Nathan Strout

South Atlantic states that were planning to manage extended recreational red snapper seasons this summer have cancelled those seasons due to a lawsuit filed by commercial fishers, but they’re looking to schedule new recreational seasons this fall. States bordering the federal Southeast Atlantic red snapper fishery have long demanded longer recreational seasons with larger catch limits, arguing that the fish population is far more abundant than… Read More

The European Commission has approved a EUR 212 million (USD 241 million) plan proposed by the French government to alleviate the costs caused by higher fuel prices on the country’s agriculture and aquaculture sectors. Fuel prices skyrocketed after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran, leading the latter to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz – a critical passageway much of the world’s oil must pass through to reach… Read More

A handful of United States senators have asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to take action to prevent a deadly overseas virus from infecting domestic catfish populations. Their primary concern is yellow catfish virus (YcCV), a highly transmissible and deadly pathogen first identified in Chinese aquaculture operations in 2020. The virus exhibited a mortality rate of nearly 90 percent, the senators claim, and can survive the freezing… Read More

Following the legislation’s passage in the U.S. House, U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi) has introduced a version of the Save Our Shrimpers Act in the U.S. Senate. The bill would instruct the U.S.’ representatives at international financial institutions like the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank to vote against funding for shrimp farming projects in other nations. The U.S. domestic shrimp industry has expressed frustration… Read More

NOAA has announced USD 124 million (EUR 109 million) in fisheries disaster aid to the states of Alaska, Oregon, and California, as well as the Squaxin Island Tribe.  “Fishery resource disasters have devastating effects on local communities and our economy,” NOAA Administrator Neil Jacobs said in a release. “This disaster funding provides much needed assistance to our fishing industry, and we will work with the affected communities to help… Read More

Sitka, Alaska, U.S.A.-based Silver Bay Seafoods was awarded a USD 11.2 million (EUR 9.8 million) contract by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for canned pink salmon. However, the department opted not to purchase a substantial amount of the salmon it was planning to due to price considerations. According to USDA, the government declined to purchase 6,080 cases of canned pink salmon and 80,000 pounds of frozen salmon fillets. Under the… Read More

An Alabama, U.S.A.-based aquaculture project led by Dauphin Island Sea Lab has harvested its first fish, according to the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR). Though funded by Congress years ago, the project has effectively been dead in the water awaiting permitting and other agreements, Integrated Multitrophic Aquaculture Project Manager Ashley McDonald said in a department announcement. The project finally lifted… Read More

The European Commission has approved Croatia’s plan to provide EUR 8 million (USD 9.3 million) in financial support to its commercial fishing fleet, which like many is suffering from higher fuel costs caused by the Iran War. Attacks by Israel and the United States on Iran have led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, denying substantial amounts of oil from reaching global consumers and leading to a spike in fuel prices. While U.S. President… Read More

The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has sent a response to U.S. senators’ inquiry into foreign shrimp, rejecting any effort to pin the blame on the ASC for tainted Indonesian shrimp that was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol last year. In a detailed 12-page letter, the seafood certification and labeling body explained its process to the lawmakers, emphasizing that no products with its label were involved in recalls related to the… Read More

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed legislation requiring commingled seafood to be labeled as such, preventing wholesalers and retailers from mixing imported shrimp with domestic product and selling it as locally sourced. “I was down in Lafitte today with ... our local shrimpers to sign HB 857 into law. This bill finally puts teeth behind the rules by penalizing the sale of unlabeled and commingled seafood,” Landry said in a Facebook post… Read More