BEDFORD, N.S. -- A Maritime fishmonger is passionate about seafood and connecting local fishers and seafood farmers with their customers.

"Our slogan is 'Seafood with a Story' so, being able to kind of share the journey of the fish with our customer has been, I think it's one of the things that sets us apart from other fishmongers," said Laurie Starr, the general manager at Afishionado Fishmongers– a female-led company.

Afishionado Fishmongers supplies sustainably sourced seafood to restaurants, smaller retailers, distributers and sells to the general public.

Starr says one of the main factors that makes their company unique is how hard they work to bring low-impact fishing traditions back to the plates of Maritimers by following the ocean wise recommendation guide.

"Also, the types of conversations we have with our suppliers, 'Hey, do you think you can do something this way so that we can keep buying from you, because we want to support you, we want people to succeed.' Having those types of conversations, I don't know if everyone has that," explained Starr.

Chad Poirier works in sales and new product development. He believes it's important to celebrate fishers and farmers striving for sustainability in the seafood industry.

"If you buy a bag or tray of scallops at the grocery store, you don't know where those came from, you don't know what the catch method was," said Poirier. "Here, we have great relationships with all of our suppliers. We've got scallop farmers down in Mahone Bay, oyster farmers on the north shore or P.E.I., or in New Brunswick."                  

According to Poirier, when COVID-19 arrived in the region, the company had to get creative and work around the challenges brought on by the pandemic.

In order to better follow public health protocols, the company started offering home delivery and say they haven't looked back since.

"Nowadays, I think a lot of people like to know where their stuff is coming from. Where their food is coming from," said Poirier.