Companies thank commissioners for their work and organizations standing with commercial fishing families

NEWPORT, RI / ACCESS Newswire / November 12, 2026 / The following was released by Ocean Harvesters and Omega Protein:

Ocean Harvesters and Omega Protein thanked the commissioners and staff of the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission for their work on menhaden management, while condemning attacks by recreational fishing and environmental groups following the vote.

The companies believe a reduction from the existing coastwide quota was unnecessary, but recognize that commissioners faced difficult decisions and worked hard to reach a compromise.

“We disagree with the quota reduction, but we appreciate the commissioners who listened to fishermen, considered the consequences for our communities and worked through a difficult process,” said Ben Landry, spokesperson for the Virginia menhaden reduction fishery. “They deserve our thanks for their time and effort.”

“Some recreational fishing and environmental groups responded to a decision that did not give them everything they wanted with contempt for the commissioners and insults aimed at the people whose livelihoods are at stake.”

Following the vote, Jaclyn Lunaas, forage fish manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, told Newsday the decision was “a complete failure of management.”

“That is an insult to commissioners who spent hours listening, weighing evidence and working toward a decision,” Landry said. “We did not get the outcome we wanted either. We can disagree without treating the commissioners and the public process with contempt.”

Landry also criticized the American Saltwater Guides Association for attacking commercial fishing representatives who traveled to Newport. The association described industry representatives as among the “least scientifically educated” people in the room.

“These representatives came to speak for fishermen, workers and communities. The association mocked their understanding of science and sneered at concerns about their livelihoods,” Landry said. “Fishermen and workers who worry about paying bills and supporting their families deserve to have the consequences of these decisions considered.”

Landry criticized the Forage Fish Campaign and executive director Whit Fosburgh for accusing the commission of protecting one company at the expense of American fishermen and coastal communities.

“That attack erases the American fishermen, processing workers and families who depend on this fishery,” Landry said. “They showed up in Newport, and the commissioners were right to listen.”

The companies also rejected International Game Fish Association President Jason Schratwieser’s call to end reduction fishing altogether.

“Schratwieser wants to eliminate an entire fishery and the livelihoods of the Americans who depend on it. We would never suggest that his members should be banned from fishing,” Landry said. “Recreational fishing also removes large numbers of fish from the ecosystem and supports families, businesses and coastal communities. Commercial fishing families deserve the same consideration.”

The ASMFC’s latest assessment found Atlantic menhaden are not overfished and overfishing is not occurring. Its coastwide ecological management framework accounts for predators’ needs.

“Our fishermen’s future depends on a healthy Bay and a sustainable fishery,” Landry said. “These cuts are not supported by the best available science. We remain committed to working with scientists to better understand menhaden abundance in the Bay and to treating commissioners and staff with respect.”

Monty Deihl, CEO of Ocean Harvesters, said the lower quotas will be difficult for workers and communities.

“These cuts affect our union workers, African American and other minority fishermen, processing employees and families, as well as businesses throughout the Northern Neck,” Deihl said.

“We are disappointed that the menhaden fishery is being treated differently from other fisheries the ASMFC regulates. Our workers and families deserve the same consideration. Their jobs, communities and the economic consequences of these decisions matter just as much.

“If we have a good weather season next year, unlike 2025, these lower quotas will mean lost fishing opportunities and real hardship. These are the paychecks and benefits families rely on and the economic activity that supports our region.”

Deihl criticized Chesapeake Bay Foundation forage campaign manager Will Poston for dismissing warnings about layoffs as “industry scare tactics” before the Newport meetings, citing the fishery’s lower 2025 harvest.

“Mr. Poston should tell Northern Neck union workers and fishing families why he thinks their concerns are scare tactics,” Deihl said. “Bad weather kept fishermen off the water in 2025. A lower catch in a difficult year does not make a quota reduction painless or justify dismissing the people who will bear the cost.”

Deihl thanked Virginia commissioners Delegate Adele McClure, J.J. Minor and Joe Grist for their work and comments. “Delegate McClure and J.J. Minor spoke passionately about the workers and families whose livelihoods depend on this fishery,” he said. “We are grateful to all three for standing up for Northern Neck communities and making sure their voices were heard.”

Deihl also thanked the organizations standing with commercial menhaden fishing families, especially the Virginia State Conference NAACP, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 400, AFL-CIO, the Virginia Manufacturers Association, and the Virginia Chamber of Commerce.

“These organizations have stood up for our workers, families and communities,” Deihl said. “Local 400 has called on lawmakers and the ASMFC to refrain from further Chesapeake Bay restrictions until ongoing research establishes their necessity. Working families must have a voice in decisions affecting their future.

“We will do our best to manage through these restrictions and support our people. We look forward to completing the recently funded research and believe it will show that these severe restrictions were never necessary.”

About Omega Protein

Omega Protein Corporation is a century-old nutritional products company that develops, produces and delivers healthy products derived from menhaden, a fish found abundantly off the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. Its marine ingredients include fish oil, fish meal and fish solubles used in food, dietary supplements, animal nutrition and plant nutrition markets. Through its subsidiaries, Omega Protein owns three U.S. menhaden manufacturing facilities, including its Health and Science Center, the nation’s only fully integrated fish oil processing facility.

The Atlantic menhaden fishery is certified sustainable to the Marine Stewardship Council standard, and across Virginia’s Northern Neck, Omega Protein and its fishing partner Ocean Harvesters support hundreds of jobs as Northumberland County’s largest commercial employer. 99% of the fish oil and 68% of the fish meal produced by Omega Protein is sold in the United States, with a small share going to export markets, where it is used for domestic pet and livestock feed. Omega Protein Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary and division of Cooke Inc.

About Ocean Harvesters

Ocean Harvesters owns and operates a fleet of more than 30 fishing vessels in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of America. The company’s purse-seine fishing operation is exclusively engaged in the harvest of menhaden, a small, nutrient-dense fish used to produce fish meal, fish oil, and fish solubles. Both its Atlantic and Gulf Menhaden fisheries are certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council. Committed to responsible fishing operations, Ocean Harvesters is proud to be heir to a fishing legacy that extends nearly 150 years.

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SOURCE: Ocean Harvesters

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