakes™, a one-pound package of frozen, pin-boned premium fillets that have to pass stringent quality tests before being shipped. The brand is controlled by a cooperative of commercial fishermen who agree to abide by particular environmental and sustainable practices. Only about 10 percent of the fish caught are high enough quality to make the cut.
But perhaps the biggest triumph of the project has been the name recognition, said Kinnunen.

“We’ve gotten a lot of response and people are interested in the project,” he said. “There’s been more demand for the fish and that’s been reflected in the price.”

Kinnunen said fishermen were getting $.40-.45 cents a pound off the lake a few years ago. Since the effort launched, prices are up to $1-1.25 per pound. The marketing effort has buoyed a once-sagging industry in Michigan.

“It not only preserves the heritage, but it also helps support the local economies,” said Kinnunen. “Their jobs are more secure now. That’s got to be a plus.”

Learn more about the Michigan fishermen who catch the whitefish or to find out where you can purchase some. See: Great Lakes Whitefish website

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