“Ensuring a supply of sustainable seafood is a key part of NOAA Fisheries’ mission, and given the urgency, this plan is more important now than ever," says Michael Rubino, NOAA Fisheries’ Senior Advisor for Seafood Strategy.
Photo: NOAA Fisheries.
US federal agency NOAA Fisheries has unveiled its National Seafood Strategy Implementation Plan, a roadmap aimed at fortifying the U.S. seafood economy. The plan, which builds on the National Seafood Strategy released in 2023, outlines a series of initiatives designed to support both wild-capture fisheries and aquaculture in navigating current and future challenges.
“The Implementation Plan is where the rubber meets the road,” said NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Janet Coit. “It outlines the specific actions to achieve the goals we laid out in the strategy to support our nation’s seafood sector and the benefits it provides.”
The newly released plan highlights NOAA Fisheries’ industry services, such as the Seafood Inspection Program, Fishery Finance Program and Saltonstall-Kennedy grant program. It also places an emphasis on socioeconomic activities, including seafood market and supply chain analysis, as well as communication efforts around the sustainability of U.S. seafood.
The plan is designed to be collaborative, aiming to work alongside other federal agencies, states, tribes, seafood harvesters, farmers, nongovernmental organizations, and industry stakeholders to bolster the seafood sector’s resilience, NOAA said.
“No one entity can do this work alone. To truly achieve a more resilient and competitive seafood sector, we all need to work together,” Coit added. “The National Seafood Strategy and now our Implementation Plan demonstrate what we at NOAA Fisheries can do to reach those goals.”
The Implementation Plan also includes four pilot initiatives focused on fostering partnerships to tackle cross-cutting challenges in the industry. These initiatives aim to bolster resilience in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic shrimp fishery, support revitalization of Port facilities at Port Orford, Oregon, increase climate resilience in highly migratory species fisheries, and enhance resilience within Alaska’s seafood sector.
The National Seafood Strategy and Implementation Plan stemmed from extensive consultation and public input, with more than 150 comments received from diverse stakeholders across the seafood sector. The document is designed to evolve, adapting to ongoing feedback from states, tribes, seafood industry members, and other constituents.
“We will continue to consult with seafood industry members, management councils, states, tribes, and other constituents as we execute this implementation plan,” said Michael Rubino, NOAA Fisheries’ Senior Advisor for Seafood Strategy.
With the U.S. seafood industry facing challenges such as climate change, labor shortages, aging infrastructure, and new ocean uses, the Implementation Plan underscores the urgency of building a resilient seafood supply chain, NOAA officials said, emphasising that sustainable seafood is essential not only for public health and nutrition but also for job creation and the broader effort to develop a climate-resilient food system.
“Ensuring a supply of sustainable seafood for consumption is a key part of NOAA Fisheries’ mission,” Rubino added. “Given the urgency, this plan is more important now than ever.”
The full National Seafood Strategy Implementation Plan can be access as a PDF here.