Several Montgomery and Prince George’s County restaurants and food retailers are among 50 in the state that can officially say they sell true Maryland blue crabs.

Shortly after Gov. Martin O’Malley announced in May that the Chesapeake Bay’s blue crab population hit a 19-year high this year, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) launched the True Blue initiative as a way to support businesses using local crabmeat.

According to the DNR website, the True Blue program provides certification to restaurants using Department-verified Maryland blue crabmeat and allows those restaurants to use a special logo in marketing their crab dishes.