National coalition applauds coordinated commitment to coastal economies, fishing livelihoods, and U.S. seafood that recognizes the needs and opportunities in America’s commercial fishing industry.
National Fisheries Update | October 23, 2026 — The Fishing Communities Coalition (FCC) welcomes the America First Seafood Strategy and thanks the Trump Administration and its federal agency partners for recognizing American fishermen as essential food producers and investing in the future of the communities they sustain.
The strategy brings together priorities critical to fishing businesses nationwide: strengthening domestic markets, modernizing vessels and working waterfronts, improving access to financing, combating illegal fishing and unfair competition, and supporting fisheries management informed by current science. For FCC’s community-based fishing organizations, this coordinated attention represents an important opportunity to strengthen America’s seafood system from the water to the dinner table.
“Investing in American seafood means investing in the people and places that keep this country fed,” said Michelle Stratton, Executive Director of the Alaska Marine Community Coalition. “In rural Alaska, fishing livelihoods support far more than individual businesses. They sustain families, local services, and entire communities where other economic opportunities can be limited. We thank the Administration for making fishing communities a national priority and recognizing their importance to America’s economic future.”
FCC members welcomed the strategy’s attention to the connected challenges facing independent fishing businesses and specifically focusing on support for small-scale producers, with leaders across the country highlighting opportunities for their regions:
“A strong fishing industry needs vessels and ports that can carry it into the future,” said Ben Martens, Executive Director of the Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association. “For an independent fisherman, replacing an aging boat or upgrading an engine can be an enormous financial hurdle. We welcome the attention to fleet and port modernization and access to financing. These are practical investments in safer operations, stronger businesses, and waterfronts that can continue serving their communities for generations.”
That support is echoed from Maine to the Gulf of America and on to Alaska.
“American fishermen work hard to harvest responsibly and prioritize conservation, and their investment in healthy fisheries should be protected in the marketplace,” said Linda Behnken, Executive Director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association. “We are especially pleased to see illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing addressed in this strategy. Strong traceability and targeted enforcement can help keep illegally harvested seafood out of our markets, protect ocean resources, and ensure responsible fishermen are rewarded for doing things right.”
The Strategy builds off of the Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness Executive Order, released in April of 2025. NOAA released agency level recommendations in early September, but this latest announcement from the administration carries the effort from competitiveness priorities to coordinated implementation with an emphasis on coordination between USDA, NOAA, and other key agencies. The USDA Office of Seafood, announced earlier this year and championed by the Fishing Communities Coalition, will play a key role in implementing many of the new Strategy’s priorities.
“Our fishermen deserve a fair chance to compete,” said Eric Brazer, Deputy Director of the Gulf of America Reef Fish Shareholders’ Alliance. “When imported seafood benefits from unfair trade practices or evades the standards American businesses uphold, fishing families bear the cost. We welcome the strategy’s focus on leveling the playing field, applaud the renewed focus on marketing our high-quality products to consumers who value buying American, and thank the Administration for standing behind the fishermen who supply this country with responsibly harvested seafood.”
That support for fishermen also includes support for the waterfronts they depend upon.
“Keeping a working waterfront means keeping a place for fishermen in our coastal communities,” said Aubrey Church, Policy Director of the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance. “Once dock space and shoreside properties shift to other uses, they are incredibly difficult to reclaim. We welcome the strategy’s recognition that these places are essential to America’s food supply and look forward to supporting waterfronts where commercial fishing can remain a viable way of life, livelihood and food security.”
FCC looks forward to working with federal partners to translate the strategy into practical benefits for fishing families. Its members bring firsthand experience in workforce development, seafood marketing, cooperative research, and working waterfront infrastructure—and a shared commitment to ensuring independent fishermen and community-based businesses can participate in the opportunities ahead.
“Helping Americans choose domestic seafood starts with making it easier to recognize, find, and bring home,” said Kim Selkoe, Executive Director of Commercial Fishermen of Santa Barbara. “We welcome the emphasis on promoting American seafood in export markets alongside the infrastructure needed to land it in our ports and deliver it throughout the supply chain. Local docks, ice, cold storage, and processing connect fishermen to customers near and far. Supporting those connections helps more of the value of each catch stay in the community.”
Others noted that these investments don’t just bolster today’s fishermen – they ensure that the industry is also drawing a new generation into the workforce.
“The future of American seafood depends on whether young people can see a future for themselves in fishing,” said Andrea Tomlinson, Executive Director of the New England Young Fishermen’s Alliance. “Training, mentorship, business skills, and a viable path to ownership all matter. We are excited to see national attention on the businesses and communities where the next generation will build their careers, and we look forward to helping turn that momentum into lasting opportunities for young fishermen.”
America’s fishing communities have the knowledge, determination, and resources to help build a stronger domestic food system. FCC thanks the Administration for recognizing that potential and welcomes this commitment to their future.