Trump seeks to cut red tape for US fishing and aquaculture

He wants to take away most of the regulatory burdens which he believes have held the sector back over many years.

Americans import around 90% of the seafood they consume and fish farming remains a very poor relation when compared to countries with far smaller populations.

The executive order is titled “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness” and it focuses on improving the domestic industry by addressing unfair trade practices, instating new policies that promote domestic seafood resources, and revising current regulations that “overly burden America’s fishing, aquaculture, and fish processing industries at the fishery-specific level.”

President Trump said Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick will co-operate with the Regional Fishery Management Councils (RFMC), interagency partners, and other stakeholders, to implement his plan.

He added: “The United States should be the world’s dominant seafood leader. But in addition to overregulation, unfair trade practices have put our seafood markets at a competitive disadvantage.

“Nearly 90% of seafood on our shelves is now imported, and the seafood trade deficit stands at over US $20 billion. The erosion of American seafood competitiveness at the hands of unfair foreign trade practices must end.”

The order says the United States must address unfair trade practices, eliminate unsafe imports, level the unfair playing field that has benefited foreign fishing and aquaculture companies, promote ethical sourcing, reduce regulatory burdens, and ensure the integrity of the seafood supply chain.

The Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services and with input from the home industry will immediately consider suspending, revising, or rescinding regulations “that overly burden America’s commercial fishing, aquaculture, and fish processing industries."