Efforts to Fund Menhaden Research Fail in Virginia Legislative Session

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia lawmakers wrapped up the 2025 legislative session without approving funding for new scientific research on Atlantic menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay, despite multiple attempts to advance the issue.

Three separate proposals to fund menhaden science stalled during the session, repeatedly facing opposition from the industrial menhaden fishing industry and its network of lobbyists, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF).

Supporters of the funding measures argue that more research is critical to understanding the sustainability of the Bay’s menhaden population — a key food source for predator species such as striped bass, ospreys, and dolphins. Without better data, they say, the long-term health of the Bay’s ecosystem remains uncertain.

“Simply put, there isn’t enough science to ensure a sustainable menhaden fishery in the Chesapeake Bay,” CBF said in a statement. “Each year without dedicated science increases the risk to the Bay’s ecosystem.”

The nonprofit group pointed to opposition from Omega Protein, a foreign-owned industrial fishing company that operates the last remaining menhaden reduction plant on the East Coast. The company’s resistance to state-funded studies has become a recurring hurdle, CBF said.

In the absence of new research, CBF is urging fishery managers to impose additional conservation measures on the menhaden fishery until science can guide management decisions.

Menhaden, small oily fish harvested primarily for fishmeal and dietary supplements, play a vital ecological role in the Bay. Conservationists have long expressed concern that large-scale industrial harvests could destabilize the food web without sufficient scientific oversight.

The failed efforts to fund menhaden studies come amid broader legislative progress on other Chesapeake Bay priorities this session, but environmental groups warn that the lack of action on menhaden research leaves a critical gap.