Photo courtesy of Jay Fleming Photography

On behalf of the 5,500 watermen working the Chesapeake Bay, Governor Martin O’Malley accepted a donation from yours truly and OLD BAY^® to the True Blue program yesterday in our taproom.

A check for $10,270, a portion of proceeds from sales of Dead Rise OLD BAY Summer Ale, was presented to True Blue, which advocates on behalf of the Chesapeake Bay’s watermen and promotes sustainably harvested Maryland Blue Crab.

Now in its third year, the True Blue program created a $7 million increase in business for local crabbers since its inception.

Steve Vilnit, head of the True Blue program said: “We plan to increase public awareness campaigns for both consumers and the food service industry with this donation. Through True Blue, everyone can know where their crabs are coming from. And increasing this traceability not only helps the watermen, but also allows consumers who want to buy local know that their money is going back to their local fisheries.”

In order for a restaurant to be True Blue-certified, it must prove that at least 75 percent of the crabmeat it uses is sustainably harvested from and processed in the Chesapeake Bay region. True Blue also empowers the public to buy local through an interactive map of True Blue-certified establishments at marylandseafood.org.

Vilnit added: “Supporting local fishermen not only improves the local economy, but also helps to cut the carbon footprint of the seafood we eat. The average consumer can vote with their fork.”

Dead Rise will be available on draft and in 6-packs through mid-September in Maryland, Washington, DC, and Northern Virginia.