American seafood industry groups used a Capitol Hill event this week to push for passage of legislation aimed at establishing a federal framework for commercial-scale open ocean aquaculture in US waters.
Advocacy coalition Stronger America Through Seafood hosted a legislative fly-in and seafood reception in Washington, D.C. on May 13, bringing together seafood companies and congressional staff to discuss the proposed Marine Aquaculture Research for America (MARA) Act.
The bipartisan bill, introduced in 2025 as S.2586/H.R. 5746, was put forward by Senators Roger Wicker and Brian Schatz, alongside Representatives Mike Ezell, Ed Case, Kat Cammack and Jimmy Panetta.
The legislation would establish a framework for evaluating commercial-scale aquaculture demonstration projects in federal waters and create an Office of Aquaculture within National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service to coordinate permitting.
The bill also proposes consolidated environmental reviews and permitting timelines for offshore aquaculture projects.
According to SATS, the United States currently has no operating commercial-scale finfish farms in federal waters, which the group attributes to overlapping regulatory processes and the absence of a dedicated permitting framework.
Participants in the Washington event included Cargill, Innovasea, Sysco and Zeigler Bros..
SATS campaign manager Drue Banta Winters said the legislation would help establish a coordinated federal pathway for offshore aquaculture development in US waters and support domestic seafood production.
Industry groups supporting the bill argue that expanded offshore aquaculture could increase seafood supply, support port infrastructure investment and create demand for agricultural feed ingredients including soybeans, corn, peas, wheat and barley.
The legislation remains under consideration in Congress.