American Sportfishing Association
GTW
FEATURE
www.guntradeworld.com 55
ASA: The Voice of a Multi-Billion Dollar
Industry
Although ICAST may be ASA’s most visible
event, it’s only one of many initiatives on the
organisation’s busy agenda.
In its government affairs role, ASA gives
industry and anglers a unified voice when
emerging laws and policies could significantly
affect the sportfishing business or sportfishing
itself. That voice can speak loudly, considering
that in the US alone over 49 million anglers
generate more than $45 billion in retail sales
with a $125 billion impact on the nation’s
economy. In addition, sportfishing creates
more than one million US jobs.
Through its Keep America Fishing
campaign and website, ASA gives anglers
a stronger influence in policy decisions that
affect their ability to sustainably fish on the
nation’s waterways.
As a partner in the national “60 in 60”
angler recruiting and retention program, ASA
supports a variety of efforts to make fishing
more attractive and accessible to a diverse,
younger, and less rural population. Growing
participation is key to helping ASA achieve its
goals for clean water, abundant fish and access
to both. The goal is to increase the number
of anglers on the water from 49 million to 60
million, annually, by December 2021.
ASA’s FishAmerica Foundation is the
sportfishing industry’s conservation arm,
providing support and grant funding for
sportfish conservation and habitat restoration.
For more than 30 years, FishAmerica has
provided more than $10 million in grants for
over 1,000 grassroots fisheries conservation
projects throughout North America.
In recent years ASA has greatly expanded
its efforts to compile statistics related to
fishing participation and the economic
impacts of the sport. These efforts are not only
valuable for business planning, but also in
demonstrating fishing’s popularity overall and
asserting its economic clout – both powerful
assets on the public-policy front.
American Sportfishing Association
www.ASAfishing.org
/www.guntradeworld.com
/www.ASAfishing.org
