Seafood Harvesters of America Applauds Provisions in Omnibus/Covid Relief Bill for Fishing Industry

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contacts: Blake Androff, (202) 234-1224

                            Leigh Habegger (703) 794-5114

Seafood Harvesters of America Applauds Provisions in Omnibus/Covid Relief Bill for Fishing Industry

Additional fisheries assistance and USDA language welcomed by fishermen

WASHINGTON, DC, December 22, 2020—Seafood Harvesters of America Executive Director, Leigh Habegger, released the following statement after Congress passed their Omnibus/Covid relief package, which includes $300 million in additional fisheries assistance and seafood as an eligible use for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) food purchases:

“The provisions in this relief package have been long-awaited by the commercial fishing and seafood industry. We offer our sincere thanks to all Members of Congress, including Senators Maria Cantwell, Lisa Murkowski, Jeanne Shaheen, Ed Markey, Dan Sullivan, and Susan Collins, for their continued work on behalf of the fishing industry. Congress’ support of our industry throughout the Covid pandemic has been critical.

“The additional fisheries assistance funds allocated will help our fishing businesses ensure they can weather the continued market disruptions in the seafood sector. We look forward to working with the Biden Administration to improve the disbursement of these funds.

“We are also pleased to see seafood explicitly called out as an eligible use for authorized USDA food purchases. We have long advocated for this and we hope to provide Americans with many sustainable, nutritious seafood options through USDA food programs.

“We are grateful for the efforts of Members of Congress to prioritize the viability of the seafood industry, an industry that contributes $100 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and supports 1.7 million jobs. We look forward to being able to continue harvesting the most sustainable seafood in the world for our fellow Americans to enjoy.”

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You can find a PDF of the release here.