Applying food systems thinking in recreational fisheries: The case of shore fishing in Detroit, Michigan

Western fisheries management has long understood recreational fishing as a leisure activity. However, there is growing evidence for a food fun nexus or fuzzy boundary between fishery sectors that challenge this basic understanding. We explored this issue and applied food systems thinking in recreational fisheries in Michigan, United States. We used a mixed methods approach to answer the questions: (1) What role does fish consumption play in angler motivation and satisfaction, and does it differ between racial and ethnic groups? (2) How do shore fishers participate in their local fish food system? (3) What benefits do shore-based fishers derive throughout the fish food system? (4) What barriers do shore-based fishers face in accessing those benefits? We found that food-based motivations were the key component of angler motivation differentiating nonwhite and white shore fishers, with greater importance for nonwhite fishers in our study. Similarly, keeping fish was the key component of angler satisfaction differentiating nonwhite and white shore fishers, with greater importance for nonwhite fishers. Nonwhite fishers consumed recreationally caught fish more frequently and were less likely to follow consumption advisories. Shore fishers across groups obtained four key benefits throughout the food system – health, connection, knowledge, and food. However, we found that restricted physical access, fishers’ intersecting identities, poor water quality and food safety concerns limited shore fishers’ ability to access the benefits identified. We conclude that for some recreational fishers the importance of fish as food is related to food security, while for others it is related to food sovereignty.