Friday, March 6, 2026
- 13 hours ago
- 7 min read
Alaska
Alaska pollock producers lean into fillet output as 'A' season advances
Early roe timing is also shaping the season so far.
Intrafish by Rachel Sapin - March 5 2026
The Alaska pollock “A” season, which began Jan. 20 and runs through June 9, is now in full swing. Producers say fillet block output remains their primary focus, similar to last year.
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Dutch Harbor top port for seafood landings; New Bedford #1 for value
US fisheries economic reports for 2023 released belatedly by NOAA; Americans are eating less seafood.
Alaska Fish News by Laine Welch - March 3, 2026
The reports that give annual snapshots of the US fishing industry were belatedly released by a diminished NOAA Fisheries staff last month and attracted little fan fare.
Federal offshore oil and gas lease sale in Alaska’s Cook Inlet basin draws no bids
The federal sale, one in a series mandated by the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act,’ indicates a lack of industry interest in Cook Inlet, as did a concurrent state lease sale that drew only one bid
Alaska Beacon by Yereth Rosen - March 4, 2026
The first in a series of newly mandated oil and gas lease sales for federal waters of Alaska’s Cook Inlet received no bids, agency officials said on Wednesday.
West Coast
California announces USD 11 million for salmon restoration projects
SeafoodSource by Nathan Strout - March 6, 2026
The state of California has announced USD 11 million (EUR 9.5 million) in funding for five salmon restoration projects as part of nearly USD 60 million (EUR 52 million) in grants awarded by the state’s Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB).
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National
18-Member MAFAC Replaced by One “Fisherman in Residence” AT NOAA, Huffman and Dexter Cry Foul
SeafoodNews by Peggy Parker - March 5, 2026
On Monday this week, two members of Congress sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Under Secretary Dr. Neil Jacobs demanding accountability for the newly appointed “Fisherman in Residence” — Dustin Delano, who continues to work for industry trade associations in a role as advocate, often before the agency responsible for regulating US fisheries, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
“Based on the available evidence, Mr. Delano has continued to work in both roles simultaneously, posing an appearance of impropriety at the very least, and possibly a violation of criminal conflicts of interest law,” the Democratic House representatives wrote. Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.) are demanding transparency in the appointment from the leaders of NOAA.
Delano’s position was described in mid-January as a “newly created role in the Trump Administration designed to help rebuild trust and strengthen communication between the fishing industry and the federal government,” in a story by the Maine Coastal News.
In Delano’s own words, he described the job as “a direct line for genuine, real-world input from someone who lived the challenges of this industry every day.
“It’s an opportunity to help ground NOAA leadership in the practical impacts of their decisions—impacts that, at times, have been lost in translation. I look forward to working with NOAA’s leadership team and helping to close the widening gap between the agency and the fishing community.”
There was a group that provided that to NOAA made up of 15-21 individuals from around the country. MAFAC — the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee — was created in 1971 through the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Members were appointed by the Secretary of Commerce from six different fields of expertise across the country: commercial harvesting, processing, or marketing; recreational fishing; trade associations; consumer representative; educational work on fisheries management, and social sciences.
MAFAC was terminated on February 28, 2025. The explanation given by the agency was that “The Secretary of Commerce has determined that the purposes for which the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee was established have been fulfilled, and the committee has been terminated effective February 28, 2025.”
MAFAC provided input “to ensure that NOAA’s policies, programs, and activities are optimal for supporting sustainable fisheries and fishing communities and recovering and conserving protected species,” the agency wrote, helping NOAA maintain “… a complete and accurate understanding of issues critical to the agency's missions.”
Huffman and Dexter are concerned that the current Fisherman in Residence doesn’t meet that need.
“Transparency regarding this position is critical to the continued success of marine fisheries nationwide,” Huffman and Dexter wrote. “The United States is the gold standard for healthy, sustainable fisheries that support 2.1 million jobs, contribute $319 billion to the U.S. economy, and provide American families with a healthy, affordable protein source. “For the sake of the 2.1 million jobs that rely on healthy, sustainably managed fisheries, we seek full transparency regarding the role of “Fisherman in Residence,” the lawmakers said. “…[W]e assume [Delano] is a NOAA employee, has been drawing a federal paycheck, and is advising on fisheries policy within NOAA. However, it is clear from his Facebook posts and other public activities that he continues to serve as an industry association advocate on matters before NOAA, raising questions about his impartiality and ability to serve in the best interests of the American people and fishing communities across the country,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Mr. Delano presents these affiliations in his advocacy and litigation-facing work in areas where NOAA is a decision-maker and, at times, a defendant. His resume lists ‘opposition to offshore wind projects in the Gulf of Maine’ as an accomplishment under his ongoing work with NEFSA. It also reflects his involvement with the Maine Lobstermen’s Association in connection with litigation against the U.S. Department of Commerce, including Maine Lobstermen’s Association v. Raimondo, which challenged NOAA’s actions related to endangered species protections, including for the North Atlantic right whale.
“In other words, Mr. Delano’s non-government roles and professional work involve representing fishermen in litigation and advocacy that directly implicate NOAA and the regulated industries and stakeholders before it,” they wrote.
The letter asks for documents and communications regarding all financial disclosure reports and forms, as well as any other document regarding his role, no later than March 16, 2026 “Mr. Delano may be working inside NOAA on the very matters he was and continues to advocate for on behalf of NEFSA,” particularly a Facebook post in which Delano said he couldn’t testify at an International Trade Commission hearing on deregulatory actions favored by the industries he is working for.
“If Mr. Delano’s job at NOAA is enough to bar him from testifying, it should also bar him from secretly shaping internal agency action that affects the same interests he represents outside government. Unfortunately, without documented recusals and enforced screening, the public has no way to know whether NOAA’s decisions are being made on the merits or because of insider influence to benefit industries and the officials potentially benefiting from their success,” they write.
This is the latest in a series of investigations launched by Natural Resources Committee Democrats into whether federal employees in the Trump administration are complying with federal ethics laws. Those include Tyler Hassen, Principal Deputy Secretary for Policy, Managment and Budget at the Interior Department; Acting Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director Matthew Giacona; and Interior Department Associate Deputy Secretary Karen Budd-Falen.
Seafood Nutrition Partnership’s (SNP) National Seafood Council Task Force Hosts Fall in Love with Seafood
Perishable News by Seafood Nutrition Partnership (SNP) - March 5, 2026
Seafood Nutrition Partnership (SNP), the leading voice for educating consumers on seafood nutrition, will be on hand at the 2026 Seafood Expo North America (SENA) in Boston from March 15-17.
International
EU Continues Importing Russian Fish Despite Sanctions
SeafoodNews by Eugene Gerden - March 5, 2026
The European Union continues to import fish from Russia despite sanctions. In the first half of 2025, Russian fish exports to the EU rose to 122,000 tons, driven mainly by pollock fillets, whose supply more than doubled.
While official figures for the full year 2025 are not yet available, most analysts expect growth to continue at a similar pace.
In 2024, the EU imported fish and seafood from Russia for $751.74 million, with comparable figures expected for 2025.
The EU primarily imports white fish from Russia, especially Pacific cod and haddock, as well as pollock from the Okhotsk and Bering Seas. Russian whitefish has consistently been in high demand among European processors.
The UK also continues to purchase Russian cod, haddock, and pollock despite imposing a 35% tariff on Russian fish in 2022. Many shipments to the UK, however, pass through third countries. Large batches of Russian whitefish are sent to China for processing, then labeled as Chinese products before re-export to the UK.
In 2022, EU sanctions applied only to premium Russian seafood such as crab and caviar. That year, European whitefish imports from Russia reached record highs, with Russian products capturing 27% of the European market, surpassing American products. However, starting January 1, 2024, a 13.7% EU duty on Russian fish caused a 17% drop in exports, boosting US suppliers’ market share.
In 2025, many Russian companies expanded processing capacities, increasing shipments of both fish and high-value semi-finished products to the EU. This helped Russian exporters grow revenues in the EU by 40% over the first nine months of 2025.A significant portion of Russian whitefish consumed in the EU may not appear in official statistics, as much is imported via third countries.
Since 2022, China, South Korea, Norway, and the Netherlands have been major re-exporters of Russian fish. Following the EU’s duties on Russian whitefish, China now plays a key role in processing and redistributing Russian fish products to Europe.
Federal Register
Western Pacific Fishery Management Council; Public Meetings
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 03/06/2026
The Western Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) will hold its 159th Scientific and Statistical Committee (SSC), Program Planning Standing Committee (SC), Executive and Budget SC, and 206th Council meeting to take actions on fishery management issues in the Western Pacific Region.
Magnuson-Stevens Act Provisions; Fisheries Off West Coast States; Pacific Coast Groundfish Fishery; 2026 Pacific Whiting Harvest Specifications, 2026 Tribal Allocation, and 2026 Incidental Set-Aside
A Proposed Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 03/06/2026
NMFS issues this proposed rule to establish the 2026 Tribal allocation of Pacific whiting and set-aside of Pacific whiting for research and incidental mortality in non-groundfish fisheries. The proposed measures are intended to help prevent overfishing, achieve optimum yield, ensure that management measures are based on the best scientific information available, and provide for the implementation of Tribal treaty fishing rights.
2026 Mariculture Conference of Alaska
Alaska Sea Grant
March 10–12, 2026, The Hotel Captain Cook, Anchorage, Alaska
Join us in the heart of Alaska’s largest city for the 2026 Mariculture Conference of Alaska, where ocean views, industry insight and collaborative energy will come together.
Pacific Seafood Processors Association
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Phone: 206.281.1667
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