Saving Seafood

The training and safety of observers

March 25, 2026 — The loss of an observer aboard the groundfish dragger Lily Jean out of Gloucester, Mass., has increased scrutiny of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) observer program. The incident, one of approximately seven observer deaths in 50 years, illustrates how observers share many of the same risks as fishermen.

The NMFS observer programs began three years after President Richard Nixon and the US Congress established the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1970, and the existing Bureau of Commercial Fisheries was renamed the National Marine Fisheries Service. In 1973, NMFS started putting observers aboard foreign vessels as part of the North Pacific Foreign Fisheries Observer Program.

Initially, observers were placed on vessels only by invitation from host countries,” says the NOAA website on the history of its observer programs. After the 1976 passage of the Magnuson Stevens Act, foreign vessels had to accept observers, and by 1986, with the foreign vessels gone, NMFS began putting observers on U.S. boats.

Read the full article at The National Fisherman

Fewer fish in West Coast waters will be federally regulated

March 18, 2026 — The West Coast’s most important fisheries manager has voted to remove 47 stocks of groundfish from active federal management. Amid massive cuts to federal budgets for science and regulatory activities, members of the Pacific Fishery Management Council were told their 50-year-old system is unsustainable.

The National Marine Fisheries Service instructed the nation’s regional fishery councils to use a specific process — a matrix examining risk versus value — to evaluate the more than 500 stocks they manage and to narrow the scope of their responsibilities. That work started with Pacific groundfish.

Merrick Burden is the executive director of the Pacific council, which oversees West Coast and Idaho fisheries. He said cuts from the Trump administration have slashed the staff of the federal regulators and scientists they work with.

“In our region, the estimates are around 40% of their staff, which is staggering,” he said. “So this has led to a national conversation of: how many species can we really manage? And we need to prioritize more.”   

Read the full article at KNKX

Young Fishermen’s Development Act renewed

March 4, 2026 — U.S. fishing organizations are applauding the passage of legislation renewing a key workforce training program for the commercial fishing industry.

The Fishing Communities Coalition (FCC) announced March 3 that H.R. 3692 has passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, reauthorizing the Young Fishermen’s Development Program (YFDP) through fiscal year 2031.

Administered through NOAA’s Sea Grant Program, the YFDP supports training opportunities for early-career commercial fishermen, focusing on marine safety, business management, and navigating the fishery management process.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Stop-fishing notices spread as haddock delay drags on

March 4, 2026 — It has been almost a week since six New England groundfish sector managers formally petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for relief on Framework 69, and, from the industry’s perspective, nothing has changed.

In a Feb. 27 letter addressed to Michael Pentony, regional administrator for NOAA’s Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office, the managers called the delay in approving Framework 69 “frankly ridiculous,” noting that there are only nine weeks (now eight weeks) left in the fishing year and that vessels are already being forced to stop fishing in the Gulf of Maine.

“We the undersigned Northeast groundfish sector managers petition for relief from the frankly ridiculous delay in what should have been a belated but routine approval of groundfish Framework 69,” the letter states.

Framework 69, approved by the New England Fishery Management Council in December 2024 and submitted to NMFS in March 2025, would increase the Gulf of Maine haddock quota by roughly 50 percent over the prior fishing year. But with the action still awaiting final signoff in Washington, D.C., that additional quota remains inaccessible on the water.

In the meantime, sector managers say they are running out of options.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

New Data from the Marine Stewardship Council: U.S. Leads the World in Certified Environmentally Sustainable Fisheries

January 27, 2026 — The following was released by the Marine Stewardship Council:

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a global nonprofit organization that works to end overfishing, today announced 2025 year-end data showing that 90% of U.S. fisheries by volume are MSC certified and meet rigorous requirements for environmentally sustainable fishing practices, making the U.S. a leader in sustainable fisheries.

A trusted nonprofit dedicated to ending overfishing and maintaining a healthy ocean, the MSC sets criteria to ensure healthy fish stocks, minimal harmful impacts on marine ecosystems, and to promote effective and responsive management.

U.S. achievements for 2025 include:

  • 62 species certified
  • More than 1,300 MSC eco-labeled products available in the U.S. market
  • MSC eco-labeled products can now be found in all 50 states

“MSC is proud to partner with U.S. fisheries that have a long-standing commitment to sustainability and the protection of our country’s marine resources,” said Laura McDearis, U.S. program director, Marine Stewardship Council.

“As demonstrated by the 90% of U.S. fishery landings by volume that are certified to MSC’s rigorous requirements for environmentally sustainable fishing, the leadership and great work of our U.S. partners can’t be understated. MSC certification validates U.S. fisheries’ dedication to ensuring the long-term health of our ocean and sets an example for countries around the globe to follow,” continued McDearis.

Other notable MSC certified fisheries milestones in 2025 include the completion of long-term research projects in the Alaska Salmon fishery, in collaboration with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. In 2025 the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic menhaden purse seine fisheries were recertified, with support from the National Marine Fisheries Service and the University of Southern Mississippi’s National Science Foundation-supported Science Center for Marine Fisheries, respectively.

In addition, several new fisheries entered the MSC program last year, including the U.S. Atlantic summer flounder and black sea bass trawl fishery. Other fisheries, such as Pacific hake and Louisiana blue crab are celebrating more than a decade of certification against the MSC Standard.

“For nearly ten years, Lund’s Fisheries, Inc. has collaborated with the MSC, and our partner conformity assessment bodies (CABs), to assure domestic and international markets, vitally important to our long-term success that the seafood we produce is managed sustainably based on rigorous, annual, scientific and monitoring reviews,” said Wayne Reichle, Owner and President, Lund’s Fisheries. “Our MSC-certified Atlantic sea scallop, Atlantic and Pacific squid, and Atlantic menhaden purse seine, scup, fluke and black sea bass trawl fisheries, have provided us with access to markets that would not otherwise be available to our third-generation fishing company, to the benefit of our community, our employees and our company and independent fishermen whose cooperation we depend upon each day as we plan for the future.

2025 was a challenging year for U.S. fisheries, with increasing pressure to safeguard marine ecosystems against the backdrop of rapidly escalating climate change. Environmental conditions including shifting and extreme weather patterns, as well as distribution and recruitment of fish due to warming waters, greatly impacted U.S. fisheries. A recent study conducted by the MSC and the Common Oceans Program showed that tuna and other highly migratory fish are particularly vulnerable to climate change due to the impacts of shifting stocks and the reduction in the number of fish in the ecosystem due to climate change. The research also found that certification can help mitigate risk, making fisheries potentially more resilient to climate impacts.

On the U.S. seafood markets side, the introduction of tariffs by the Trump administration challenged the seafood industry significantly, affecting seafood trade, imports and prices at retail, as only approximately 38% of seafood consumed in the U.S. is of domestic origin. Nevertheless, MSC certified seafood products continued to grow on the market, with an 8% increase in volume of MSC certified products in the U.S. from 2024 to 2025. MSC certified supply chain partners remain committed to environmental sustainability despite these challenging times, with retailers like Aldi, ShopRite, and Walmart making MSC certified seafood accessible and easily identifiable through in-store signage and online messaging.

“At Wakefern, partnering with MSC has allowed us to create valuable communications tools that help consumers navigate the sustainable seafood options we offer at ShopRite and Price Rite stores,” said Alexandra Emery, Manager of Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility at Wakefern Food Corp. “Our Bowl & Basket and Wholesome Pantry frozen products, like wild caught scallops and flounder fillets, are also MSC certified, allowing consumers to shop sustainably and responsibly from our store brand product lines.”

Sustainable wild fisheries are essential to American fishing communities and a resilient, productive ocean, offering a renewable, low-carbon source of nutritious protein. The growing commitment from fisheries and the marketplace to the MSC program reflects a shared vision for that future. Continued commitment by governments, industry, consumers and political leaders is essential in the face of warming oceans, and critical to stay on track to deliver the UN Agenda 2030 goals before the end of the decade, including sustainable development goal 14 to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

Read the release from the Marine Stewardship Council

NEFMC Responds to Reduced Federal Capacity, Sets 2026 Priorities without Revisiting Northern Edge

December 16, 2025 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) held its December meeting and took actions on the 2026 Priorities.

REDUCTION IN REGIONAL MANAGEMENT CAPACITY

The Council heard an update on recent reductions to federal science and management resources, including a total loss of 545 National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) positions, including 50 staff positions within the Northeast Region alone. These reductions have not only delayed management actions, but directly affected stock assessments, surveys, and data streams.

In 2025, several planned stock assessments were replaced with “data updates,” which are “summaries of new data that have become available since the last management track assessment. Specifically, they update (1) total U.S. catch (landings and discards) by commercial and recreational sector, as appropriate, and (2) aggregated NEFSC survey indices.” Data updates are expected for many stocks in 2026 as well, see the full NRCC schedule here. The Council is responding to these reductions through the Omnibus Management Flexibility Action and the Risk Policy work (see below).

Oceana appeals court ruling over Gulf of Alaska environment

December 15, 2025 — Oceana served notice on Monday, Dec. 8, of its intent to appeal a federal district court dismissal of its lawsuit contending that federal fishery managers failed to protect corals, sponges, and other seafloor habitats in the Gulf of Alaska.

The notice of appeal was filed with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The international advocacy entity for ocean conservation, represented by Earthjustice, charged in its lawsuit filed in August of 2024 in the U.S. District Court in Anchorage, Alaska, that the National Marine Fisheries Service and the North Pacific Fishery Management Council have consistently failed to minimize adverse effects to essential fish habitats from bottom trawling.  Bottom trawling involves huge, weighted nets as long as a mile in length being dragged up to 15 miles along the seafloor, damaging and often destroying everything in their path.

Read the full article at The Cordova Times

Chinook Salmon denied consideration to be labeled endangered species

December 9, 2025 –For the second time in seven years the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have determined that Chinook Salmon do not meet the requirements to warrant listing under the Endangered Species Act.

A petition set forth by the Center for Biological Diversity claims that the spring-run Chinook Salmon is threatened, and endangered.

“It’s bad news for anyone who loves salmon, or depends on salmon including the orcas, including tribes, salmon fishers both recreational and commercial, and the public interest suffers,” said Jeff Miller, a Senior Conservation Advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity.

Read the full article at KVAL

The Wild Fish Conservancy’s never-ending lawsuits

December 3, 2025 — The environmental group that sued the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in 2020 in an effort to shut down the Southeast Alaska troll fishery for salmon took home a $1.6 million reimbursement for its costs, despite finally losing its case.

According to the Wild Fish Conservancy (WFC) website, its sole mission is “the protection and recovery of the Northwest’s wild fish.” Sounds like a great idea, and it would seem that the WFC’s mission and that of commercial fishermen ought to align.

But in 2020, the organization sued the NMFS and sought to close the Southeast Alaska fishery, claiming that it was necessary to protect chinook salmon and the Southern Resident killer whales (SRKW). The years-long case swung back and forth. In 2023, a U.S. District Court ruled in the WFC’s favor, threatening the 2024 season, but a stay imposed by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed fishermen to work. On August 16, 2024, the court reversed the district court’s decision because it went too far.

But because the WFC won the earlier case, it sought compensation of $2.3 million for attorney fees and other related costs. The Judge gave them close to $1.7 million. “This appears to be their business model, how they make their money,” says Jeff Farvour, who trolls for salmon from his 40-foot boat, the Apollo. 

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

NMFS steps up efforts to curb whale entanglements

November 6, 2025 — The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has begun efforts to prevent often deadly entanglements of Pacific humpback whales in fishing nets.

NMFS announced on Oct. 31 the establishment of its West Coast Take Reduction Team to address the incidental mortality and serious injury of California, Oregon, Washington, plus the Central America/Southern Mexico and mainland Mexico stocks of humpback whales in the Washington, Oregon, and California sablefish pot fishery.

The team is tasked with developing consensus recommendations to reduce incidental mortality and serious injury in this fishery to levels approaching zero mortality and serious injury for each stock within five years of implementation of the plan.

The team’s first meeting is scheduled for Nov. 20, to be held virtually.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman