A new smartphone application can help “bridge the gap” between Rhode Island fishermen and consumers who want to buy directly from the source, according to the University of Rhode Island and several partners.

The FishLine app came into use locally this summer after the state changed regulations to allow Rhode Island fishermen to sell their catches directly to consumers at the docks. The state made the changes to help fishermen weather the coronavirus pandemic, which depressed sales and prices.

Many fishermen liked the idea of direct sales, according to URI, but have had trouble connecting with consumers.

The app allows fishermen to post what species they’ve caught, prices, sales location and hours. It also provides recipes and information about each species and how they are caught, as well as stories and photos from the fishermen.

Sherry Kourtesis helps her husband, Jon, with dockside sales from the Christopher Andrew in Newport. Getting the word out to consumers is a constant struggle, she says.

The app is “a great idea,” she says, and she wishes more consumers would download it. However, she thinks it needs to be “tweaked,” because she hasn’t been able to post information on sales ahead of time. She’s found that she must post the information when she’s at the dock, essentially as the sale is happening.

“The app isn’t that easy to use,” she says. So far, she’s had the most success publicizing sales through Facebook and word of mouth.

The app was developed for the California salmon industry in 2012 and adapted for use in Rhode Island through a partnership among URI’s Fisheries Center, Rhode Island Sea Grant, Eating with the Ecosystem, the Commercial Fisheries Research Center, and the Rhode Island Seafood Marketing Collaborative, according to URI.

Mitch Hatzipetro, a URI fisheries scientist, led the app project with Kate Masury of Eating with the Ecosystem.

“When DEM offered the pilot project that allowed for dockside sales, some of the fishermen were leery of the idea because they weren’t sure how to reach potential customers,” Hatzipetro said. “The app can help them do that.”

In the first two weeks of the app’s availability this summer, more than a dozen fishermen were using it to market their catch, and more than 500 consumers had downloaded it, according to URI.

FishLine can be downloaded from the Apple or Google app stores.