Alaska/Pacific Coast
Canary Rockfish—A Story of U.S. Fisheries Management Learn more about the work to rebuild canary rockfish—one of more than 60 species of rockfish included in the West Coast groundfish fishery. NOAA - October 21, 2018 Sometimes when you go fishing, you just do not know what you are going to catch. This is often the case in the West Coast groundfish fishery, where more than 90 different species frequent similar habitats and are managed together under a single management plan by NOAA Fisheries and the Pacific Fishery Management Council. When different species of fish cohabitate, it can be difficult to target or avoid any particular one; so if any species becomes overfished, it takes the cooperation and commitment of everyone to rebuild. Canary rockfish--one of more than 60 species of rockfish included in the West Coast groundfish fishery--fell into this category when it was declared overfished in 2000. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/canary-rockfish-story-us-fisheries-management An act of cod: Alaska-based fleet gets a gift from Board of Fish National Fisherman by Jessica Hathaway - October 23, 2018 Alaska’s inshore cod fishery got a significant upgrade at the state’s Board of Fisheries meeting on Friday, Oct. 19. https://www.nationalfisherman.com/alaska/an-act-of-cod-alaska-based-fleet-gets-a-gift-from-board-of-fish/ International ANALYSIS: Imports from Russia Down 32.1% on King Crab; Pricing at all Time Highs SEAFOODNEWS.COM by Janice Schreiber - October 24, 2018 Supplies in the red king crab market remain extremely thin. King crab has always been a high valued and priced item but record low imports from Russia are now coupled with all-time highs. Year-to-date, Russian king crab imports continue into August much lower than last year; down 32.1 percent. That’s a difference of 6.3 million pounds less in the system from last year.
In a similar fashion, August Russian king crab figures are down significantly on a month-to-month basis; 50.9 percent lower when compared to July 2018. When looking at the cyclical behavior of imports, this August was outside of the norm. The past two years, along with the three-year, typically see an increase in imports during August. However, 2018 saw the opposite happen. Imports were at the lowest level the U.S. market has seen all year – under 1 million pounds, 723,161 pounds total with only 551,752 pounds from Russia.
Pricing, as mentioned previously, is at record high for almost all sizes of both red and golden king crab. If we look specifically to 16-20s, for example, both red and golden king crab have been adjusting higher since about the beginning of April this year. 16-20 Russian red king crab was trading at $14.00 the week of April 2nd and the market is now trading at $18.00, a $4.00 or 28.5 percent increase.
Buyers will not see reprieve from Alaska when it comes to red king crab. Domestic landings are anticipated to start to trickle in during the beginning to mid-November time frame. However, as previously reported, the quota has dropped again this year, marking the second straight year of a quota reduction for red king crab out of Alaska. The quota is down 35 percent to 4.3 million pounds. As of this writing, 21 percent of the quota has been caught. For golden king crab out of Alaska, the golden king crab fishery has an increased quota this year of 6.3 million pounds, up around 1 million pounds from last year. The West Aleutian Islands golden king crab fishery is about 45 percent caught as of this writing. If we look at retail features of king crab, we’ll see a similar trend. Most areas are seeing an uptick in pricing versus 2017. Overall, if we look at the total last year versus this year from August 1st until the present, we see the average for both clusters and legs has increased about $2.00 from 2017 to 2018.
As buyers look for replacement product, it will be tough to come by. Demand overseas for live crab in the Asian markets continues in a seemingly endless appetite. Many market participants report they are being out bid for Russia product whether it be red or golden king crab. All posted quotations are full steady to firm currently in the Russian red and golden crab index with higher offers noted. With the market continuing to see upward pricing pressures, if you can land it, king crab looks to be a high ticket item this holiday season. https://www.seafoodnews.com/Story/1120930/ANALYSIS-Imports-from-Russia-Down-32-point-1-percent-on-King-Crab-Pricing-at-all-Time-Highs
Federal Register Commercial Fishing Safety Advisory Committee A Notice by the Coast Guard on 10/23/2018 The Commercial Fishing Safety Advisory Committee will meet in Seattle, Washington to discuss various issues relating to safety in the commercial fishing industry. All meetings will be open to the public. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/10/23/2018-23061/commercial-fishing-safety-advisory-committee List of Fisheries for 2019 A Proposed Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 10/23/2018 The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) publishes its proposed List of Fisheries (LOF) for 2019, as required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). The LOF for 2019 reflects new information on interactions between commercial fisheries and marine mammals. NMFS must classify each commercial fishery on the LOF into one of three categories under the MMPA based upon the level of mortality and serious injury of marine mammals that occurs incidental to each fishery. The classification of a fishery on the LOF determines whether participants in that fishery are subject to certain provisions of the MMPA, such as registration, observer coverage, and take reduction plan (TRP) requirements https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/10/23/2018-23124/list-of-fisheries-for-2019 FYI’s NFI Future Leaders seek donations for SeaShare Seafood Source by Cliff White - October 23, 2018 The National Fisheries Institute’s Future Leaders program is seeking donations for SeaShare, a non-profit organized to enable the U.S. seafood industry to donate food and resources to hunger-relief efforts nationwide. https://www.savingseafood.org/other-news/nfi-future-leaders-seek-donations-for-seashare/
Ann Owens Pacific Seafood Processors Association Office Manager 1900 W Emerson Place Suite 205, Seattle, WA 98119 Phone: 206.281.1667 E-mail: pspafish@gmail.com; Website: www.pspafish.net Our office days/hours are Monday-Friday 8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. *Inclusion of a news article, report, or other document in this email does not imply PSPA support or endorsement of the information or opinion expressed in the document.