NMFS’ Fisheries Information System (FIS) program has been a constant driver of deliberate and strategic progress. Because FIS focuses on information needs identified by NMFS staff and data partners, people and organizations outside that network may not know about the program and its positive impacts. From the Net Gains’ Alliance’s perspective, FIS is central to the data modernization improvements of the last decade. As NGA wraps up this phase of our work, we’re writing this love letter to FIS to help others learn from their example and share their stories of how FIS has improved their work. 

Since the Net Gains Alliance began our work in 2017, we’ve called for implementation of unique trip identifiers (UTIDs) as a way to quickly and reliably integrate commercial fishing data. Ideally, unique trip identifiers are machine-generated at the first point of data collection and automatically propagated to link all of the information generated by a trip such as trip reports, dealer reports, observer information, and Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) tracks.

As a business owner, authoritative and reliable industry data helps me plan my operations and recruit partners to build a successful business. Banks and investors can easily find independent information about seasonal trends, consumer demand, and market dynamics. USDA’s frequent, detailed, and public reporting reduces investors’ time and effort for due diligence, which helps incentivize investments. USDA data also drives the development of products like crop insurance and informs long-term purchase contracts. Sharing this data supports U.S. agriculture in a global marketplace.

The ocean is a deeply connected ecological system. Ocean communities and businesses are also tightly linked, with supply chains connecting boats far offshore to inland processing plants to buyers thousands of miles away. Just as fish and seafood products flow easily from place to place, so does the data about those fish–or at least it should.