Something fishy

Steve Phelps, owner and head chef at one of the most prestigious restaurants in the region, doesn't consider himself a political person.

But Phelps, owner of Indigenous in Sarasota, spent a day recently in Washington, D.C., where he met with senators, representatives and political aides. Phelps was part of a small group of chefs and restaurateurs who headed to the capital to talk about proposed changes to the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

Established in 1976, it's the principal federal law that governs marine fisheries, written to prevent overfishing, rebuild overfished stocks, increase long-term economic benefits and ensure a sustainable supply of seafood. “There are a few proposals out there that would undermine all the science we know,” Phelps tells Coffee Talk. “Those changes would take us back 40 years.”