July 8, 2025 — The Chesapeake Bay has a lot of blue catfish, and that’s a problem.
Now, lawmakers have a plan to see if the invasive fish can be used as pet food.
A bipartisan bill, introduced in Congress, is aimed at getting blue catfish out of the bay and into the pet food industry.
Blue catfish have no natural predators in the Chesapeake Bay, can live up to 20 years, and weigh up to 100 pounds. They prey on economically important species like blue crabs, rockfish, striped bass, and oysters.