Saving Seafood

Virginia’s fishing industry has the blue catfish blues

June 15, 2026 — Over the last decade, invasive blue catfish have outcompeted nearly every native fish and shellfish in the Chesapeake Bay, putting generational watermen and fishmongers out of business. But if managed correctly, researchers from Virginia Tech’s Seafood and Agricultural Research & Extension Center in Hampton believe this invasive fish could spur a lucrative new commercial fishery with an annual economic impact of over $1 billion.

Native to the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio river basins, blue catfish were introduced to Virginia’s rivers in the 1970s as a new trophy fishery for recreational anglers.

As blue catfish populations grew and food supplies ran short in the James, Rappahannock and York rivers, blue catfish began venturing beyond their freshwater habitats into the brackish waters of the Chesapeake Bay.

Michael Schwarz, associate director of the Virginia Tech center, estimated that between 750 million and 1 billion pounds of blue catfish now swim in the Chesapeake Bay. Their collective biomass is greater than every other Chesapeake Bay species combined. And their habitat is still expanding — blue catfish have made their way into North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.

“It’s an uncontrolled invasive species that is eating all of our traditional species that our seafood industries rely on,” Schwarz said.

Surging catfish populations and diminished native fisheries are causing a state of emergency across the industry, said Shelby White, a researcher at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science in Gloucester.

Read the full article at VPM

Invasive blue catfish turn problem into fishery

June 2, 2026 — Fishermen and chefs hope to feed people and eradicate invasive blue catfish at the same time.

Blue catfish have become a manmade disaster in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. They’re an invasive species spreading throughout the region and eating whatever they can find. On the upside, they’re good eating, and some commercial fishermen and anglers are doing well catching them.

The problem began, as many do, with good intentions. In 1974, striped bass stocks were declining, and the state sought to provide a new species for anglers to catch. Chester F. Phelps, then executive director of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, oversaw the introduction of 300,000 blue catfish into the James River. More stocking followed, and in 1985, Virginia stocked blue catfish in the York River. Blue catfish, native to the Mississippi River watershed, seemed like a good fit for Virginia rivers.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

MARYLAND: Maryland lawmakers vote to expand blue catfish pilot program

April 29, 2026 — Lawmakers in the U.S. state of Maryland have voted to pass legislation expanding its blue catfish pilot program, which was instituted to help remove more of the invasive fish from the state’s waterways.

Introduced recreationally in the 1960s, voracious blue catfish have since spread throughout Maryland, outcompeting native species and harming local ecosystems. State governments in both Maryland and neighboring Virginia have tried to encourage their removal from waterways by offering financial incentives for those who catch them and supporting local processors.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

VIRGINIA: Virginia awards USD 248,000 to Wanchese Fish Company for catfish processing

April 1, 2026 — The state of Virginia has awarded USD 248,000 (EUR 214,857) to the Wanchese Fish Company as part of a government program designed to increase blue catfish production capacity.

“With a total economic impact of more than USD 1 billion (EUR 866,372,317) annually, Virginia’s seafood industry is a major driver of local economic growth. In addition to the investment in the Commonwealth’s seafood industry and overall economy, today’s announcement serves as another step forward in protecting the Chesapeake Bay and Virginia’s waterways from the invasive Blue Catfish,” Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger said in a release. “Congratulations to Wanchese Fish Company on receiving this grant and increasing the capacity for blue catfish processing in Suffolk and expanding market opportunities for Virginia’s watermen.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

 

VIRGINIA: The blue catfish: If you can’t beat ’em, eat ’em

March 30, 2026 —  Virginia’s Secretary of Agriculture, Katie Frazier, was in Suffolk Friday to hand globally-known Suffolk-based Wanchese Fish Company a check for $248,000, which will allow it to quicky process blue catfish. Beginning in the seventies, the fish was used to stock rivers for sport fishing.

But now it is considered an ecological threat to the Chesapeake Bay. That’s why now, the state’s position is if you can’t beat ’em, eat ’em. According to NOAA, the taste is described as slightly sweet and clean.

“Processing equipment is, obviously, very expensive,” said Joel Richardson, a spokesperson for Wanchese Fish Company. “But we’re also adding jobs, and we’re hoping that over the next number of years, as we grow and we’re working buying fish from local fishermen, and going to be processing it.

Read the full article at WAVY.com

USDA issues USD 2 million in grant funding to improve blue catfish processing capacity

March 23, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued USD 2 million (EUR 1.7 million) in grant funding to two businesses to improve processing capacity for blue catfish, an invasive and prolific species in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

State and federal lawmakers have worked to increase processing capacity and grow the market for blue catfish, a voracious fish that can have a devastating impact on local ecosystems. In 2021, U.S. Congress established the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program under USDA to expand food processing capacity, and lawmakers have worked to ensure some funding is set aside to support catfish processing in the Chesapeake Bay region. Last year, USDA announced USD 6 million (EUR 5.2 million) in grant funding was available through the program for catfish processors.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US House passes MAWS Act

March 19, 2026 — The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Mitigation Action and Waterman Support (MAWS) Act, legislation designed to support the use of invasive blue catfish in pet food products, on 17 March.

“With House passage of the MAWS Act, we are one step closer to creating new opportunities in a growing market for blue catfish, which pose a direct ecological and economic threat to the Chesapeake Bay,” U.S. Representative Sarah Elfreth (D-Maryland) said in a release. “I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to get this legislation past the finish line. If we can prove this innovative strategy works in the Chesapeake [Bay], my hope is it can utilize similar tools in waterways across the country – like invasive carp in the Mississippi [River] and Great Lakes.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

USDA announces USD 6 million to increase catfish production around Chesapeake Bay

August 8, 2025 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced USD 6 million (EUR 5.2 million) in grant funding to increase catfish processing in the Chesapeake Bay region as part of an ongoing state and federal effort to manage the invasive species.

First introduced as a recreational fish in the 1960s, blue catfish quickly spread throughout the Chesapeake Bay watershed, predating on and taking resources from native species and upsetting local ecosystems. State and federal governments, as well as local nonprofit organizations, have worked to remove catfish from the waters, incentivizing fishers to land more of the invasive species, encouraging consumers to eat more, and finding new applications for the fish.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

MAWS Act Targets Blue Catfish in Chesapeake Bay

July 14, 2025 — Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) and Congresswoman Sarah Elfreth (D-MD-03), alongside Representatives Rob Wittman (R-VA-01) and Jen Kiggans (R-VA-02), introduced the bipartisan Mitigation Action and Watermen Support (MAWS) Act on Monday, July 7, 2025. The legislation aims to address the ecological and economic threats posed by invasive blue catfish in the Chesapeake Bay by establishing a two-year pilot program within the NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office to develop a new market for the fish in the pet and animal food industry.

The MAWS Act will provide grants to pet and animal food manufacturers to incentivize watermen to harvest blue catfish, while establishing infrastructure for transportation, processing, and manufacturing. NOAA will collect data on the program’s ecological and economic impacts, including effects on blue catfish populations, native species, watermen’s livelihoods, and market responses. The agency will report findings to Congress, offering best practices and recommendations for similar programs in other watersheds.

“The Chesapeake Bay is the beating heart of Maryland,” Congressman Hoyer said. “We have a responsibility to look after the Bay, its ecosystems, and the communities that it sustains. I’m proud to join my friend Sarah Elfreth – a longtime advocate for the Chesapeake Bay – on this vital legislation to protect the health of our public waters.”

“The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States, with more coastline across the Watershed than the entire coast of California. It is a pillar of our local recreation, seafood, and tourism economies,” said Congresswoman Elfreth. “Invasive blue catfish pose a direct ecological and economic threat to our Bay, which is why I am introducing the bipartisan MAWS Act alongside Congressman Wittman to address the damage inflicted by blue catfish, while also strengthening our local seafood economy and providing a new source of protein to pets nationwide.”

Could pet food be the answer to the blue catfish problem in the Chesapeake Bay?

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.

Read the full article at WMAR