Seafood lobbyists bid to net $25m budget for US aquaculture agency
Seafood industry lobby group Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS) has urged US politicians to approve $25 million (£20.3 m) annual funding for the Aquaculture Office of the country’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
The NMFS is part of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the $25 m would include money for NOAA’s Five-Year Strategic Plan for Aquaculture that will guide the agency’s efforts to enhance the growth of sustainable US aquaculture from 2023-2028.
The requested funding would also support the agency’s continued work on Aquaculture Opportunity Areas, environmental assessments, science-based tools and modelling, and increased economic development programmes – all of which support the growth of an American aquaculture industry.
A holistic approach
“The funding requested for the NMFS Aquaculture Office is essential to supporting growth of the American aquaculture industry,” said SATS campaign manager Drue Banta Winters.
“By prioritising domestic aquaculture, Congress will support the growth of an American seafood community that is resilient to economic and climate changes and is part of a holistic approach to a greater sustainable food strategy. We strongly urge Members of Congress to provide the necessary funding required to establish a robust American aquaculture industry to increase our domestic supply of healthful, sustainable, and affordable seafood.”
SATS has sent a letter to the Chairs and Ranking Members of the US House (Congress) and US Senate Committees on Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies, urging Congress to include the funding package in the fiscal year 2024 Commerce, Justice and Science (CJS) Appropriations Act.
In the letter, Banta Winters points out that aquaculture is the fastest growing food production sector in the world and is responsible for nearly all global supply growth since the 1990s but adds that the US lags far behind the rest of the world in farmed seafood production.
No clear pathway
“The single biggest reason is the lack of a clear regulatory pathway for permitting new projects, particularly offshore. This challenging reality has forced many American businesses to invest in other countries, resulting in the US importing at least 70% of its seafood,” adds the campaign manager.
Banta Winters concludes: “By prioritising domestic aquaculture, you will support the growth of an American seafood community that is resilient to economic and climate changes and is part of a holistic approach to a greater sustainable food strategy.”
In addition to the funding request, SATS also requests that the Committee include specific language within the related Explanatory Statement of the CJS Appropriations Act stating the Committee recognises the significant potential for development of American offshore aquaculture to increase US production of healthful, sustainable, and affordable seafood.
