Domestic fish harvesters and seafood producers could face new federal mandates under a seafood traceability program being developed by the Obama Administration. Last month, the Administration announced the Recommendations of the Presidential Task Force on Combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Seafood Fraud. President Obama charged the Task Force earlier this year to provide these recommendations because IUU fishing and seafood fraud cause billions of dollars of economic losses each year, harm U.S. producers and consumers, and jeopardize valuable food resources. The Task Force’s recommendations are now open for public comment through January 20, 2015.

While many of the proposed measures are aimed at international issues, some would have direct impacts on U.S. seafood harvesters and producers.  In particular, Recommendation 14 would require the Task Force to “identify and develop within six months a list of the types of information and operational standards needed for an effective seafood traceability program.” This traceability program would apply to both “domestic and imported products.” Examples of information the government would collect include the name of the harvesting vessel, fishing gear used, fish species name, form and quantity of product, and location and date of both harvest and offload.

Under the Task Force’s recommendations, collecting such information and complying with related operational standards eventually would apply “to all seafood at first point of sale or import” and be “pre-requisites for entry into commerce.” One ultimate goal is to make “certain types of information within the traceability system… available to the consumer,” such as fish species name, geographic origin, means of production, and fishing gear type.

These recommendations could help U.S. harvesters and producers compete against unfair competition from illegally caught and fraudulently labeled seafood. Indeed, some U.S. seafood producers are already adopting their own traceability programs for similar reasons and to better market their products. If not implemented properly, however, the federal program now under development could impose burdensome new mandates on the domestic industry and potentially interfere with the industry’s own traceability programs. 

The Task Force recognizes that the new measures should be developed “with input from U.S. industry and other stakeholders.” Domestic fish harvesters and seafood producers should consider commenting on these recommendations and engaging with the Task Force as these new operational standards and information collections are being developed.

In addition to establishing a seafood traceability system, the remaining recommendations of the Task Force fall under three other categories:

• International: Work with international governments, regional organizations, and others to combat IUU fishing and seafood fraud at the international level.
  • Work with the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) to use existing and future Free Trade Agreements to combat IUU fishing and seafood fraud with our trading partners. 
  • Direct the USTR to pursue international commitments to eliminate excess fishing and overfishing by 2020.

• Enforcement: Strengthen enforcement tools to combat IUU fishing and seafood fraud.
  • Work with Congress to broaden agency enforcement capabilities to search, inspect, and seize illegal seafood entering U.S. commerce throughout the supply chain (including domestic and foreign sources) and pursue judicial enforcement options for trafficking and other violations.

• Partnerships: Create and expand partnerships with U.S. state and local governments, industry, and non-governmental organizations to identify and eliminate fraud.
  • Work with state and local governments, industry, and non-governmental organizations to increase support, coordination, and information sharing across agencies to prevent illegal seafood from entering the United States.

Comments on the recommendations received from the public will be used to help the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration develop an implementation plan that should be released in early 2015.

Comments may be submitted through January 20, 2015, either online or by mail:

• Online: Go to: www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAANMFS-2014-0090, click the “Comment Now!” icon, complete the required fields, and enter or attach your comments.
• By mail: Submit written comments to Carrie Selberg, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

More information is available here: http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ia/iuu/taskforce.html