One man. One boat. One mission: 100% sustainable wild-caught tuna in a can.
When we launched Just FreshDirect back in 2013, our goal was simple: to make great food with ingredients you can pronounce from people we know. And that’s exactly what you’ll find in our cans of Just FreshDirect Wild-Caught Albacore Tuna.
Our private brand team, Carrie and Griffin, teamed up with Mike Babcock of Oregon Seafoods and his friend Captain Shawn Ryan. Shawn is a lifelong fisherman who fishes for albacore tuna off the coast of Oregon on his trusty boat the San Pablo. Last month, we took a trip out west to visit Shawn and learn more about how our tuna goes from Pacific to plate.
Due to Shawn’s dedication to quality, he often spends up to a month out on the water in a single stint. Shawn catches each tuna fish individually, hand-reeling them in one at a time to make sure he is only catching tuna and therefore ensuring a sustainable process. Sure, Shawn could cast a wide net and catch in bulk, but the quality would be compromised and there would be wasteful by-catch.
After being caught, the tuna is hand-filleted and then cooked. But it is only cooked once, which is an important differentiation from most canned tunas, which are generally cooked at least twice. Cooking once preserves the natural flavors, nutrients, and oils—just one more reason why our tuna tastes so much better than others! Because of this, there’s no need for us to add any water, oil, or other fillers. In fact, you don’t even need to drain it—just open, mix in the natural oils, and enjoy! Testament to how much we believe in this tuna is that we now use it in the salads we make in our kitchen every day.
Shop Just FreshDirect Wild-Caught Albacore Tuna here.
