Hearing of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee - Opening Statement of Sen. Thune, Hearing on Growing the Future: Opportunities to Support Domestic Seafood Through Aquaculture

Hearing

Good morning. Thank you all for being here. THyuhoday, we will hear from some remarkable leaders in the field of aquaculture. They are working to ensure Americans have access to safe and sustainably grown seafood from right here at home.

Many of us have benefitted from aquaculture, perhaps without realizing it. For years, lakes and rivers in my home state of South Dakota have been stocked with juvenile game fish raised in hatcheries. The town of Spearfish houses the Fish Culture Hall of Fame, which documents the history and the importance of this type of aquaculture. The effort it took to transport fish eggs and juvenile fish in the days before refrigeration or reliable transportation is truly impressive.

Thanks to its vast coastlines, the United States has the largest Exclusive Economic Zone in the world, and yet we import 90 percent of our seafood. Half of those imports are not wild caught and are farmed in other countries around the world where we have little control over the practices and conditions in which the seafood is grown or harvested.

Domestic farming of seafood, done in a safe, well-monitored manner, can provide economic opportunities for all Americans, both for our coastal and inland communities. Agricultural states like mine can play an important role in providing feed for fish farms, and everyone benefits from having increased domestic seafood production.

Currently, however, those seeking to expand the domestic farming of seafood often face a confusing regulatory maze. Permits for an aquaculture farm may be required from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Coast Guard, the Department of Agriculture, and the Food and Drug Administration. This overlapping web of federal jurisdiction and lengthy, sometimes unending permitting process can take ten years or more -- scaring many investors away. Too often, this results in entrepreneurs taking their skills, talents, and ideas overseas to a more business-friendly environment.

The United States is a global leader in how to manage wild caught fisheries, but we regularly send our expertise, our innovation, and our dollars overseas when it comes to aquaculture. Rather than buying seafood from a global market that has seen repeated instances of labor and environmental violations, we should do a better job at home. It's time we straighten our byzantine permitting regime and start growing some more fish.

Out witnesses today, are working to promote aquaculture in the United States and will share with us some of their ideas to reduce the barriers to aquaculture and support innovative strategies for food security.

I'm pleased to welcome a fellow South Dakotan who is bringing South Dakota soy into the fish farming market in a big way. Mr. Mark Luecke (LOO-KEE) is the CEO of Prairie AquaTech, a technology company that has developed and patented a high-protein fish feed from soy meal. Prairie AquaTech is based in Brookings, South Dakota, and due to high demand in their product, they will be breaking ground on a new commercial facility this spring that will process 30,000 tons of feed per year.

As a scientist and the Director of the Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center at the University of Southern Mississippi, Dr. Kelly Lucas will testify about her work overseeing a $25 million aquaculture facility, which employs cutting-edge technology, peer-reviewed research, and hands-on testing to grow fish in an environmentally responsible and economically feasible manner.

Mr. Barton Seaver (SEE-ver) began his career as a celebrity chef here in Washington, D.C., where he realized the key role aquaculture plays as a sustainable food resource and the importance of seafood in a healthy diet. He is the author of seven highly regarded books and is an internationally recognized speaker on the topic of sustainable seafood and aquaculture.

Testifying with firsthand experience in aquaculture is Mr. Don Kent, who has spent many years working to get a commercial-scale fish farm up and running off the coast of Southern California.

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food industry in the world. If encouraged in the United States, it has the potential to create jobs and boost the economy, from states like South Dakota, to the coasts. As Department of Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has stated, "this country, with its abundant coastline, should not have to import billions of pounds of seafood each year." Let's harness this opportunity and become the world leader in safe and sustainable domestic seafood production.

I will now turn to Ranking Member Nelson for his opening statement.

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