This month our Caring Coins are being donated to the Suquamish Foundation.
The imposition of tariffs on China, and China’s retaliatory response, has brought Suquamish Seafoods’ geoduck export business to a virtual standstill. Geoducks are the tribe’s primary export product, but, because of tariffs, they are now too expensive for its core overseas market, China. (Geoducks exported by Suquamish Seafoods are a luxury item in China, prized for their freshness and traditionally served at banquets and celebrations.) Jim Boure, General Manager of Suquamish Seafoods, says the shutdown of geoduck harvesting has been devastating: “We normally pull in about $100,000 a week in geoduck sales this time of year [April and May]. Right now, we’re at zero.” As Suquamish Chairman Leonard Forsman explains further: “[This trade war has] a domino effect on the entire Tribe. The tariffs hit our enterprise, which affects how much our divers earn, how much we can invest, how our families get by. This is a treaty-protected activity— something we fought to affirm back in 1995. And now, it’s being throttled by decisions made thousands of miles away.”
For more information, click on the Suquamish Foundation image.
Want to donate? Drop your coins into the offering basket on Sunday or use the button above.