Red Lobster exec endorses fish farming

Red Lobster exec endorses fish farming

	Published : Tue, 26 Jun 2007 21:34 By : Agencies Print this Story

WASHINGTON (AP) - The president of the nation's largest seafood restaurant chain on Tuesday said consumers are willing to pay more for locally produced catches of the day and he endorsed expanding the U.S. fish farming industry.

American consumers would pay a 'modest premium' for homegrown seafood based on the belief that local is fresher and of higher quality, said Kim Lopdrup, president of Red Lobster, which purchases 80 percent of its seafood abroad. Red Lobster is a unit of Darden Restaurants Inc.

Lopdrup, speaking at a government-sponsored conference, said the U.S. should increase the amount of fish farmed in federal waters in order to shrink the country's roughly $8 billion seafood deficit.

Expanding fish farming's potential will be critical as the world's population and demand for seafood rise at the same time wild fish stocks decline from overfishing and pollution, according to government and industry supporters.

Fish farming, or aquaculture, is a $70 billion global business that accounts for roughly half the seafood consumed worldwide. The U.S. contributes just 1.5 percent of worldwide production, with 90 percent coming from Asia -- and in particular China, according to Commerce Department data.

Under existing regulations, U.S. fish farmers must operate within three miles of America's coastline, though they can apply for one-year permits to operate further offshore, where there are fewer competing uses for the deeper water with stronger flows, which is more desirable environmentally, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Michael Rubino, manager of NOAA's aquaculture program, said investors would line up at the opportunity to support companies interested in farming beyond the three-mile limit if permits were not restricted to a single year of operation.

The Bush administration in March introduced plans to allow companies to operate fish farms three miles to 200 miles offshore without some of the size and scope rules that apply to other commercial fishermen. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said at the time the plan would help the $1 billion U.S. aquaculture industry roughly double in size over the next few decades.

Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., in April formally introduced the National Offshore Aquaculture Act, which would let the Commerce Department issue 20-year offshore permits. The legislation, which will be debated in House subcommittee hearings in the coming weeks, would authorize nearly $4.1 million for the program starting in October 2008, and impose fines of up to $250,000 a day per violation and criminal penalties of up to five years in prison and $500,000 in fines, or $1 million for a group.

But the bill, introduced in the Senate with amendments earlier this month, is simply a framework, and if passed, would be followed by at least a two-year process to finalize environmental regulations, Rubino said.

Lopdrup said Darden officials are reviewing details of the proposed legislation and have not taken a position on it.

Shares of Orlando, Fla.-based Darden added 20 cents to $43.35 in afternoon trading.