On December 14, 2012, the menhaden management board of the ASMFC voted 13-3 to institute a 20% reduction in overall landings for the commercial catch of Atlantic menhaden.
March 6, 2013 — Menhaden, alewife, mossbunker, fatbacks, bunker or pogy-no matter what it's called-the fish is making news up and down the East Coast as the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) mandated harvest reductions have fishermen scrambling to determine the impact.
On December 14, 2012, the menhaden management board of the ASMFC voted 13-3 to institute a 20% reduction in overall landings for the commercial catch of Atlantic menhaden. Virginia, Florida and New Jersey representatives voted against the reduction. More menhaden are caught by Virginia fishermen than any other state along the east coast and Virginia was allocated 85.3% of the total harvest.
Virginia's representative on the ASMFC menhaden board, Jack Travelstead, lobbied to hold the reduction to 10%. When this was obviously not going to fly, Travelstead tried 15% and then 17% before the rest of the committee settled on 20%, with the cut being based on the 2009-2011 harvests.
Omega Protein general manager Monty Deihl said, "We do not feel cuts to this level were justified, particularly based on the lack of scientific data. While the new reductions may or may not have positive impacts on the menhaden biomass, it definitely has economic negative impacts on the Northern Neck."
"The mandated cut equates to a loss of $20 million in revenues for us," said Deihl. "That could mean at least $20 million on the expenditure side is going to have to be reduced too."
Read the full story at the Southside Sentinel