Virginia’s Aquaculture is a Great Catch for the State's Economy
Virginia boasts a thriving seafood industry—and presents a clear opportunity for even greater growth through the continued expansion of aquaculture. The state is home to the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States, and is the fourth-largest producer of seafood in the country.
A 2022 Virginia Tech study found that Virginia's aquaculture industry boosts the state's economy by providing jobs and supporting related businesses. According to the report, "Economic Contributions of the Virginia Seafood Industry," the industry generates $1.1 billion in economic contributions and over $26 million in tax revenue annually and supports more than 7,180 jobs in the state.
Since 1998, Virginia's aquaculture sector has grown continuously. The state’s shellfish farming industry has grown so much that Virginia now ranks as the largest producer of hard clams nationwide and the largest producer of oysters along the Atlantic coast. According to the USDA's 2018 Census of Aquaculture, the state's 191 aquaculture farms generated $112.6 million in sales, with shellfish being the dominant product. Shellfish aquaculture alone accounted for $94.3 million in sales.
The state’s growing aquaculture industry enables commercial fishermen and fish farmers to work together to supply their communities with locally raised seafood options. Virginia Tech researchers found that the state’s seafood industry supports a total of 6,050 direct jobs, including 1,969 watermen jobs and 1,367 aquaculture jobs.
The impact of Virginia's wild-capture and aquaculture industries extends far beyond the water's edge. A steady supply of seafood—both wild and farmed—coming into waterfront communities and ports helps create jobs across the seafood supply chain. This industry provides an additional 3,851 jobs among seafood processor and distributor businesses in the state.
“The aquaculture sector plays an important role in Virginia’s economy, supporting linkages to other business sectors within the Commonwealth, but also providing a source of sustainable, nutritious food for human consumption and strengthening the economic resilience of coastal and rural communities,” said Jonathan van Senten, Associate Professor at Virginia Tech's Seafood Agricultural and Research Extension Center.
Aquaculture today successfully operates in Virginia’s state waters, as well as many other states, and there is clear potential for greater economic opportunities through the continued expansion of fish farming. This opportunity highlights the need for federal legislation to support offshore aquaculture in U.S. federal waters.
The Advancing the Quality and Understanding of American Aquaculture (AQUAA) Act (H.R.4013/S.1861), which has bipartisan support in Congress, would establish National Standards for offshore aquaculture, clarifying a regulatory system for the farming of fish in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
By passing legislation to establish a clear regulatory path for permitting offshore fish farms in U.S. federal waters, Congress would ensure that communities in Virginia and states nationwide benefit from the job creation and economic revenue that the expansion of aquaculture would provide, as commercial fishermen and fish farmers work together to increase our supply of sustainably raised American seafood.
ICYMI: Stronger America Through Seafood (SATS) sent a letter signed by more than 50 seafood industry leaders to House Natural Resources Committee leaders, demonstrating growing support for expanding U.S. offshore aquaculture.