Saving Seafood

ALASKA: Harvest Fuel Relief Program to help farmers & fishermen

November 5, 2026 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a Harvest Fuel Relief Program on Oct. 19. The announcement, which came just ahead of the midterm elections, pledged $8 billion in one-time payments to American farmers and fishermen to provide relief for market disruptions and increased operating costs.

Alaska’s commercial fishermen could be eligible to share in the money. John Yeager of Wrangell had this to say.

With high fuel prices and insurance costs and bait costs, you leave the dock in the hole quite often, and that’s not a good feeling. It’s hard to maintain a business plan because you’re constantly adjusting for all these different increases in expenses.

The USDA has not said when it will start accepting applications or when the money would start going out.

Read the full article at KSTK

MASSACHUSETTS: Select Board Grants Authority To Town Staff To Increase Commercial Scalloping Bushel Limit

November 5, 2026 — The Select Board voted unanimously on Wednesday to authorize town staff to increase the daily bushel limit for scallops. The move was made without any discussion at the Select Board level, but the Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board (HSAB) has discussed a possible increase several times in recent weeks.

During the most recent HSAB discussion on the subject, the general sentiment appeared to be that the conditions were favorable for an increase, but more information was needed from the scallopers and the fishery before a final decision could be made. That discussion was held on October 20th, and town staff may feel that things have changed in the intervening weeks.

“I’m cautious because I think that the majority of the scallops are, from what I’ve seen, in two or three places, and I’d like to see what’s in some of these other places in terms of abundance,” HSAB and Select Board member Bob DeCosta said.

Read the full article at Nantucket Current

US data shows shark depredation tripled in Gulf, Southeast Atlantic over 20 years

November 5, 2026 — A NOAA Fisheries analysis shows increased depredation by sharks in the Gulf of Mexico and the Southeast Atlantic.

The analysis looked at data from the Southeast Fisheries Science Center’s Bottom Longline Survey, which focuses on sharks, red snapper, yellowedge and red grouper, and golden tilefish from Brownsville, Texas, to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Conservation group to sue over Kodiak, Gulf salmon management

November 4, 2026 — The Wild Fish Conservancy has sent notice to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and NOAA Fisheries it intends to sue over management of sport and commercial salmon fisheries in Kodiak, Chignik and Alaska Peninsula waters, alleging violations of the Endangered Species Act.

“Nearly nine out of ten Chinook salmon caught in commercial fisheries along the South Alaska Peninsula in 2024 and 2025 originated outside Alaska, according to research from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

“Yet these fisheries operate without federal Endangered Species Act oversight of their impacts on threatened and endangered Pacific Northwest Chinook, even as communities where these fish return face strict fishing limits and invest heavily in their recovery,” WFC wrote in an Oct. 28 letter to ADF&G Commissioner Douglas Vincent-Lang.

Read the full article at the Associated Press

US commercial seafood landings revenue dropped 3.6 percent in 2024

November 4, 2026 — U.S. commercial fishers landed 3.5 million metric tons of seafood in 2024, valued at USD 4.9 billion (EUR 4.4 billion), according to NOAA Fisheries’ latest edition of its Fisheries of the United States report.

That represents a 3.6 percent decline from 2023 revenue, with commercial fishers landing 9.2 percent less in terms of weight. At the same time, commercial fishers received a slightly higher average ex-vessel price for those landings, earning USD 0.64 (EUR 0.57) per pound in 2024 – 6.7 percent more than the year before.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

CALIFORNIA: Northern California Dungeness crab season delayed until 2027

November 4, 2026 — California’s commercial Dungeness crab season will remain closed in the northern part of the state until at least Jan. 1, 2027, as fishery managers respond to humpback whale entanglements.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced the delay Oct. 30, citing the number of humpback whales entangled in fishing gear this year. The department said postponing the commercial opener will give whales more time to migrate out of California waters before crab gear is deployed.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Crabbers again ask Washington Superior Court to shut down 24/7 monitoring of vessels

November 4, 2026 — Representing Dungeness crab fishers, the New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) has asked the Superior Court of the State of Washington to immediately rule against the state government and shut down its 24/7 electronic monitoring program.

“There is no ‘fishing’ exception to illegal 24-hour surveillance regimes under the state and federal constitutions, and we hope that regime ends soon,” NCLA Senior Litigation Counsel John Vecchione said in a release.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US commercial fisheries landed 7.7 billion pounds in 2024

November 3, 2026 — NOAA Fisheries released three of its flagship reports on U.S. fisheries, showing commercial fishermen landed 7.7 billion pounds of seafood worth $4.9 billion in 2024, while the number of stocks subject to overfishing fell to an all-time low in 2025.

The agency released its 2025 Status of Stocks report alongside the 2024 Fisheries of the United States and 2024 Fisheries Economics of the United States reports, providing a broad look at the biological and economic health of U.S. fisheries.

According to NOAA Fisheries, U.S. commercial fisheries supported 1 million jobs in 2024 and generated $175 billion in sales, $44 billion in income and $70 billion in value-added impacts nationwide. Combined, the commercial fishing, seafood and recreational fishing industries generated $321 billion in sales and supported 1.7 million jobs.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

Gulf Coast states could get more flexibility to manage red snapper limits

November 3, 2026 — The way Gulf Coast states manage their limits for red snapper, a popular catch among recreational anglers, is poised to change next year as fisheries management officials recommend adding more flexibility for states into federal rules.

The Gulf Fishery Management Council took action last week to alter how red snapper catch limit “paybacks” are done at their meeting in Galveston, Texas. The council advises the federal government on managing species in its Gulf of Mexico waters. Its members include sportfishers, commercial harvesters and scientists.

Gulf states are each allotted a specific amount of fish per species that recreational anglers may pull from the water every season. It’s done to ensure anglers don’t take too many, which can destabilize the population or even lead to a species’ extinction.

Previously, if a state went over its seasonal catch limit for red snapper, it had the overage amount taken away from its limit the following season, known as a payback.

Read the full article at Louisiana Illuminator

ALASKA: Fishing proposals would reshape access around Homer Spit waters

November 3, 2026 — Commercial fishing could be prohibited as far as a mile from the Homer Spit under a series of proposals headed to the Alaska Board of Fisheries in December, while charter boats could be barred from fishing derbies.

The proposed changes are among 50 regulatory measures scheduled for consideration during the board’s Lower Cook Inlet meeting Dec. 1-4 in Seward. They address longstanding disputes over fishing access near Homer Small Boat Harbor and raise new questions about how charter businesses should participate in fishing competitions and report their activities.

Three proposals target commercial fishing near the Spit, with supporters citing concerns about nets interfering with recreational boats and other harbor traffic, while two others would impose restrictions on charter vessels, potentially affecting local tournaments and requiring monitoring equipment or onboard observers.

Read the full article at Homer News