17 



move forward with it, to act before the Christmas recess if at all 

 possible. 



Our sincere thanks to you Senator Akaka, to his staff, for devel- 

 oping and introducing this valuable legislation; to Senator Leahy 

 for his support and leadership; to you. Senator Daschle, for agree- 

 ing to hold this hearing; to Senators Craig and Cochran on this 

 subcommittee who have firsthand knowledge of the worth of aqua- 

 culture to their respective States, in Idaho and Mississippi; and 

 certainly to all of the bill's co-sponsors. 



We thank you for providing my organization with the oppor- 

 tunity to express our support for this critically needed legislation, 

 and I would be pleased to respond to any questions. 



Senator Daschle. Thank you, Mr. McCraren, for a good state- 

 ment. 



Mr. McCraren. Thank you. 



Senator Daschle. Mr. Roy Martin, as I said, is the Executive Di- 

 rector of the National Aquaculture Council in Arlington, Virginia, 

 and we are pleased that he could be with us. 



STATEMENT OF ROY E. MARTIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, 

 NATIONAL AQUACULTURE COUNCIL, ARLINGTON, VA 



Mr. Martin. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sen- 

 ator Leahy and members of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

 Forestry Committee for the invitation to address this most impor- 

 tant piece of legislation. 



My name is Roy Martin. I am Executive Director of the National 

 Aquaculture Council and Vice President of the National Fisheries 

 Institute. The Council and Institute represent 1100 companies en- 

 gaged in all the many aspects of seafood production, marketing, 

 and distribution. 



We sincerely appreciate Senator Akaka's interest in the U.S. 

 aquaculture industry and the development of Senate 1288. 



The National Aquaculture Council fully supports Senate bill 

 1288. The Council met here in Washington this past week and 

 unanimously agreed that aquaculture needs the support of the ele- 

 ments contained in this bill. 



Designating the United States Department of Agriculture as the 

 lead Federal agency provides for the Secretary of Agriculture the 

 ability to have private aquaculture treated, as we have very long 

 advocated, as agriculture. 



As I travel the farms, the processing plants, in the small towns 

 of this country, I am struck by the opportunity given to jobs and 

 rural development by this growing industry. We must continue to 

 build on this tradition. Agriculture needs aquaculture. 



Many wild stocks of fish are on the decline. Aquaculture must 

 take its rightful place as a provider of this needed protein. Perhaps 

 redefined, "livestock" should include animals produced by private 

 aquaculture. Such a designation would bring aquaculture more into 

 the mainstream of the programs at USDA. This visibility would 

 strengthen the administration's programs for rural development 

 and jobs. With a stronger aquaculture industry we could perhaps 

 assist in reducing the trade imbalance in fishery product by export- 

 ing increased production. The opportunities are unlimited if we 



