What’s on the menu at URI dining halls? Anything you want, actually, and that includes fresh, locally caught fish.

URI Dining Services features sustainable, locally sourced fish through the Catch of the Month Program, an initiative that began several years ago when the department hired graduate assistant Jacob Albernaz ’17 to help design and promote the effort.

“Instead of relying on frozen fish from large distributors, we decided to look for fresher, cheaper fish that is better for the environment,” he said. “Since we are the Ocean State, we focus on sourcing local fish that are underutilized.

Albernaz explains that fishing for underutilized fish helps the local marine ecosystem by alleviating pressure on overfished species. Dining Services has included bluefish, scup, John Dory, monkfish, and skate in recent Catch of the Month offerings.

The fish is often served with produce from local farms or the URI Agronomy Farm. The local seafood is offered at Mainfare in Hope Commons and Butterfield Dining Halls.

Albernaz earned his undergraduate degree in supply chain management from URI’s College of Business. After working for five years as a caterer with URI Dining Services, he welcomed the opportunity to deepen his connection with the Ocean State since, as a Tiverton, Rhode Island native, he grew up near the water.

“Supply chain is often thought of globally, but can be local when you think about the food industry,” said Albernaz. “It is important to focus on not shipping food across the world and instead focus on agriculture and seafood sourced locally to keep miles down and food fresher. Local and sustainable sourcing is economically,