A panel of fishing industry representatives has called on the federal government to re-establish a National Seafood Council, which it believes will bolster the consumption of domestic fish and other seafood, and it wants at least USD 10 million (EUR 8.6 million) for it.
In a statement released Tuesday, 21 July, the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee (MAFAC) said it made the recommendation to restart the council to NOAA and the U.S. Department of Commerce. MAFAC submitted a 46-page report to federal officials earlier this month that provided 10 recommendations for creating a new council.
The council would “conduct education, research, promotion, and marketing” initiatives, the MAFAC statement said. That would include direct outreach efforts to consumers touting the healthy benefits of eating U.S. seafood. It would also promote both wild-caught fisheries and aquaculture. Members of the committee detailed its process in a SeafoodSource webinar on 29 May.
The coronavirus pandemic has amplified the need for such a representative body, committee members said.
“It is clear that the COVID-19 crisis created significant, sustained challenges in the seafood supply chain and these challenges only increase the need for a National Seafood Council to enhance resilience for all seafood-related industries in the face of disruptions,” MAFAC said in its statement.
The first National Seafood Council launched in 1987, but lasted just five years as funding dried out from the U.S. Fish and Seafood Promotion Act, the law that established the council.
MAFAC said initial funding for the new council should be at least USD 10 million, but in order to be “fully successful,” the council would need at least USD 25 million (EUR 21.5 million) in annual funding. Industry leaders want a five-year commitment for funding with renewable five-year options to sustain the promotional body.
Funding for the original council came through the Saltonstall-Kennedy Fund, which used money from tariffs to support domestic fishing. MAFAC recommends using that funding for the council as long as it doesn’t impact NOAA Fisheries budget.
MAFAC is a federal advisory committee that serves as an advisory board to the Commerce Secretary and includes representatives from the business, environmental, academic, and tribal communities. The recommendation to bring back the National Seafood Council was the culmination of an 18-month review to determine how the government can increase consumer confidence and the purchase of domestic seafood products.
A spokesperson for NOAA Fisheries told SeafoodSource Thursday, 23 July, that it, NOAA, and the Commerce Department will consider MAFAC’s recommendations in the months ahead.
Slide courtesy of MAFAC/SeafoodSource webinar
