Local Produce Used?

[User Error]

We are off to the Fjords shortly on The Crown and I am looking forward to trying some local produce such as King Crab and Reindeer steaks

Do princess have special nights where they utilise products exclusively from the area being visited? Or do they stick to standard fayre on the ship and specialist things are left for people to taste off shore?

[Loonbeam]

Everything is pre-contracted, but may be loaded locally (for example, our salmon was loaded in Ketchikan for one night). That said, you won't see King Crab or Reindeer steak on the menu due to pricing. You may see raindeer chili...

 

We are off to the Fjords shortly on The Crown and I am looking forward to trying some local produce such as King Crab and Reindeer steaks

Do princess have special nights where they utilise products exclusively from the area being visited? Or do they stick to standard fayre on the ship and specialist things are left for people to taste off shore?

[Pam in CA]

We are off to the Fjords shortly on The Crown and I am looking forward to trying some local produce such as King Crab and Reindeer steaks

Do princess have special nights where they utilise products exclusively from the area being visited? Or do they stick to standard fayre on the ship and specialist things are left for people to taste off shore?

Believe it or not, most of the food on the ship is sent from the US or pre-contracted locations as they have quality control standards that must be met. I've been on a couple of cruises where local food was loaded and served, such as salmon from Chile, but normally, they don't use local produce.

[User Error]

Thanks folks.....

 

Gives me an extra adventure when in port....he he

[SwissDave]

We are off to the Fjords shortly on The Crown and I am looking forward to trying some local produce such as King Crab and Reindeer steaks

Do princess have special nights where they utilise products exclusively from the area being visited? Or do they stick to standard fayre on the ship and specialist things are left for people to taste off shore?

 

 

If you can get a reindeer steak for lunch when ashore then get it, it's a great meal.

 

As Pam said, most stuff is pre contracted, but certainly for Soton based sailings a fair amount of UK produce is used, and Rome is also used for major stocking up.

[Tinious]

Funny enough, this was a question on the UST last week on the Ruby. The response was that they highly value food safety first and foremost, and then of course quality (taste) and appearance. Because of that, they are limited in their ability to use local ingredients, even though they agree it would be cool. Even a 0.0001% increased chance of a food born illness needs to be scrutinized.

 

They gave some specific examples of lessons learned, i.e. picking up some tomatoes in a port to replace a bad batch, but it ultimately causing grief. Also a case where a popular cereal had a recall of the batch while they were at sea, prompting them to ask suppliers to audit their entire supply chains before being approved vendors.

[Vexorg]

I was on the UST recently on the Ruby, and at least for the Caribbean itinerary, they load the food for the entire seven days in Fort Lauderdale, and don't restock anywhere along the way. I imagine this could vary in other areas depending on where they are and how carefully they can control the product, but on the Caribbean itineraries they can't be sure the local product would meet the USDA standards they operate on, so they just stick to where they know they can.

[Sauvignon]

Believe it or not, most of the food on the ship is sent from the US or pre-contracted locations as they have quality control standards that must be met. I've been on a couple of cruises where local food was loaded and served, such as salmon from Chile, but normally, they don't use local produce.

 

Wow, that is a HUGE contradiction in terms. I would much rather have locally soucred quality produce than something that meets some random ''quality'' standard.

 

A question...which comes first, contract price, provenance or quality?

[Pam in CA]

Wow, that is a HUGE contradiction in terms. I would much rather have locally soucred quality produce than something that meets some random ''quality'' standard.

 

A question...which comes first, contract price, provenance or quality?

It's probably tied together and difficult to separate out unless you have access to the invoices. This is a case where the corporate entity, i.e., Carnival Corporation & Plc, purchases and distributes in bulk to their various cruiselines. If they can get the same quality locally from known distributors who have enough produce to supply the ship, I'm sure they take that into consideration but I'm guessing that local sources can't compete with the bulk purchasing power of the corporation.

[Hulagirl]

Being that I live in Seattle, I subscribe to the Port of Seattle News Updates. This was just sent out a week ago and I thought it was pretty interesting. I can't seem to copy and paste a link, so I just pasted the entire news letter. It addresses the question about local produce used on the ships here, at least to a point.

 

Anyway, I thought it might be of interest.

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 15, 2011

Contact:

Peter McGraw

Seaport/Real Estate Media Officer

mcgraw.p@portseattle.org

206.787.3446

 

2011 Cruise Season Sets Sail at the Port of Seattle

Each vessel call generates almost $2 million for local economy

 

The 2011 cruise season gets underway April 15 at Bell Street Pier with the arrival of the Crystal Symphony, operated by Crystal Cruises. For this season, 195 cruise ship calls are scheduled, bringing an estimated 807,300 revenue passengers through Seattle. The Port's vibrant cruise business creates thousands of jobs and millions in revenue, boosting our local economy while at the same time focusing on environmental stewardship.

 

"Each one of the 195 cruise calls this year creates jobs here in King County, with each contributing $1.9 million in our local economy," said Port Commission President Bill Bryant. "From local shops to Washington farmers, the cruise business generates business for the whole state."

 

More good news for cruise in Seattle came last week, as the Disney Corporation announced that they will offer weekly Alaska bound cruises from Seattle in 2012 on the Disney Wonder starting in May through August next year. This addition is expected to add substantial benefit to the local economy.

 

Seattle's cruise business-currently leading all U.S. cruise homeports on the west coast in passenger volume and number of ship calls-is responsible for more than 4,447 jobs, $425 million in annual business revenue, and nearly $19 million annually in state and local tax revenues.

 

All cruise ships that homeport in Seattle use either low-sulfur fuel or plug into shore side electrical power while docked. Smith Cove Cruise Terminal can provide shore power for two ships at once, eliminating the need to run engines while at berth. A Memorandum of Agreement between The Port of Seattle, the Washington Department of Ecology and the Northwest and Canada Cruiseship Association sets strong standards exceeding federal requirements for the treatment of waste discharges from cruise ships operating in Washington waters.

 

Smith Cove Cruise Terminal and Bell Street Pier provide panoramic views of the city's skyline, Mt. Rainier and the Olympic Mountains. Both terminals feature concierge services, luggage storage, on-board airline check-in, rental cars, and secure parking facilities.

 

 

Homeport Cruise Lines Seattle - 2011

 

·Carnival offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Carnival Spirit, departing on Tuesdays from Smith Cove Cruise Terminal located at Terminal 91.

 

·Celebrity Cruises offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Infinity; departing from Bell Street Cruise Terminal on Pier 66 every Friday throughout the season.

 

·Holland America Line offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Oosterdam or the Westerdam. Sailings depart Saturdays and Sundays from Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Terminal 91. Holland America alsooffers a 14-day Alaska cruise sailing every other Friday from Terminal 91on the Amsterdam.

 

·Norwegian Cruise Line offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Norwegian Star or the Norwegian Pearl. Sailings depart Saturdays and Sundays from Pier 66.

 

·Princess Cruises offers 7-day Alaska cruises on the Golden Princess or the Sapphire Princess. Sailings depart Saturdays and Sundays from Terminal 91.

 

·Royal Caribbean offers 7-day cruises to Alaska on the Rhapsody of the Seas departing from Smith Cove Cruise Terminal at Terminal 91 every Friday throughout the season.