We are writing today in support of the American commercial fishing industry, and the crucial role it plays in not just the local and national economy, but in the entire American infrastructure. American commercial fishermen bring fresh, wild, sustainable seafood to the table, and in doing so, they help us all live better.
Each commercial fisherman is a small-business owner. Their livelihoods support their families and fuel the economy in their communities. Countless businesses rely on the commercial fishing industry to make a living, from the dock to the market and restaurants to the truckers that transport it and more. The web is broad and strong and has ensured a robust infrastructure for hundreds of years.
Today, fishing fleets are dwindling, fishermen are diversifying out of necessity, and foreign seafood and farmed fish, much of which cannot be documented, is filling in the demand that the American wild-harvested fisheries once filled. Our access to food security as a nation is in jeopardy, along with the livelihoods of thousands of American families and small businesses.
Now more than ever, fishermen need your help. We invite you to join the New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association, a bipartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to saving the American commercial fishing industry.
When you purchase and eat U.S. wild-harvested seafood, not only do you know where your food comes from and how and where it was caught, you know you are keeping Americans employed, families fed, and an entire American heritage and infrastructure intact.
Jerry Leeman, Chief Executive Officer
Dustin Delano, Chief Operating Officer
Shelly Wigglesworth, Assistant
New England Fishermen’s Stewardship Association
