Washington (February 15, 2022) – Massachusetts Senators Edward J. Markey and Elizabeth Warren applauded the announcement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) of an investment of approximately $50 million in grants to support seafood processors, processing facilities, and processing vessels through the Seafood Processors Pandemic Response and Safety Block Grant Program (SPRS). Massachusetts will receive $1.1 million for the Massachusetts Seafood Processors Pandemic Response and Safety Block Grant Program.

“We are pleased that the USDA has agreed to support seafood processors, an industry that experienced severe economic hardship as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” said Senators Markey and Warren. “If we fail to support our working waterfronts, we risk letting down a vital industry that is not only critical to our economy in Massachusetts but also to our way of life. We will continue to work to support these efforts and the essential work taking place in the seafood industry.”  

At the start of the pandemic, Senators Markey and Warren, along with Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), called for urgent support for the fishing and seafood industry experiencing economic hardship as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The closure of the hospitality industry and international markets caused fishermen and seafood processors to face drastic economic impacts. The senators highlighted a variety of ways Congress could help the industry, including establishing federal procurement programs for U.S. seafood products, which the USDA has done, as well as federal fisheries disaster assistance funding.

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