The U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins alongside U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan, and Maine Senator Susan Collins announced the creation of the new U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Seafood. This first of its kind office will prioritize customer service and ease of navigation for American seafood cultivators, producers, and processors to access USDA programs.
“With the launch of the USDA Office of Seafood, we are honoring decades of hard work on the water and opening the door to new opportunities, stronger support, and a brighter future for the seafood industry. [This] announcement, in addition to the historic tax cuts and investments in rural America made possible through the priorities and provisions in the Working Families Tax Cuts, is truly a new chapter for America’s fishermen.”
Fifty years ago the week of April 12, the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act—the primary law governing marine fisheries in U.S. federal waters—was signed into law, providing the fishing industry with long-term economic stability. However, for years, fishermen across the country have been struggling to navigate programs at USDA that can help support their businesses.
With the creation of the USDA Office of Seafood, the Federal government now enters a new era of seafood policy where American fishermen will be recognized by USDA as a key part of the U.S. food supply.
One of the primary roles of the new USDA Office of Seafood will be coordinating across USDA agencies to ensure fishermen are integrated into USDA programs and working alongside the U.S. Department of Commerce and other Federal partners to revitalize the American seafood industry.
Today’s action supports USDA’s implementation of Executive Order 14276, restoring American Seafood Competitiveness. The USDA Office of Seafood will play an important role in coordinating with the U.S. Department of Commerce in the development of the America First Seafood Strategy to promote production, marketing, sale, and export of U.S. fishery and aquaculture products and strengthen domestic processing capacity.
There is a strong consumer demand for seafood in America with the per capita consumption of seafood in 2023 being 19.1 pounds; however, it is estimated that 80 percent of the seafood Americans ate that year came from foreign imports.
… USDA programming should recognize that the U.S. seafood industry is a vital part of the U.S. food supply and should adequately support their operations.
If a fisherman or part of the seafood industry looking to utilize USDA programs—whether it be grants and loans to support infrastructure and workforce development, procurement of U.S. seafood products, marketing and promotion of seafood products in both domestic and foreign markets, or risk management and disaster assistance—the USDA Office of Seafood stands ready to help navigate these processes.
For additional information, email seafood@usda.gov or visit www.usda.gov/seafood.
