Freeport, Grand Bahama Island - Gregg Waugh, President of SafeSpear, LLC conducted a well attended Lionfish seminar and taste testing of both cooked Lionfish and Lionfish sushi to an attentive audience on Wednesday, April 14, 2010. This enlightening event was sponsored by The Bahamas National Trust and took place at the Rand Nature Centre on East Settlers Way.
The Bahamas Weekly News Team was on-hand to record the audio/visual of this event. We present herewith Mr. Waugh's audio that accompanied his power-point presentation. In a subsequent production we will present the video portion which includes demonstrations, interviews, Lionfish taste testing and clips of Lionfish preparation for consumption.
Gregg's presentation included the following:
1. A welcome table with information and a display of our products. Lisa Waugh (Vice-President, SafeSpear, LLC) will be answering questions, distributing printed materials, and taking orders for spears and kits.
2. Presentation – Gregg Waugh (President, SafeSpear, LLC) will discuss lionfish (the invasion and lionfish biology) and SafeSpear’s products/solution to the lionfish invasion. After the presentation, the floor will be open for questions. After the questions, wine & cheese will be served and Gregg will conduct demonstrations.
3. Demonstration – Gregg will demonstrate the SafeSpear Kit and how to safely remove venomous spines with the lionfish gripper and clippers while wearing lionfish gloves for protection. Gregg will also demonstrate how to fillet and prepare whole lionfish for cooking.
4. Cooking lionfish – we will demonstrate how easy it is to cook lionfish. Everyone will have a chance to taste lionfish!
SafeSpear, LLC was formed in 2009 to market a new polespear system (Patent Pending) that allows for the safe harvest of dangerous marine animals, most notably, venomous lionfish, which have invaded the Southeastern U.S., Bermuda, The Bahamas, Caribbean, and Central and South America. Gloves protect you from venomous spines, and a specially designed bag system (Patent Pending) provides a safe way for you to carry lionfish back to boat or shore. The full kit includes the necessary tools so you can safely clean and prepare your catch. Remove this dangerous fish and prepare a sumptuous meal at the same time. Recipes are included.
Gregg T. Waugh, President, has worked in fishery management for over 30 years. He was born and grew up in the Bahamas and is working to reduce or eliminate lionfish from Bahamian and South Atlantic waters. “Lionfish are not a part of my diving experience growing up around West End, Grand Bahama” says Gregg. “I have spent my entire professional career trying to limit fishermen’s catch through management regulations. Lionfish represent an opportunity to promote commercial and recreational fishing to reduce the negative impacts from lionfish predation on native species and to give overfished species a chance to rebuild,” he went on to say.
