Research must be funded to sustain, grow seafood industry

The United States imports over 90 percent of its seafood; this results in an annual trade deficit of $13 billion, which Commerce Secretary Ross has recently vowed to tackle, stating that he is “obsessed with the problem.”

One solution to this problem is to increase our level of cultured (farmed) fish and shellfish above the current 1 percent that the U.S. currently contributes to global aquaculture production. We have a tremendous economic opportunity to create jobs and bolster the coastal economy, especially here in southwest Florida. We have an abundance of approved shellfish harvesting water with ideal growing conditions. An added benefit is that shellfish farming improves coastal water quality and enhances local fisheries.

Growth in any industry is proportional to available funding for research and development. A recent analysis concluded that U.S. federal funding for aquaculture research since 2000 had a 37-fold return on investment. Yet President Trump’s proposed budget severely reduces the allocation to agencies such as NOAA and its Sea Grant Program, which primarily fund this type of research.

Similarly, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has funded applied research for aquaculture in Florida through its Aquaculture Research Council since 1991. That ended last year when program funding was vetoed by the governor; this year, it was not even included in the budget.

Actions such as these at both the federal and state level do not help us take advantage of the economic opportunity to increase local, sustainable production of high-quality seafood, reduce the trade deficit, create jobs, grow our coastal economy, and preserve our working waterfront.

This story was originally published June 10, 2017 at 6:25 PM with the headline "Research must be funded to sustain, grow seafood industry."