American seafood is national security — and Washington is failing fishermen

I person spent my beingness moving connected the h2o arsenic a commercialized fisherman. Today, I service arsenic the Chairman and Chief Strategist of the New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association, (NEFSA) representing fishermen who food the waters of the North Atlantic and the New York Bight, on with their families, concern and manufacture associations and members of the nationalist who enactment wild-caught American seafood. I talk for radical who enactment these waters each time and for communities that beryllium connected them.

We spot water conditions arsenic they exist, not months aboriginal successful reports. Yet argumentation excessively often prioritizes mentation implicit acquisition and paperwork implicit outcomes. Commercial fishermen are not enactment items. We unrecorded with the consequences of each determination made successful Washington. On the water, those decisions tin marque sportfishing little safe, negociate food poorly and thrust American commercialized fishermen retired of business.

AMERICAN SEAFOOD IS AMERICAN FOOD SECURITY

In 2026, it is clip to intelligibly admit that U.S. wild-caught seafood is U.S. nutrient security. America controls 1 of the largest and astir productive water nutrient resources successful the world, and commercialized fishermen marque it imaginable to provender this state nether immoderate of the highest standards anywhere.

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At the aforesaid time, we are forced to vie against inexpensive imported seafood flooding U.S. markets and undercutting American harvesters. Much of this merchandise comes from overseas operations with anemic oregon nonexistent biology and labour standards, yet it is marketed arsenic caller oregon sustainable. Meanwhile, American fishermen pursuing the rules are dilatory being pushed out.

American farmers cognize this occupation well. Domestic nutrient producers who travel strict regulations are routinely undercut by imports that bash not. Commercial fishermen, similar farmers, are a pillar of nationalist resilience. Any caller nutrient argumentation indispensable rebuild and support home seafood accumulation truthful American fishermen tin provender American consumers nether American standards.

OFFSHORE WIND EQUALS FOREIGN INDUSTRIAL TAKEOVER OF OUR OCEANS

We cannot credibly assertion to enactment home seafood oregon nutrient information portion allowing the concern takeover of our ocean. Offshore upwind destroys habitat, displaces sportfishing from historical grounds and embeds imperishable concern hazards into moving waters. It would beryllium similar mounting our workplace fields connected occurrence and calling it progress.

Commercial fishermen warned from the opening that these projects would compromise offshore safety. Offshore upwind degrades marine radar, interferes with search-and-rescue capableness and disrupts subject and homeland defence systems. When radar and rescue systems neglect offshore, lives are enactment astatine risk. Infrastructure that causes those failures has nary spot successful moving waters oregon nationalist information zones.

Once built, the harm is permanent. Taxpayer dollars should not beryllium utilized to destruct American commercialized sportfishing jobs truthful overseas vigor companies and backstage equity firms tin industrialize the waters that provender this country.

FIXING GROUNDFISH FROM THE GROUND UP

Our New England groundfish fishery is successful turmoil. Fishermen look quota swings that displacement from feast to famine, often driven by incomplete surveys oregon outdated data. A banal tin beryllium abundant 1 twelvemonth and efficaciously unavailable the next, not due to the fact that the food disappeared, but due to the fact that the survey failed to seizure reality.

When that happens, fishermen cannot simply pivot. If the fishery they beryllium connected is abruptly closed and they bash not clasp permits for others, boats necktie up, crews are sent location and coastal businesses endure contempt steadfast food successful the water.

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Restoring assurance starts with amended assessments. Better subject does not mean much models divorced from reality. It means cooperative, industry-based research, with fishermen moving alongside scientists implicit time. On the West Coast, industry-chartered vessels and sportfishing crews person partnered with scientists for decades to amended surveys, trim uncertainty and nutrient much reliable absorption outcomes.

A COMMON-SENSE PATH FORWARD

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The prime earlier the federation is clear. We tin proceed policies that propulsion American commercialized fishermen speech and regenerate home seafood with imports and concern water uses, oregon we tin travel the absorption acceptable by the President’s enforcement bid and enactment America’s nutrient producers first. Through President Trump’s leadership, the national authorities has recognized that home seafood accumulation is simply a substance of nationalist interest, economical resilience and nutrient security.

Commercial fishermen basal acceptable to conscionable that call. With a wide imaginativeness from the White House and policies grounded successful real-world experience, we tin support and fortify fisheries that are already sustainable, reconstruct moving waterfronts, and erstwhile again marque American seafood a backbone of our nationalist nutrient supply. We are a federation of fishermen acceptable to rotation up our sleeves, bash the enactment and get the occupation done with the President’s help, feeding America archetypal and starring the satellite by example.