US Atlantic menhaden quota battle enters final stage as ASMFC annual meeting reviews 2027-2029 harvest specifications

The US Atlantic menhaden fishery and its supporters, along with environmental groups and other opponents, are making their final statements ahead of management measure discussions at the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) annual meeting. The ASMFC annual meeting is being held from November 9 to 12, with discussions related to the menhaden management board scheduled for November 10. The commission will consider whether to take final action on specification measures for the 2027-2029 fishing years, as well as a potential addendum to reduce the fishery cap in Chesapeake Bay. Both issues have been fiercely debated in the months leading up to the meeting.

Ahead of the meeting, the issue received 48,000 public comments from individuals, organizations and form letters, and seven separate public hearings were held, with organizations across the US East Coast also launching campaigns for and against the fishery.

Before the meeting, fishermen from Maine and Virginia appeared in a video produced by the New England Fishermen's Stewardship Association (NEFSA), calling on Atlantic fishermen to work together to ensure the total allowable catch is not reduced.

"I think we need to maintain the status quo right now," said Jim Wotton, a commercial fisherman from Friendship, Maine, in the video. "I think just leave it where it is, and we can work out a way with the different parts of the fishery."

NEFSA said that following the 20% cut that took effect in 2026, the association advocates that ASMFC maintain the current quota. ASMFC approved that cut in 2025, reducing the coastwide total quota from 223,550 metric tons to 186,840 metric tons.

Opponents of the fishery cited declines in the osprey population and low 2025 catches as evidence that the menhaden fishery is unsustainable. The American Bird Conservancy directly called for stronger protection of Atlantic menhaden in response to the osprey "breeding crisis" after recent research showed that 2026 was the worst year on record for the species in Chesapeake Bay.

The conservancy said Ocean Harvesters, the largest commercial menhaden fishing company in Chesapeake Bay, failed to reach its catch cap in 2025, a sign of Atlantic menhaden decline.

"If the industrial fishery can't catch enough menhaden to reach the cap, then lowering the cap is a no-brainer," Michael Parr, president of the American Bird Conservancy, said in a news release.

The American Small Pelagics Network said this argument ignores key facts. The organization said 2025 was characterized by an increase in rough sea conditions along the Mid-Atlantic coast, especially between August and December, which is an "important period" for the menhaden fishery. According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) data, the number of days affected by bad weather in 2025 was above average, with some areas issuing gale or stronger warnings at a rate 63% above average in 2025.

"These statements use the size of the catch as a measure of how many fish are available, while omitting the conditions that determine when vessels can operate," the American Small Pelagics Network said. "For those who want to reshape a commercial fishery, this omission reveals a startling lack of understanding of commercial fishing."

Ocean Harvesters again called on ASMFC and fishery managers to follow the science on the Atlantic menhaden fishery, which the company says shows overfishing is not occurring.

Derek Aday, director of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), said the institute is actively studying the fishery using funding provided by Virginia's recently approved budget to better understand menhaden abundance.

"Chesapeake Bay is too important to manage by assumption," Aday wrote in an op-ed in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Ocean Harvesters CEO Monty Deihl said the company appreciates Aday's leadership on fishery science.

"The men and women who work in Chesapeake Bay want healthy waters, a strong fishery, and decisions based on sound science, and we appreciate Dr. Aday's and the commitment of scientists at VIMS and Batten College to finding answers," Deihl said.