October 6, 2025 — Louisiana’s working coast has long depended on the Gulf menhaden fishery – a sustainable industry that supports more than 2,000 jobs, contributes $419 million annually, generates $25 million in state and local tax revenue, and purchases $62 million in goods and services from 32 parishes. Yet, despite this enormous positive impact, recent regulatory changes threaten to undermine this lifeline industry and the communities that depend on it.
At issue is the decision to extend the state’s menhaden buffer zone in recent years. Historically, the fishery operated along the Inside/Outside Line and Double Rig Line – longstanding boundaries for commercial fishing that had already limited where menhaden vessels could operate. In 2021, the buffer zone was extended by one-quarter mile, and again in 2024 to a half-mile from the original line.
While these changes may sound incremental, the impact has been anything but small. The half-mile restriction has excluded thousands of acres of historically productive fishing grounds. In just 3 years, the industry experienced a 25% reduction in fish caught. For an industry already operating on tight margins, this loss is unsustainable, harming not only the companies that fish for menhaden but also thousands of Louisiana families whose livelihoods depend on this fishery.
An Industry That Fuels Local Economies
Louisiana’s menhaden industry is powered by two companies – Westbank Fishing out of Empire, LA (Plaquemines Parish) and Ocean Harvesters out of Abbeville, LA (Vermilion Parish). Contrary to the misinformation that has been spread, both these companies are U.S.-based, U.S.-owned and are totally controlled by U.S. citizens. Together with the two processing companies (Daybrook Fisheries and Omega Protein), they employ more than 800 people directly on vessels and in processing plants, while another 1,200 jobs ripple across rural communities through suppliers, service companies, and transportation providers. These are stable, year-round jobs that anchor small-town economies in parishes where economic opportunities are limited.
Read the full article at The Advocate