Saving Seafood

Federal Shutdown Halts Some Environmental Conservation Efforts, Slows Others

January 9, 2019 — Federal researchers in western Massachusetts study ways to protect migrating fish, backyard birds and urban trees. The government shutdown is keeping them home and away from their research.

The researchers work for agencies like the USDA Forest Service and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Curt Griffin heads the UMass Amherst Department of Environmental Conservation, where some of the scientists are based.

“It’s a very, very unfortunate event that our federal colleagues are caught up in this mess,” Griffin said. “And it’s not fair to them. It’s not fair to the public that they provide important services to. So it’s just a very broken system, and they’re caught in the middle.”

Read the full story at New England Public Radio

USDA announces USD 20 million catfish purchase

September 20, 2018 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it will be purchasing nearly USD 20 million (EUR 17 million) in catfish products as part of its Section 32 “Bonus Buys” authority.

The USDA announced its intention to use its authority for catfish purchases on 9 February, is intended to “Encourage the continued domestic consumption of these products by diverting them from the normal channels of trade and commerce,” according to a release by the USDA. All told, the department is purchasing just over four million pounds of catfish from various U.S. producers.

The decision was applauded by officials in states with catfish aquaculture operations in place.

“Aquaculture and catfish production is an important segment of Arkansas agriculture,” said Arkansas Agriculture Secretary Wes Ward, in a letter of support sent to the USDA. “We appreciate Secretary Perdue’s support of this important industry and his understanding of the impact that this industry and its producers have on our state’s rural areas. This approval not only helps the industry but also helps to make sure that a healthy protein is available for food nutrition assistance programs.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Farm Bill provision would tilt school pollock, tuna purchases back to US

September 19, 2018 — US pollock and tuna harvesters don’t normally care much about the so-called Farm Bill, the massive, every-five-year legislation that helps to, among other things, preserve crop subsidies for American corn and soybean growers and nutrition programs for the unemployed. But they do this time.

That’s because Alaska Republican senator Dan Sullivan has placed a provision in one of the two bills now being worked out in a congressional conference committee that would force the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to more aggressively enforce the “buy American” rules required for schools to receive federal reimbursement for the meals they serve to children, including fish.

The US pollock industry maintains that strapped-for-cash school systems aren’t following those rules, resulting in some 60% of the pollock they serve to be what they claim is less expensive and inferior, twice-frozen fillets sourced originally from Russia. They support Sullivan’s change.

“We are mindful of the need to maximize the use of federal dollars in procuring fish products for school meal programs and for school districts to maximize available school lunch foods,” said the At-sea Processors Association (APA), a group that represents six seafood companies that maintain interests in or operate 16 US-flag, high-tech trawl catcher/processor vessels in the Alaska pollock fishery, in a recent statement.

“However, it is similarly important to maximize the nutritional value of school lunch meals for children and to ensure that students’ early exposure to fish products is positive in order to promote incorporating more seafood meals into diets consistent with federal dietary guidelines.”

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

Five US House Democrats get behind tariff-relief bill for fishermen

July 30, 2018 — In the same week that President Donald Trump announced his plan to offer land farmers in the US $12 billion to help compensate for losses suffered as a result of his trade scuffles with China and other nations, a small group of Democrats in the House of Representatives have put forth a plan to help fishermen.

HR 6528, introduced Wednesday by Massachusetts representative Seth Moulton, would amend a provision contained in the Magnuson Stevens Act that allows for the government to make money available to harvesters in the case of a natural or man-made disaster. It would add language that clarifies that such funds can also be used in the case of “unilateral tariffs imposed by other countries on any United States seafood.”

Co-sponsors of the bill include representatives Chellie Pingree of Maine, Stephen Lynch and William Keating, both of Massachusetts, Jared Huffman of California, and Raul Grijalva of Arizona.

Pingree, an organic farmer, has been particularly vocal about the president’s tough trade stance, writing letters to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and US Trade Representative.

“Farmers haven’t been the only ones to suffer the consequences of the Trump administration’s sloppy trade actions,” she said in a statement issued this week.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

Muddled communications on mercury causing consumer confusion

June 6, 2018 — It’s a rare occasion when representatives of industry, academia, and government all agree.

The fact that the U.S. seafood industry, an army of health experts, and the U.S. government all want to see the country’s population consume more seafood is a sign of how universal the agreement is surrounding the health benefits of seafood consumption.

But in seeking to achieve that objective, consensus often breaks down over the best way to communicate the benefits to consumers. One of the biggest points of division is the issue of mercury contamination in fish, since scientific studies on the potential harm of mercury in seafood are often conflicting and a source of frustration to consumers.

Jay Shimshack, an asssociate professor of public policy and economics at the University of Virginia and an expert in environmental and health policy, told SeafoodSource the problem lies with the way policymakers frame the message when issuing health advisories.

“Fish consumption advice is often complex and confusing. Message-framing matters a lot, and real-world constraints like affordability are as important as the true risks and benefits,” Shimshack said.

Consumers are told eating a variety of fish can be good for them, Shimshack said.

“But [they are told], ‘Do not consume some species [and be] careful not to consume too much of other species,’” Shimshack said. “Current U.S. commercial fish advisories list more than 60 species, and species names are not always consistent from one time and place to the next.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Proposed changes to food stamps program could take a bite out of seafood sales

February 16, 2018 — U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2019 budget proposal, which includes deep cuts to the U.S. food stamp program, could harm seafood sales at U.S. supermarket chains, organizations told SeafoodSource.

The Trump administration proposes slashing the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or “food stamps” program, by USD 17.2 billion (EUR 13.8 billion) in 2019, or around 22 percent compared to last year’s funding.

In addition, the program would shift to a boxed food delivery program. The current system allows SNAP participants to purchase their  groceries at supermarket chains, farmers markets, and other retail locations.

Under the new proposal, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), would deliver packages of U.S.-grown commodities such as shelf-stable milk, juice, grains, cereals, pasta, peanut butter, beans, along with canned meat, fruits and vegetables to recipients.

USDA estimates that it could provide the boxed delivery program at half the cost of the current retail program.

“Seafood is the only major food group that is not considered a USDA commodity. If the new food delivery platform is going to put an emphasis on commodity goods, then that will leave out lean, heart-healthy seafood, which is the only significant source of essential nutrients such as omega-3s EPA and DHA, as well as selenium,” Linda Cornish, president of Seafood Nutrition Partnership, told SeafoodSource.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

 

Southeastern Fisheries Association Takes Firm Stand on Catfish Inspection Program

October 26, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — The Southeastern Fisheries Association (SFA) has issued a statement opposing the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) new catfish inspection program.

According to the organization, the new program creates “impossible compliance situations” for fish farms and wild caught fisheries. SFA is standing with catfish fishermen and dealers who believe that the program is “unnecessary, inefficient and would needlessly harm dealers, processors and harvesters of wild-caught domestic catfish.”

“Wild-caught catfish harvesters and dealers will have extreme difficulty complying,” Bob Jones, the executive director of SFA, said in a press release. “The new regulations are onerous and unnecessary.”

SFA’s position on the new regulations is that fishermen and fish houses that sell wild-caught catfish should be exempt from the FSIS program. The organization believe that the inspection program, which will be conducted by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), will result in lost jobs.

FSIS is reportedly considering an exemption from the inspection program for wild-caught, domestic catfish.

 

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

 

SFA Members Speak Out on New, Impractical Catfish Rules

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — October 25, 2017 — The following was released by the Southeastern Fisheries Association:

Southeastern Fisheries Association (SFA) members have joined catfish fishermen and dealers across the country opposing a new catfish inspection program recently launched by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The new program imposes rules designed for fish farms and imports on wild caught fisheries, creating impossible compliance situations. The wild-caught catfish industry maintains the program is unnecessary, inefficient, and would needlessly harm dealers, processers and harvesters of wild-caught domestic catfish.

The new inspection program, to be conducted by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), was initially intended to provide additional inspections to farm-raised foreign catfish in competition with domestic farmed catfish. However, the new inspection program unnecessarily includes domestic wild-caught catfish.

“Wild-caught catfish harvesters and dealers will have extreme difficulty complying,” said Bob Jones, Executive Director of the Southeastern Fisheries Association. “These new regulations are onerous and unnecessary.

SFA members testified at a public hearing in August before the regulations went into effect in Webster, Florida, where representatives of the USDA and FSIS invited fishing industry stakeholders. SFA voiced its position that fishermen and fish houses that sell wild-caught catfish must be exempt from the FSIS program that will cost hundreds of jobs because the small fish houses that only buy smaller quantities of saltwater and freshwater catfish cannot meet the requirements of a plan designed for factory farms.

Unlike seafood farms, and imports where fish can be harvested or defrosted on a specific schedule, fresh wild-caught seafood is often landed in large quantities when the boats come back to the dock. “How can you clean 10,000 pounds of fish in an eight-hour day?” voiced Okeechobee catfish fishermen Tommy Ayers. His concerns were echoed by Ted Brozanski, President and COO of Stokes Fish Company.

“Tommy has been fishing for 58 years and you guys have cut his income by 38 percent because he can no longer fish on weekends or holidays,” Mr. Brozanski said.

He raised other issues with the new inspection program, including the fact that limited inspection hours can reduce the quality and value of product for fishermen and fish houses. For example, fishermen will not be able bring in fish that have to be cleaned over the weekend or outside normal hours, as many fish houses will be unable to afford the cost $70-per-hour overtime pay that FSIS inspectors are paid for working weekends and holidays.

FSIS representatives at the hearing indicated that a potential exception from the program was possible for wild-caught, domestic catfish. SFA urges FSIS to implement this exception.

About the Southeastern Fisheries Association
The SFA has served the commercial fishing industry for 65 years. SFA’s mission is to defend, protect and enhance the commercial fishing industry in the southeastern United States for present participants as well as future generations through all legal means while maintaining healthy and sustainable stocks of fish. SFA is headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida.

 

Maine’s local food economy gets $1M boost from federal government

October 10, 2017 — PORTLAND, Maine — is getting more than $1 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to support expanding the state’s local food economy.

The funding includes a $500,000 USDA Local Food Promotion Grant to Greater Portland Council of Governments for its “Scaling for Growth in the Portland Foodshed” project to address a lack of food processing infrastructure and an inefficient distribution network. The project will add processing capacity, reduce food waste by finding inefficiencies, and is expected to increase local food purchasing among retailers and institutions by $7.5 million.

“Increasing the production and consumption of local food represents a fantastic opportunity for Maine jobs and businesses,” U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine District 1, said in a news release announcing the awards. “From boosting local food processing in Greater Portland to marketing locally caught seafood, these federal investments will be terrific assets to building Maine’s food-based economy. That’s why I’ve advocated so hard for these kinds of investments in Washington and am actively working to strengthen them.”

Read the full story at Mainebiz

John McCain urges delay in new catfish inspection rules

September 1, 2017 — Sen. John McCain is mounting a last-minute plea to the U.S. Department of Agriculture to delay implementation of new catfish inspection rules slated to fully kick in Friday, saying all catfish inspections should be returned to the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration.

Mr. McCain said the new inspection regime under the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is a thinly-disguised trade barrier against Asian catfish imports at the hands of domestic farmers in southern states.

“This wasteful program is a classic example of shortsighted, anti-free market protectionism at its worst,” Mr. McCain wrote in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue this week.

“I request that you delay implementation of the USDA Catfish Inspection Program until Congress has an opportunity to reverse this duplicative, wasteful program,” he wrote.

Most fish is inspected by the FDA, but Congress — led by southern Republicans looking to protect their state’s industry — included language in the 2008 Farm bill that set the stage to transfer catfish inspections to a more intrusive process under FSIS.

Read the full story at the Washington Times