House Farm Bill includes new seafood office, shrimp trade study

By Nolan Mckendry
The Center Square

The 2026 Farm Bill passed by the U.S. House includes new seafood provisions aimed at giving commercial fishermen and shrimpers greater access to federal agriculture programs.The bill, which now moves to the U.S. Senate, includes an amendment by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., to codify the newly established Office of Seafood within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Department announced the office earlier this month, saying it would help seafood producers, processors and cultivators better navigate federal programs, grants, loans and market-development resources.”American shrimpers and seafood producers have not received federal agency support for marketing and their operations that have been historically made available to farmers and ranchers,” the Southern Shrimp Alliance wrote in a statement. “The Office of Seafood’s sole responsibility is to better integrate seafood into USDA programs and align seafood policy across agencies, permanently supporting American fishermen, ‘the farmers of the sea.'”The House-passed bill also includes a shrimp trade provision requiring the U.S. Government Accountability Office to report to Congress within 180 days of enactment on policy options available to the agriculture secretary to boost the competitiveness of domestic shrimp in global and domestic markets.The report would have to analyze USDA’s authority over shrimp and other seafood products, domestic seafood producers’ access to financial-support programs, and ways to improve coordination among federal agencies on tariffs, market-access policies and other trade barriers. It would also require GAO to identify legal or trade barriers affecting U.S. shrimp and seafood production that could be challenged through the World Trade Organization or under bilateral or multilateral trade agreements.The provisions come as shrimpers and other seafood producers have argued they face unfair foreign competition while being left out of many federal supports available to land-based agriculture.Mace said in an April 27 statement that the amendments are intended to give South Carolina’s commercial shrimping and fishing industries “long-overdue federal support.” Her office said the package would extend USDA loan and grant programs to fishermen and fish processors, establish the seafood office in law, expand market access for wild-caught American seafood and block U.S. taxpayer dollars from supporting foreign shrimp operations through international financial institutions.“Washington has ignored the hardworking men and women who keep South Carolina’s coastal economy alive for far too long,” Mace said. “The Lowcountry’s shrimpers, fishermen, and seafood processors are a driving force behind our state and a lifeline for families up and down the South Carolina coast. They deserve the same federal support as every other American farmer.”Mace described fishermen as “farmers of the sea,” a phrase also used by industry supporters who say seafood producers should be treated more like traditional agricultural producers under federal food policy.Bryan Jones, vice president of the South Carolina Shrimpers Association, said the amendments would help shrimpers, harvesters and fishermen gain access to USDA programs already available to farmers and ranchers.“For generations, coastal families and working waterfront communities in South Carolina and across the United States have depended on a thriving domestic seafood industry,” Jones said. “At a time when our fishermen face growing pressure from unfair foreign competition, it is in our national interest to support a strong and reliable American seafood supply.”Commercial fishing groups have praised the seafood provisions as part of a broader push to integrate U.S. seafood into federal food and agriculture policy. National Fisherman reported Thursday that fishing groups see the House-passed bill as renewed momentum for seafood priorities in Congress.The bill is not yet law. It must still clear the Senate, where any of these provisions could be changed or eliminated before any final version reaches the president.