Saving Seafood

New cod regulations could squeeze remaining New England groundfish fleet

July 9, 2026 — New cod fishing regulations in New England will make life more complicated for the region’s groundfish fleet during a period already impacted by high fuel costs.

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) recently approved a new multispecies fishery management plan that split the management areas for cod in the Northeast U.S. into four separate areas, an increase from the two areas it was previously. That rule, Amendment 25, set separate allowable catch limits for each quadrant, which combines to a total allowable limit of 608 metric tons (MT) across all areas.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

ALASKA: Fleet shifts to Naknek-Kvichak as Bristol Bay nears 29 million

July 9, 2026 — Bristol Bay’s 2026 sockeye salmon run continued to build Monday, with the total run approaching 29 million fish as fishermen increasingly reposition toward the Naknek-Kvichak District for the next phase of the season.

According to the latest update from KDLG’s Bristol Bay fisheries report, the bay-wide run reached 28.78 million sockeye through July 7, with fishermen harvesting 1.15 million fish on Monday. The cumulative catch now stands at 17.95 million sockeye, while total escapement has climbed to 731,947 fish for the day.

Egegik again led all districts with a daily harvest of 492,817 sockeye, pushing its season catch to 5.94 million fish. The district’s total run has now reached 7.5 million fish, nearing its preseason forecast of 8.9 million.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

MASSACHUSETTS: Trump says he’ll reopen Northern Edge to scalloping; New Bedford may benefit more than Cape Cod

July 8, 2026 — South Coast scallopers are rejoicing at President Trump’s pledge, on Thursday, to reopen a prime scallop fishing area off Massachusetts.

But the process could take more than 18 months, and Cape Cod scallopers may not benefit as much as those in New Bedford.

“From an industry perspective, access to the Northern Edge would be a blessing,” said Eric Hansen, owner of two New Bedford scallop vessels. “The loss of resource and revenue for the scallop industry for the last 30 years has been huge.”

The Northern Edge, a section of Georges Bank, has been closed to scalloping since 1994.

Aubrey Church, policy director at the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, said some of the smaller commercial vessels on Cape Cod Cape are unlikely to be able to make the 15-hour trip to the Northern Edge.

Many of Cape Cod’s commercial fishing vessels are dayboats, meaning they go out and return on the same day.

Church said the alliance wants to hear more from its members before taking a position on access to the Northern Edge.

“Understanding how different sectors of the fleet may be affected will be an important part of our discussions with members,” she said.

Read the full article at NHPR

New tagging study tracks Dungeness crab movement in Puget Sound

July 8, 2026 — State and tribal fishery managers in Washington are using a floy-tag study to track how Dungeness crab move through parts of Puget Sound, with the goal of improving how catch quotas and fishing seasons are set in areas where crab populations have struggled.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), working with the Suquamish and Jamestown tribes, has tagged and released 885 legal-size male Dungeness crab since September 2025 across Marine Area 9 (Admiralty Inlet), Marine Area 10 (Seattle and Bremerton area) and the portion of Marine Area 12 (Hood Canal) north of Ayock Point.

In late September 2025, WDFW and the Suquamish Tribe tagged and released 555 crab across six sites in Marine Area 10, ranging from Alki Point in West Seattle north to Apple Cove Point near Kingston. As of June 25, 2026, 84 of those crab had been recaptured in recreational, state, and tribal commercial fisheries.

On June 9, 2026, WDFW and the Jamestown Tribe tagged and released another 330 crab in Marine Areas 9 and 12. Two had been recaptured as of June 25.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

NOAA accepting feedback on increasing Gulf red grouper quotas

July 8, 2026 — NOAA Fisheries has opened a public comment period on Amendment 62, a multi-year plan that would increase red grouper catch limits for the Gulf of Mexico by 53 percent in the first year.

At the same time, the Gulf Council is pushing forward with a follow-up plan that would establish a three-year pilot program that would set aside some of the commercial catch for the Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) program.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Trump administration promises to make U.S. ‘dominant seafood leader’

July 7, 2026 — Advocates for the U.S scallop fleet hailed President Trump’s declaration of a “National Scallops Day” July 2, leading a list of NOAA Fisheries actions the administration says are aimed to “stabilize markets, improve access, enhance economic profitability, and prevent closures.”

Measures for the lucrative Northeast and Mid-Atlantic scallop fishery headed priorities announced by NOAA Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler. The changes will open the Northern Edge of Georges Bank to the scallop fleet, and advance “permit stacking” on scallop vessels, two reforms the industry’s Sustainable Scallop Fund has sought for years.

“Permit stacking will let scallop permit holders consolidate operations, cut costs, and fish more safely and efficiently. Opening the Northern Edge returns the fleet to a productive, well-managed resource that has stayed closed for years,” the group says.

“We are grateful to President Trump and his team for listening to the men and women of the scallop fleet and acting on their behalf,” said SSF president John Lees. “Permit stacking and Northern Edge access will make our fishery more competitive, more sustainable, and more valuable to the American families who depend on it. This is what it looks like when Washington puts American fishermen first.”

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Council appointments renew debate over Pacific monuments

July 7, 2026 — The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (Wespac) will add two leaders from the Hawaiʻi longline industry to its ranks next month, a move supporters say brings extensive fisheries expertise to the council but one that conservation advocates argue further tilts the federal advisory body toward commercial fishing interests. According to a recent report by Civil Beat, the appointments come as the Trump administration continues efforts to expand commercial fishing access in federally protected Pacific waters.

Eric Kingma, executive director of the Hawaiʻi Longline Association, was appointed to one of Wespac’s at-large seats, while Roger Dang was reappointed to the council’s second open at-large seat. Dang owns interests in multiple longline vessels operating in Hawaiʻi’s longline fleet. Both appointments take effect Aug. 11.

Josh Green nominated Kingma and Dang, along with two other candidates, and both he and longtime Wespac executive director Kitty Simonds cited the pair’s extensive experience in seafood, fisheries management and policy.

The appointments follow recent actions by the Trump administration to reopen portions of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and two other Pacific marine monuments to U.S. commercial fishing. Kingma and Dang were among industry representatives present at the White House in June when President Donald Trump signed the proclamation beginning that process.

Read the full article at

NOAA eyes potential changes to Alaska sea lion protections as Trump urges boosted seafood harvests

July 6, 2026 — Federal regulators plan to reevaluate fishing closure boundaries established to protect endangered Steller sea lions in Alaska, part of a national Trump administration push to cut regulation of U.S. commercial seafood harvests.

The Steller sea lion protections are among a series of rules that the administration is seeking to relax or change to carry out a mandate from President Donald Trump to increase catches, reduce regulation and ensure that the nation is “the world’s dominant seafood leader.”

The recommended changes were released on Thursday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Fisheries service and are in response to Trump’s 2025 executive order titled “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.” They could affect oceans from New England and the Caribbean to the tropical Pacific and the Bering Sea.

Several months of public consultations resulted in a list of recommendations that “we believe will reduce burdens on domestic fishing, increase production, stabilize markets, improve access, and enhance economic profitability,” NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler said in a statement.

Read the full article at Alaska Public Media

NOAA Fisheries is Leading the United Nations in Advancing Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management

June 2, 2022 — Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management are key to addressing the many different challenges we are currently facing, such as climate change, and balancing the needs of nature and society for a more sustainable future.

At a United Nations conference in May, NOAA Fisheries discussed Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management with other interested nations. The event highlighted the importance of an ecosystem approach on a global stage.

Adopting ecosystem approaches to fisheries management allows countries to address the many problems the globe is facing, such as climate change, and create a more sustainable future for our ocean.

“For the United Nations to prioritize discussing Ecosystem Approaches to Fisheries Management is not trivial. It is indicative of how important the topic has become around the world,” said Jason Link, Senior Scientist for Ecosystems at NOAA Fisheries.

Read the full story at NOAA Fisheries

 

ALASKA: BBRSDA funding diverts need for Bristol Bay cost recovery fishery, for now

March 31, 2016 — BRISTOL BAY, Alaska — Fishermen and processors aren’t the only ones who rely on Bristol Bay sockeye for part of their annual income. Each summer, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game uses cost recovery fishing to help fund management in Bristol Bay. But this summer, BBRSDA has agreed to pick up the tab to avoid what’s widely seen as an inefficient way of funding management.

In late March, the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association agreed to provide the Alaska Department of Fish and Game with up to $250,000 to replace the need for the cost recovery fishery in Bristol Bay.

BBRSDA President Abe Williams said that while the board is providing funding this year, they have concerns about the long-term plan for funding fisheries management in the region.

“We see the budget of the department of fish and game being stripped, but in turn, they’re being forced to look at options like cost recovery to fund their budget,” Williams said. “I think collectively we need to look at how do we get the message back to the state of Alaska that they need to adequately fund the Department of Fish and Game so they can take care of the management business of the fishery in Bristol bay.”

Read the full story at KDLG