The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is being petitioned to initiate a reallocation process for the menhaden fishery as it also considers its options to reduce the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap by up to 50 percent.
The menhaden fishery is spread across the U.S. east coast, and allocated across several U.S. states, with each state getting a different share of the fishery. Historically the U.S. state of Virginia has received the largest portion of the quota, and has also been the largest fisher of the species, with companies like Omega Protein and Ocean Harvesters processing and harvesting most of the catch, respectively.
Now, conservation groups are petitioning the ASMFC to reallocate the quota of the fishery, claiming the shifting patterns of the species mean the quotas should shift too.
“Regardless of the cause, as a result of more menhaden off the northern Atlantic states, anglers are seeing more striped bass, tuna, and whales feeding on the large schools and recreational and commercial fisheries would benefit from greater access to this public resource,” Jaclyn Lunaas, the forage fish program manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership said in a release.
This isn’t the first time reallocation has been suggested, or taken up by the ASMFC. The commission implemented Amendment 3 in 2018, and that rule requires the Atlantic Menhaden Management Board to revisit its quota allocations every three years. In 2021, the first time it examined those reallocations, the menhaden fishery pushed for equity in the allocations to ensure the existing industry didn’t lose its historic share.
Conservation groups are pushing against that historic share, claiming changes to the species’ distribution merit changing the total allowable catches to match it.
“More balanced state allocations would strengthen bait supply, reduce dependence on temporary quota transfers, and better distribute the economic benefits of this resource along the Atlantic,” Lunaas said. “Because quotas are tied to past harvest patterns, rather than current ecological distribution or economic dependence, it reinforces a fishery structure that no longer reflects present-day conditions on the water.”
As conservationists petition for a reallocation, the ASMFC is also considering an addendum that would reduce the existing 51,000 metric ton (MT) cap on the fishery in the Chesapeake Bay.
ASMFC first reduced the cap in Amendment 3, dropping it from 87,216 MT to its current 51,000 MT. The commission said the current addendum was initiated “in response to concerns regarding declining pound net harvest and catch per unit effort in the Bay in recent years, coinciding with an increase in the concentration of reduction harvest in the summer months, and the possible downstream effects on menhaden predators.”
According to an ASMFC release, the current harvest options on the table are aimed at alleviating concentration of efforts “that may be affecting other fisheries within the bay and other potential ecological impacts.”
The menhaden industry has pushed back on the addendum, saying it has failed to indicate there’s any problem that needs solving.
“The document’s own ‘Statement of the Problem’ begins with what ‘may’ be happening, proceeds through what is ‘possible’ and what ‘could’ occur, and ultimately acknowledges that ‘there are currently not sufficient scientific data available’ to comprehensively characterize the abundance and distribution of menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay or the influence of fishing pressure. It nevertheless proposes new restrictions intended to address a problem it never defines,” Ocean Harvesters said in a release.
Ocean Harvesters said there is not a scientifically established Chesapeake Bay harvest threshold, and that there is no scientific evidence that the cap has failed. It also pointed out ASMFC Commissioner Adele McClure has raised issues with the timing of the public comments on the plan.
“Without that complete picture, without the proper Bay-specific data, I feel like we are putting the cart before the horse instead of availing ourselves to the upcoming studies and data that could finally guide us,” McClure said during an August 2026 meeting. “I believe that the public would be better served as a whole if we had the scientific study results to better inform meaningful comments from the public and input from all parties, especially those closest to the issue.”
