Fisheries Panel Cuts Chesapeake Bay Menhaden Harvest, but Falls Short Coastwide

This week the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) reduced the menhaden harvest in the Chesapeake Bay by about 33 percent, but failed to take significant action on coastwide limits. Notably, the much smaller cut to the harvest along the Atlantic Coast ignored ASMFC’s own science on what is needed to support a healthy ecosystem.

Menhaden are a key fish in marine food chains, helping to feed osprey, striped bass, and other wildlife. An industrial operation concentrated in Virginia waters uses a fleet of nearly 200’-foot-long industrial fishing vessels to catch hundreds of millions of menhaden each year.

This week the ASMFC considered fishery reforms to respond to worsening warning signs tied to menhaden in the Bay, including starving osprey chicks and plummeting catches for watermen who pursue menhaden for bait. As these warning signs escalate, 92 percent of Virginia voters support leaving more menhaden in the Bay, according to polling.

Public comments submitted on the ASMFC proposal, known as Draft Addendum II, were overwhelmingly in favor of significantly cutting the menhaden harvest. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) and over 40,000 individuals supported the strongest options on the table, which included cutting the Chesapeake Bay Reduction Fishery Cap in half, setting the Cap based on the coastwide catch limit, and creating three quota periods to better spread the harvest out throughout the season.

In meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, the ASMFC voted to:

• Reduce the Chesapeake Bay catch limit, known as the “Bay Cap,” by roughly one-third over the next two years to 33,847 metric tons, down from the current cap of 51,000 metric tons. This governs how many menhaden can be caught within the Bay itself.
• Set the Bay cap at 21.8 percent of the coastwide catch from now on. Previously, the ASMFC made decisions on the two separately. CBF supported linking these limits so that if the coastwide catch is modified in future years, the Bay cap will change accordingly. The cap is limited to a ceiling of 51,000 metric tons.
• Reduce the coastwide catch limit, or “total allowable catch,” by 9% in 2027 to 170,000 metric tons and another 9% in 2028 to 155,000 metric tons. This number governs how many menhaden can be caught from Maine to Florida, including in the Bay, and had stood at 186,840 metric tons. This week’s action will have little benefit for menhaden coastwide because the industry has failed to find enough fish to catch its limit. In 2025 total menhaden landings were 147,000 metric tons.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation Forage Campaign Manager Will Poston issued the following statement:

“For the Chesapeake Bay, this is a hard-earned win, but it’s not the finish line. Reaching the lowest Bay cap on record is real progress toward a healthy Bay. But more must be done to protect menhaden and the wildlife that depend on them. That includes ensuring upcoming research is rigorous, transparent, and free from undue industry influence.

“On the coastwide catch limit, however, ASMFC failed to follow its own ecosystem science when it mattered most. We thank representatives from Maryland, New York, Connecticut, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island for standing up for science-based menhaden management. But we are extremely disappointed with other states and the federal agencies that once again folded on true ecosystem-based menhaden management.

“We’ll keep fighting for stronger protections that leave more menhaden in the water to sustain wildlife and the communities that depend on them.”

Image courtesy Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and CosmoVision Media