by Linda Straker
- Over 3,000 active fisherfolk and over 900 fishing vessels registered with Fisheries Division
- Grenada is one of 12 States that did not apply for comparability finding
- Ministry of Marine Affairs yet to comment
“It will just make yellowfin tuna a very, very expensive item for Americans who love it, and they can’t do without it,” responded a former fisheries official after he read about the US decision to ban the importation of fish and fish products from Grenada to the US market from January 2026.
On 29 August 2025, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Department announced in the Federal Register its 2025 comparability finding determinations under the Marine Mammal Protection Act Import Provisions.
The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) Import Provisions implement aspects that aim to reduce marine mammal bycatch associated with international commercial fishing operations, by requiring nations exporting fish and fish products to the United States to be held to the same standards as US commercial fishing operations.
The Federal Register said that the MMPA requires the United States to ban the importation of commercial fish or products from fish that have been caught with commercial fishing technology, which results in the incidental kill or incidental serious injury of ocean mammals in excess of US standards (16 USC 1371(a)(2)).
“For the purposes of applying this import ban, the Secretary of Commerce shall insist on reasonable proof from the government of any nation from which fish or fish products will be exported to the United States of the effects on ocean mammals of the commercial fishing technology in use for such fish or fish products exported from such nation to the United States. (16 USC. 1371(a)(2)(A)),” said the report.
Grenada, according to the report, is one of 12 countries that did not apply a comparability finding. The others are Benin, Guinea, Haiti, Iran, Namibia, New Caledonia, Russia, St Lucia, The Gambia, Togo and Venezuela.
“Fish and fish products from fisheries denied a comparability finding will be prohibited from import into the United States beginning January 1, 2026,” said the report, which is available on the NOAA Fisheries website.
The publication stated that NOAA Fisheries works with US Customs and Border Protection to develop a Harmonised Tariff Schedule (HTS) Codes list that flags products potentially sourced from fisheries denied a comparability finding. These products will then be subject to Certificate of Admissibility requirements. These lists also include the prohibited fisheries for each nation, which are defined by the specifically prohibited HTS Codes, FAO 3-Alpha Codes, and Gear Types associated with the denied fishery.
The Ministry of Marine Affairs has yet to comment on the issue. “We will provide a statement after meeting with the Ministry of Agriculture team,” Neila Ettienne, Press Secretary, responded via text message when asked for a comment from the Office of the Prime Minister on the development.
The 2024 midyear review, which was laid in the Houses of Parliament, said that there are over 3,000 active fisherfolk and over 900 fishing vessels registered with the fisheries division. The number employed within this industry represents over 7% of the employed labour force.
During the first quarter of 2025, data from the Ministry of Finance showed an increase of 1% in the export of fish. Grenada’s fish is mainly exported to the US market, particularly along the eastern seaboard, according to people involved in the fish export business.
