US coalitions press Congress to pass bipartisan MARA Act for offshore aquaculture.
Two US advocacy groups are urging Congress to advance new federal legislation aimed at expanding open ocean aquaculture in American waters.
Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS) and the Coalition for Sustainable Aquaculture (CSA) have jointly submitted a letter of support for the Marine Aquaculture Research for America (MARA) Act of 2025 (S.2586/H.R. 5746) to leaders of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House Committee on Natural Resources.
The letter has 140 signatories from across the seafood value chain and related sectors, including industry representatives, environmental organisations, chefs and academics, and is presented by the groups as evidence of growing bipartisan backing for offshore aquaculture in US federal waters.
“The U.S. has the science and technology, ocean resources and skilled seafood workforce to lead in sustainable seafood production,” said Drue Banta Winters, campaign manager of SATS. “The MARA Act would put in place a pathway to allow us to demonstrate that we can grow more of our seafood here at home both responsibly and sustainably, while strengthening coastal economies, supporting America’s terrestrial farmers and strengthening our nation’s food security.”
Maddie Voorhees, lead for the Coalition for Sustainable Aquaculture and US Aquaculture Campaign Director at Environmental Defense Fund, said the bill is intended to ensure that development in federal waters is anchored in research and transparency. “By investing in research and commercial-scale demonstration projects, this bill will help answer critical questions about how we can responsibly grow more seafood at home while safeguarding the ecosystems and communities that depend on healthy oceans,” she said.
The MARA Act is sponsored in the Senate by Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) and in the House by Mike Ezell (R-MS-04), Ed Case (D-HI-01), Kat Cammack (R-FL-03) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19). The legislation would codify the existing Office of Aquaculture within NOAA, streamline permitting, support working waterfront infrastructure and fund workforce training for maritime and aquaculture roles. It also provides for science-based demonstration projects intended to test how offshore aquaculture can scale while maintaining environmental safeguards.
SATS and CSA argue that expanding domestic aquaculture would have knock-on effects beyond coastal regions, by creating additional demand for US-grown crops such as soybeans, corn, peas and barley used in aquafeeds, and by supporting jobs in hatcheries, equipment supply, processing, retail and export.
Both coalitions frame the bill within a wider global context, pointing to recent analysis from multilateral organisations that identify aquaculture as a significant potential contributor to future food security and employment growth.
