Commercial Fishing
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 2,600 commercial fishing operations in the US harvest fish and shellfish from their natural habitats in fresh water, tidal areas, rivers, and oceans. The approximately 300 target species vary by region and require differing methods, vessels, and equipment for their catch. Imports currently represent about 80% of US consumption of fish and shellfish.
Overfishing
Overfishing occurs when a stock has a harvest rate higher than the rate that produces its maximum sustainable yield.
Hazardous Weather
Fishing is a seasonal occupation and catch is highest during the summer and fall, as winter fishing is particularly hazardous.
Industry size & Structure
The average commercial fishing company employs 2 workers and generates nearly $2 million in annual revenue.
- There are about 2,600 companies in commercial fishing, with about 182,568 people employed as commercial harvesters, according to NOAA Fisheries.
- Companies in commercial fishing vary in size, from small vessel and family operations that operate as a fishing community to local and regional markets to large corporate fleets that supply regional, national, and export markets.
- Total annual revenue or "landings value" for commercial fishers ranges from $9-10 billion.
- The largest firms are typically integrated, moving from managing their own fishing fleet to processing and distribution. These firms include: Nissui USA (formerly Nippon Suisan Kaisha USA), Tri Marine International, and Trident Seafoods Corporation.
- Eight regional fishery management councils under NOAA oversee about 45 fishery management plans that control approximately 492 major fish stocks, making up over 90% of annual revenue.
- Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and New Bedford, Massachusetts, are the top ports in value and volume of commercial landings, according to NOAA Fisheries.
- The three highest-value commercial species categories are crabs ($584 million), lobsters ($563 million), and scallops ($488 million).
Industry Forecast
Commercial Fishing Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Mar 27, 2025 - Tariff Trouble
- Tariffs on imported seafood would cause prices to rise, making US products more competitive in a market dominated by lower priced imports, Aquaculture North America reports. The US is a net importer of fish and seafood, with imports accounting for more than 79% of the seafood Americans consumed in 2020, according to NOAA Fisheries. The value of seafood imports exceeded exports in 2023, creating a trade deficit to about $20.3 billion. The rise in imports has put pressure on domestic seafood prices and limits revenue for domestic aquaculture operations. However, tariffs cut both ways. Because Canada and China are the top two destinations for US seafood exports, US catches are vulnerable to reciprocal tariffs. Maine and Massachusetts account for 99% of Canada’s lobster imports, while China’s imports of US salmon nearly tripled between 2020 and 2023, per the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
- Layoffs at NOAA could hamstring fisheries management in Alaska, Alaska Public Media (APM) reports. In February, some 880 probationary employees of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration across the US were fired as part of a wider effort by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk’s cost-cutting team within the federal government. The layoffs include 13 positions at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, which conducts research used to manage federal fisheries off Alaska’s coasts and helps oversee the state’s marine resources. The center may have lost over 5% of its staff, with more layoffs looming, according to APM. In March, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration must reinstate thousands of probationary employees who were laid off from several federal agencies, although the ruling did not name the Department of Commerce, which oversees NOAA. The status of those fired workers remains in limbo.
- The FDA is asking the seafood industry, academia, and other relevant parties for more information on perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in seafood, Seafood Source reports. The agency in November opened a request for information regarding PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals” because they don’t easily break down and have been shown to accumulate in the environment and in human bodies. The FDA said its testing indicates that seafood may be at higher risk for environmental PFAS contamination compared with other types of foods. According to the agency, the purpose of the request is to help increase its understanding of the potential for PFAS exposure from seafood. It says it intends to use the information submitted in response to its request to help inform future activities to reduce dietary exposure to PFAS that may pose health concerns. The deadline for comments is February 18, 2025.
- Employment by commercial fishers is at a 10-year low, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Moreover, from 2023 to 2033 the number of jobs for fishing and hunting workers is forecast to decline by 1%, per the BLS. Following double-digit growth in 2021 and 2022, sales for the US commercial fishing companies industry are forecast to grow at a 2.76% compounded annual rate from 2024 to 2028, slower than the growth of the overall economy, according to the Interindustry Economic Research Fund.
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