Trident Seafoods, Pacific Seafood, National Fisheries Institute (NFI) and other major seafood businesses and organizations have drafted a national sign-on letter asking for United States Congress to create a new office for seafood policy in the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), boost seafood use in federal nutrition programs and increase access to USDA economic programs as part of the 2023 Farm Bill.
"We have heard from the Hill [Capitol Hill, where Congress sits] that having the US seafood industry aligned on Farm Bill priorities will be critical in securing any inclusion of seafood in this year's Farm Bill," the groups said.
"Crushing market shifts, cost burdens, supply chain vulnerabilities, and foreign market access challenges have caused a crisis throughout the US seafood supply chain," the letter says. "Lost opportunities to participate in programs that support food production and resilient food supply chains harm the entire seafood sector and put US producers at a competitive disadvantage at home and abroad."
Processors blame high levels of unsold inventory from last year's season, weak consumer demand and collapsing wholesale markets for the prices, which represent some of the lowest in decades. Seafood executives have also pointed to Russia's ongoing disruption of the global market as a primary culprit.
"Inadequate federal policy responses have starkly illustrated the long-standing reality that US seafood producers too often "slip through the cracks' of federal policy support," the letter continues. "While the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) manages our federal fisheries harvest and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees seafood labeling and safety, no federal agency has provided clear and consistent leadership for seafood as a priority domestic food commodity. We urgently need USDA to assume that role."
The seafood companies are supporting legislation proposed by Senator Dan Sullivan in his National Seafood Supply Act of 2023 for the Secretary of Agriculture to create an Office of Seafood Policy and Program Integration within the Office of the Chief Economist "to provide for the effective coordination of seafood policies and activities across the department."
The office would work in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce and the United States Trade Representative to support domestically harvested and processed seafood, according to the legislation.
The Bristol Bay Regional Salmon Association (BBRSDA), a fishermen-supported marketing group, is also asking fishermen members to sign the letter and support the legislation.
US Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, the top Senate negotiator of the United States' largest farm spending package is looking to get the bill done in December, three months after the prior farm bill expires on Sept. 30, reported Reuters.
