he Senate voted on the Farm Bill earlier this week, and left out any mention of Senator Mark Begich’s (D-AK) proposed legislation that would create a national seafood marketing and development program. In fact, Begich was not given the opportunity to introduce the amendment and have a debate on it, according to the National Seafood Marketing Coalition.“That was disappointing. We are in the food business, which takes product development and market expansion. It is our goal to capture the funds that were meant for promotion and development of seafood products 60 years ago,” Bruce Schactler, director of the Wrangell, Alaska-based coalition, told SeafoodSource.
As a result, the coalition will work with legislators to tack on a similar amendment to the House version of the Farm Bill. However, Schactler doesn’t have high hopes for passage of a national seafood marketing amendment through the House Farm Bill.
“The Farm Bill is not a hospitable place. It Is a very partisan, closed business, which is not interested in most sectors of input, unless you are part of traditional agriculture,” said Schactler.
Still, the Coalition will continue to seek funding — at least USD 20 million (EUR 15 million) annually — for national seafood marketing and development.
“90 percent of the seafood eaten in the U.S. is imported. Instead of shipping seafood halfway around the world and paying for expensive transportation, [let’s promote] expansion of domestic products,” said Schactler.
Plus, the funding that rightfully belongs to U.S. fisheries for marketing and development is being utilized by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for other programs, according to Schactler. The Saltonstall Kennedy (SK) act of 1956 created a fund from the transfer of 30 percent of the tariffs collected by U.S. Customs from fishery and marine products. This flows through USDA and on to NMFS, and is deposited into the "Promote and Develop Seafood Products Account.”
Part of the account is to fund the SK grant program that is required by Congress in 1985 to use 60 percent of the transfer from USDA. The coalition proposes to use about 25 to 30 percent of that 60 percent to fund the National Seafood Marketing and Development Fund.
“In 2012, that 30 percent equaled USD 124 million (EUR 93 million),” Schactler said. However, more than 90 percent of the funds are not used for seafood promotion. “They take almost all of it. Some years, they put it towards operations and research facilities,” Schactler said.
The coalition represents fishing and seafood groups and companies in five regions: the Southeast U.S., the Pacific, the Northeast U.S., the Western Pacific and the Gulf. Its members include seven state governments, companies, the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, the American Shrimp Processors Association and several other groups.
After funding is obtained, representatives from each region would decide how to best distribute the funds. “They would dedicate it to the parts of the market that need the most help,” Schactler said.
