June NPFMC Recap: PSC Fishmeal & Byproduct Use (B2)
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At the recent North Pacific Fisheries Management Council (Council) meeting in Vancouver, Washington, Alaska Marine Community Coalition (AMCC) submitted public comment on three agenda matters regarding prohibited species catch, tanner crab protections, and pelagic trawl performance standards in Alaska on the federal level. AMCC testimony was focused on asking the Council to objectively examine fisheries issues and make decisions based on sustainable and unbiased practices. The specific agenda items addressed were:
Agenda Item B2 - Fishmeal Disposition of Prohibited Species Catch (PSC);
Agenda Item C5 - Gulf of Alaska (GOA) Tanner Crab Protection Measures; and
Below is a recap of Agenda Item B2 - Fishmeal Disposition of Prohibited Species Catch (PSC), what AMCC requested of the Council, and the Council’s ultimate decision and/or recommendation.
In Brief: Agenda Item B2 focused on how prohibited species catch (PSC) may be handled once it is landed at the dock, including whether processors should be allowed to convert PSC into products such as fish meal, fish oil, and bone meal. AMCC requested greater transparency and a formal review of the legal and policy implications before any expansion of this practice occurs. The Council directed staff to develop a regulatory amendment to clarify existing rules and evaluate options moving forward.
AMCC’s public comment letter can be found here.
Issue:
Prohibited species catch (PSC) include species such as halibut, salmon, and crab that non-target commercial fisheries are unable to directly target, retain, and sell as bycatch due to their ecological, cultural, subsistence, commercial, and public importance for other user groups. These species are often the source of public concern when bycatch rates of them are high. Historically, vessels discarded PSC at sea. Now, vessels are required to retain and land PSC at the dock.
Under 50 C.F.R. § 679.26(d)(3), the Prohibited Species Donation Program (PSD program), allows authorized distributors (and persons conducting activities supervised by authorized distributors) to retain salmon and halibut PSC only for the purpose of processing and delivering it to hunger relief agencies, food banks, or food bank distributors.1 They may not sell, trade or barter, or attempt to sell, trade or barter any PSC that is retained under the PSD program.2 There is, however, one exception. Processors “may convert offal from salmon or halibut that has been retained pursuant to the PSD program into fish meal, fish oil, or bone meal, and sell or trade these products.”3 Offall typically includes the non-fillet parts of a fish that are discarded during processing (e.g., the head, internal organs, skin, bones, scales, and roe).
Recently, Jon Kurland, the Regional Administrator National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for the Alaska Region, issued a letter to the Council. Administrator Kurland’s letter indicated that “[c]urrent regulations do not prohibit processors in the Gulf of Alaska from converting PSC into fish meal, fish oil, or bone meal, and selling these low value products.” Kurland’s letter directly contradicts 50 C.F.R. § 679.26(d)(3), which only allows the conversion of salmon or halibut offal that has been retained pursuant to the PSD program. Kurland’s interpretation expands the very narrow PSD-program exception to seemingly now allow any processor in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) to convert PSC into fishmeal, fish oil, or bone meal that has not been retained under the PSD program.
Converting retained salmon and halibut into low-value products such as fish meal, fish oil, or bone meal, can help minimize waste and reduce environment and economic impact. However, the sale of PSC species as low-value products raises the concern of incentivizing the commercialization of PSC for processors that do not participate in the PSD program when the goal of management is to minimize bycatch and bycatch mortality.4
What AMCC asked for:
AMCC recognizes that the public is already being asked to trust complex monitoring and accounting systems in fisheries with significant bycatch impacts on high-value species. If these species are entering the market as low value fish products, the public has a right to understand how these species enter the market, which species are involved, how this activity is monitored, and whether or not fleet and processor behavior is altered as a consequence. As a result, AMCC requested that the Council complete a public discussion paper or initial review that describes, clarifies, and evaluates the current legal interpretation of regulations regarding the conversion and sale of PSC species into low-value fish products by processors. AMCC also requested that the Council identify a reasonable range of policy options before the ability of processors to convert and sell PSC species into low-value products is expanded, standardized, and incorporated into future regulatory action, or relied upon across additional programs. AMCC asked that the review examine whether safeguards are needed to ensure that the Council’s bycatch minimization efforts are not undermined by the adoption of converting PSC species.
AMCC’s public comment letter can be found here.
The B2 Motion:
On June 5, 2026, the Council requested its staff to prepare a regulatory amendment to review and clarify any conflicting regulations related to the disposal of already-caught and landed PSC to reduce confusion regarding regulations that have accumulated over time. The council recognized a review is needed to resolve any conflicting regulations that have arisen as vessels have become required to land PSC dockside under several regulatory programs. The Council recommended regulatory clarification allowing processors—who do not donate PSC—to convert PSC into fish meal, oil, or bone meal and sell those products to minimize waste and to avoid returning PSC to vessels for sea-disposal. The Council recommended this review include suggestions to PSD-program improvements, and clarified that current PSC regulations regarding PSC limits, prohibitions on the sale of PSC by vessels, and PSC avoidance measures remain in place. The Council’s B2 Motion passed.
What’s next?
The agenda topics discussed above will continue to be evaluated in future Council meetings. AMCC is dedicated to following the conversation and also encourages you to make your voice heard. If you are interested in offering public testimony or submitting a comment at Council meetings, check out AMCC’s Guidebook for Engaging with the NPFMC here. The next Council meeting will be held in Anchorage, Alaska on October 5-13, 2026.
1 50 C.F.R. § 679.26(d)(3) (2016)
2 Id.
3 Id. (Emphasis added)
4 See 16. U.S.C. § 1851(a)(9) (2007) (outlining the national standards for fishery conservation and management).
