November 26, 2025 — Maine’s Department of Marine Resources has scheduled an online meeting to solicit input from commercial menhaden harvesters for the 2026 season. The DMR is seeking the input from pogey fishermen as it develops management measures for the upcoming season.
The state’s preliminary allocation for the coming season is 19,571,649 pounds, with an Episodic Set Aside of 4,119,117 pounds. The ESA amounts to 1 percent of the total East Coast allocation and is shared among the states.
The ESA can be accessed by individual states once they have used their individual allocation, but large schools of menhaden are still available within their territory.
Atlantic menhaden—pogies—are the principal bait used by Maine lobstermen and a valuable part of the state’s fisheries economy.