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April 28, 2020

Director's Message

On March 16, it was my great privilege to begin as director of NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Aquaculture. The team at NOAA working on aquaculture is incredibly talented and dedicated, and I am proud to join them in shaping our nation’s seafood future. I look forward to working across NOAA’s Aquaculture Program and with stakeholders to provide a strategic vision to expand a strong marine aquaculture industry in the United States. Through my past positions within NOAA Fisheries and my academic background, studying the human dimensions of aquaculture, I have had the opportunity to work with many of you and I look forward to building even stronger connections in the coming weeks and months. I also want to thank our deputy director David O’Brien for his work as acting director for the past 10 months. Among his accomplishments, David secured several new positions to help with our growing aquaculture workload.

I want to take a moment to address our team’s COVID-19 operations and recognize the impact this is having on the seafood industry. Although we are teleworking, we are still actively working across a variety of remote technology platforms to move aquaculture priorities forward. These priorities include collaboration to help the industry rebuild from the impacts of COVID-19.

I know the virus is having quite an impact on the U.S. marine aquaculture industry, and I want to say thank you to those who have reached out and reported what is happening in your businesses, in your communities, and in your families. I now sit on a newly formed COVID-19 Strategy Team composed of leadership from across NOAA Fisheries programs and specialties to explore avenues to help our stakeholders. One resource NOAA Fisheries has created is a COVID-19 webpage to keep stakeholders informed. The National Sea Grant College Program has also created a resource page for news, aid and relief links, and marketing material for the seafood industry. I encourage you to use these webpages as a reference to help stay informed and to explore economic assistance opportunities.

As many of you are aware, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act authorizes the Secretary of Commerce to provide $300 million to assist fishery participants affected by coronavirus (COVID–19). NOAA Fisheries understands the urgent need for these funds and we are working daily to finalize a process to expedite distribution consistent with the direction provided by Congress. We look forward to sharing more information with you as it becomes available.

While no one knows when restaurants will reopen to dine-in customers or when market demand will increase, we are certain that aquaculture growers are some of the most resilient among us. They wake up early, work long hours, and battle through blizzards and summer heat to provide our communities with sustainable and healthy seafood. We continue to hear stories of the sacrifices growers are making and support being provided in their communities, including taking pay cuts to keep staff employed, extension agents helping producers with direct to consumer marketing, and aquaculture product donations helping to feed hundreds of families in need. It is these actions that show just how strong the aquaculture community is.

Like many in the industry, the Office of Aquaculture staff have had to change the way we operate to working remotely, but we are still here for you. We may be using different tools or processes to get things done, but we are committed to our office priorities of fostering sustainable aquaculture development in the U.S. through our science, policy, outreach, and stakeholder collaboration efforts.

Best wishes and stay safe,

Danielle 

Danielle Blacklock

Director, NOAA Office of Aquaculture

danielle.blacklock@noaa.gov

Events

August 30-September 2

WAS North America 2020 in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada

August 30-September 3

American Fisheries Society Annual Conference in Columbus, Ohio.  

September 7-10

Latin America & Caribbean Aquaculture 2020 in Guayaquil, Ecuador

September 29- October 2

Aquaculture Europe 2020 in Cork, Ireland.

Funding Announcements

USDA-NIFA Special Research Grants Program for Aquaculture Research. Application due April 29, 2020.

USDA Agriculture and Food Research Initiative - Education and Workforce Development. Application due September 25, 2020.

Publications

Edible Seaweed Market Analysis

Scaling Up from Regional Case Studies to a Global Harmful Algal Bloom Observing System

The Future of Food From the Sea

Expected Impacts Climate Change Ocean Economy 

NOAA Lab News 

Marine Shellfish Populations Estimated to be at Risk from Ocean Acidificaiton

NCCOS Supports Study that Reveals Algal Toxins in Offshore Arctic Clams

Investigating the Effects of Ocean Acidification on Atlantic Sea Scallops

Tracking Marine Life with Invisible Clues: eDNA Enhances Ecosystem Monitoring

Eat Seafood, America Campaign Promotes Healthy People, Healthy Economy

NOAA Fisheries is proud to support Eat Seafood, America!, a collaborative effort of the members of the Seafood4Health Action Coalition. “Eat Seafood, America!” is the driving message of the consumer-facing campaign launched April 7. The campaign aims to help Americans stay healthy as well as help boost the U.S. seafood economy, supporting the 2 million American workers in the seafood industry.

The 12-week campaign is organized by Seafood Nutrition Partnership and is supported by over 30 organizations. Learn more at www.eatseafoodamerica.org.

Danielle Blacklock Appointed New Director for NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Aquaculture

NOAA has announced the appointment of Ms. Danielle Blacklock as the agency’s new Director for the Office of Aquaculture. In this role she will oversee the aquaculture component of NOAA’s sustainable seafood portfolio. She will also be responsible for providing the strategic vision for developing a strong marine aquaculture industry in the United States. Specifically, she will lead the office’s work on several distinct priority areas including regulation and policy, science, outreach, and international activities in support of U.S. aquaculture. Read the full story at fisheries.noaa.gov.

National Sea Grant Law Center CARES Act 101 for Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Seafood Businesses Webinar 

The National Sea Grant Law Center hosted the second CARES Act 101 for Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Seafood Businesses webinar on April 22. The webinars are designed to increase understanding of the CARES Act and Families First Coronavirus Response Act in regards to provisions that may apply to fishing businesses, including the small business relief provided for by these acts. 

• View the April 22 webinar on the CARES Act 101 for Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Seafood Businesses: Part 2
• View the April 8 webinar CARES Act 101 for Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Seafood Businesses: Part 1 

In developing these resources, the National Sea Grant Law Center noted a few general recommendations for seafood businesses:

• Start compiling documentation. You will need to make your case that you or your business was affected by COVID-19. This can include tax filings, income statements, and expenses reports from 2019 and 2020.
• Reach out to your bank or lawyer, if you have one, or a small business development center. They can assist and guide you through this process.
• Be persistent, but patient. The relief provisions provided by Congress are new. The Small Administration, banks, and state unemployment centers are all adjusting to implementing these new programs.
• The framework is going to continue to evolve. Congress may pass new legislation and the agencies will continue to issue new guidance on these new programs.

The National Sea Grant Law Center will continue to follow these issues and aquaculture growers can follow the Center's Twitter, Facebook, and COVID-19 webpage for more resources. 

New Report Highlights Landings, Value, and Economic Impact of U.S. Fishing

Fisheries of the United States provides data on commercial landings and value and recreational catch. It also includes data on the fish processing industry, aquaculture production, imports and exports, and per capita seafood consumption. Americans consumed 5.2 billion pounds of seafood in 2018. The U.S. is the world’s second largest consumer of seafood after China, according to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

In 2017, estimated freshwater plus marine U.S. aquaculture production was 626 million pounds with a value of $1.5 billion. Atlantic salmon is the leading species for marine finfish aquaculture (32 million pounds), while oysters have the highest volume (36 million pounds) for marine shellfish production. For more information on aquaculture production and commercial landings view the full Fisheries of the United States 2018 report.

Farming The Ocean To Feed The World TEDx

Scott Lindell, Research Specialist at The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, discusses how marine aquaculture can sustainably feed the world’s growing population in his recent TEDx presentation. During the presentation Lindell explores the policies for developing fish, shellfish, and seaweed farms in the U.S. He also shows how changes to diets and policies can drive a more sustainable future. View the full TEDx Cambridge presentation. 

On the Reel: Aquaculture Videos You May Have Missed

Dr. Suzanne Bricker with NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science is working with oyster farmers and state managers to expand oyster aquaculture to benefit growers, the economy, and water quality. View the full video from NCCOS. 

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