Wednesday, December 31, 2025
- Dec 31, 2025
- 9 min read
Alaska
A look back at Alaska fisheries in 2025
Kodiak Daily Mirror by Terry Haines - December 30, 2025
Here’s a look back at some of the significant stories for Alaskan fisheries in 2025:
The North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) at a special meeting in February reviewed potential measures they could take to limit chum salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock fishery.
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Board of Fisheries seeks Kodiak finfish proposals
Kodiak Daily Mirror by Staff - December 29, 2025
The Alaska Board of Fisheries is calling for proposals to change fishing regulations affecting Cook Inlet and Kodiak finfish fisheries, with submissions due in April
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National
2026 US seafood market X-factors: Production, biological issues, tariffs to decide salmon’s course
While farmed salmon works through a period of recalibration following the excesses of 2025, tight wild salmon supply is likely to continue providing price support, particularly in premium segments, shaping substitution dynamics across global markets
Undercurrent News by Lorin Castiglione, Liza Mayer and Ben Fisher - December 30, 2025
The global salmon market enters 2026 like an injured gymnast teetering on a beam, searching for balance after one of its most volatile years in recent memory [...]
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2026 US seafood market X-factors: Production to play major role in lobster, crab, scallop sales
Undercurrent News' combined team of journalists and price analysts take a look at live lobster, lobster tails, snow crab, king crab, scallops and crabmeat...
Undercurrent News by Jason Huffman, Gary Morrison, Ben Fisher, Lorin Castiglione and Barb Dean-Simmons - December 29, 2025
The US seafood market could be tough sledding next year for the one group of commodities that typically are priced the highest: high-end shellfish items [...]
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2025: A Pivotal Year Reordering Global Seafood Trade and Policy
Expana by Ryan Doyle - December 31, 2025
The year 2025 marked a watershed in seafood trade and policy with transformative impacts felt across international supply chains, domestic regulations, and industry competitiveness. At the center was President Trump’s sweeping reciprocal tariff regime, reshaping sourcing and pricing dynamics from shrimp to crab, while high-profile regulatory actions, from the FDA's radioactive shrimp recalls to NOAA’s Marine Mammal Protection Act import bans, reverberated through global markets.
Domestically, the Trump administration launched bold initiatives, including an executive order to cut regulatory burdens and a strategic roundtable to fortify Alaska’s seafood industry, signaling coordinated efforts to boost American producers amid mounting global pressures. As the landscape shifted, industry stakeholders grappled with record prices, shifting trade flows, import scrutiny, and judicial rulings affecting monitoring and compliance.
This robust roundup recaps the critical developments defining 2025’s seafood sector, setting the stage for what looks to be another consequential year ahead.
Trump Tariff Regime Upends Global Seafood Trade
President Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal tariff” framework reshaped seafood supply chains in 2025. Baseline 10% duties were paired with steep country‑specific rates, up to 50% on Brazil and India, hitting shrimp, lobster, and other exports. China faced triple‑digit rates early in the year before a late‑season truce tied to agricultural purchases. Tariff pauses and product‑specific exemptions created windows for some trade, but uncertainty led importers to front‑load inventories and explore alternative sourcing.
FDA Advisory Sparks Indonesian Shrimp Recalls Over Cs-137
In August 2025, the FDA issued a public advisory and initiated recalls after US Customs detected trace levels of the radioactive isotope Cesium-137 (Cs-137) in a sample of breaded shrimp from Indonesian supplier PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati (BMS Foods), whose products were sold as Great Value brand at Walmart stores in over a dozen states. Although the detected levels were well below the FDA’s safety intervention threshold and none of the contaminated shipments entered US commerce, the incident triggered automatic import detentions, retailer recalls, and widespread media attention.
Find Expana’s coverage on the Cs-137 shrimp situation here.Find Expana’s initial coverage on the recalls here.
NOAA’s MMPA Ban Disrupts Global Crab Meat and Seafood Supply Chains
NOAA’s MMPA import rules triggered widespread trade disruption in 2025 after the agency completed its comparability reviews and placed several countries and specific fisheries on the “no-comparability” list, barring fish and fish products from those fisheries from entering the US starting January 1, 2026, unless compliance gaps are resolved. The prohibitions are set to impact various fisheries. Some seafood companies and trade bodies made headlines by suing the federal government, arguing that specific sources would be shut out of the US market, impacting jobs and businesses. This regulatory shift spurred rapid industry responses, governments and exporters racing to amend legislation, buyers rerouting supply chains, and US regulators increasing import screening and documentation efforts, all underscored by NOAA’s focus on marine mammal protections and ensuring foreign fisheries maintain standards comparable to US law.
Trump Executive Order Aims to Revitalize US Seafood Industry and Ease Regulatory Burdens
On April 17, President Trump signed an executive order mandating federal agencies—including Commerce, Agriculture, and USTR—to develop strategies for boosting American seafood competitiveness. The order initiated a six-month review of regulatory barriers, instructed regional councils to recommend targeted reforms, and called for improved technology in fisheries management and monitoring of high-risk imports linked to IUU fishing.
On September 9, Alaska's seafood industry rallied with state lawmakers, top fisheries leaders, and senior Trump administration officials—led by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins—to advance a “whole-of-government” strategy under President Trump’s 2025 Executive Order on Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness.
Crab Trade 2025: Prices Hit Record High as US MMPA Looms
A year of surging prices and shifting flows culminates in a crab market transformed by high demand and new US rules. Alaska’s king crabs and snow crabs commanded record prices, while harvests expanded, driving a US-centric trade tilt. Canada and Norway stepped up shipments to the United States, with Canada posting its strongest US snow crab year in over a decade and Norway expanding its US footprint even as global demand shifts toward North America. All while Russia remained sidelined from the US market.
FDA Border Detentions Target Short-Weighted Frozen Seafood Imports
In September, the FDA reported that more than a third of sampled imported frozen seafood products were short-weighted, meaning net weights were inflated by including ice glaze, violating US labeling rules and constituting economically motivated adulteration. Of 28 retail‑pack samples collected at ports from four countries, 10 (eight shrimp, two squid) fell 2.3–9.9% short, with all detained and refused entry under Import Alert 99‑47. Indonesia accounted for most violations, with others from China and Vietnam. The agency linked results to ongoing risks in ice‑glazed seafood, reaffirming the need for continued testing to prevent deceptive practices in products such as shrimp, squid, and fish fillets.
Court Backs Industry-Funded At-Sea Monitoring for Atlantic Herring Fleet
On July 18, a Rhode Island federal judge upheld NMFS’s rule requiring Atlantic herring vessels to cover the costs of at‑sea observers, finding the program lawful under the Magnuson‑Stevens Act. Judge William E. Smith’s decision marks one of the first post‑Chevron rulings where the court exercised independent statutory interpretation, following the doctrine’s repeal in 2024’s Loper Bright case. Smith noted the government’s long‑standing practice of not reimbursing regulated entities for compliance costs and rejected fishermen’s challenge, which targeted the cost‑sharing aspect rather than the rule’s legality. The ruling underscores agencies’ ability to implement industry‑funded monitoring in fisheries management despite shifting judicial review standards.
USDA Set to Add Seafood Liaison, Funding for Aquaculture and School Meals in Appropriations Bill
The Senate Appropriations Committee advanced the FY2026 ag‑funding bill that creates a USDA seafood industry liaison (funded at $625,000) to coordinate seafood policy with Commerce and USTR, push seafood into school nutrition programs, and support precision aquaculture and RAS development to bolster domestic production. The package also directs FDA guidance on plant‑based seafood labeling and funds regional food business centers—moves aimed at strengthening domestic processing, marketing, and school access while signaling growing Capitol Hill support for an America‑first seafood strategy.
https://seafoodnews.com/Story/1329294/2025-A-Pivotal-Year-Reordering-Global-Seafood-Trade-and-Policy
International
No 2026 Deal as Russia–Japan Fisheries Talks Stall
SeafoodNews by Eugene Gerden - December 30, 2025
Russia and Japan have failed to reach an agreement on fisheries for 2026. The two countries hold annual negotiations to set quotas, identify target species, and establish catch conditions. These arrangements have governed operations in the Southern Kuril Islands since 1984.
Japanese Minister Norikazu Suzuki said the prospects for further dialogue remain unclear, with Tokyo seeking a solution that protects national interests.
Contacts between the parties may continue. For Russia, the Japanese market is relatively minor in terms of imports. According to Kommersant, citing industry sources, Japanese seafood imports accounted for just 0.04% of Russia’s total supply in 2024–2025. These consist mainly of scallops, rare octopus species, and similar products.
In contrast, Japan is more dependent on Russian seafood. Annual imports from Russia are estimated at 120,000–140,000 tons, primarily salmon, crab, and sea urchins. The Japanese news agency Kyodo reported that failure to agree will mostly affect Pacific cod and salmon supplies, as catches have been declining in recent years due to biological factors. For Japan, wild red salmon species—including sockeye, coho, chum, and pink—are high‑margin products in strong demand.
Japanese access to fisheries off the Russian Southern Kuril Islands has been restricted since 2022, when Tokyo joined sanctions against Russia. The sides reached a limited agreement the following year covering specific activities, such as laminaria harvesting off Signalny Island and mutual fishing in exclusive economic zones. In 2025, Japanese vessels were allowed to catch up to 125 tons of salmon in Russian waters for a payment of about 300 million yen.
Some Russian analysts believe an agreement could still be reached soon, noting that fisheries cooperation remains a priority for Japan.
Russia raises its value of 2025 seafood export to China amid high pollock prices
Value of crab supplies remained stable while fishmeal prices fell sharply.
Intrafish by Evgeny Vovchenko - December 30, 2025
Russia has taken advantage of price hike for pollock to increase the overall value of its seafood exports to China in 2025.
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Federal Register
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; North Pacific Halibut and Sablefish Individual Fishing Quota Cost Recovery Program
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 12/31/2025
NMFS publishes the individual fishing quota (IFQ) standard prices and fee percentage for cost recovery for the IFQ Program for the halibut and sablefish fisheries of the North Pacific (IFQ Program). The fee percentage for 2025 is 2.4 percent. This action is intended to provide holders of halibut and sablefish IFQ permits with the 2025 standard prices and fee percentage to calculate the required payment for IFQ cost recovery fees due by January 31, 2026.
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; North Pacific Observer Program Standard Ex-Vessel Prices
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 12/30/2025
NMFS publishes standard ex-vessel prices for groundfish and halibut for the calculation of the observer fee under the North Pacific Observer Program (Observer Program). This notice is intended to provide information to vessel owners, processors, registered buyers, and other Observer Program participants about the standard ex-vessel prices that will be used to calculate the Observer Program fee associated with landings of groundfish and halibut made in 2026. NMFS will send invoices to processors and registered buyers subject to the fee by January 15, 2027. Fees are due to NMFS on or before February 15, 2027.
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; North Pacific Observer Program Standard Ex-Vessel Prices
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 12/30/2025
NMFS publishes standard ex-vessel prices for groundfish and halibut for the calculation of the observer fee under the North Pacific Observer Program (Observer Program). This notice is intended to provide information to vessel owners, processors, registered buyers, and other Observer Program participants about the standard ex-vessel prices that will be used to calculate the Observer Program fee associated with landings of groundfish and halibut made in 2026. NMFS will send invoices to processors and registered buyers subject to the fee by January 15, 2027. Fees are due to NMFS on or before February 15, 2027.
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Alaska License Limitation Program for Groundfish, Crab, and Scallops
A Notice by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 12/30/2025
The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment preceding submission of the collection to OMB.
Fisheries of the Exclusive Economic Zone Off Alaska; Reallocation of Pacific Cod in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area
A Rule by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on 12/30/2025
NMFS is reallocating the projected unused amount of Pacific cod total allowable catch (TAC) from vessels using jig gear, to catcher vessels less than 60 feet (18.3 meters (m)) length overall (LOA) using hook-and-line or pot gear in the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands (BSAI) management area. This action is necessary to allow the A season allowance of the 2026 TAC of Pacific cod to be harvested.
FYI’s
SEG Video: Seafood in a Changing Climate: Causes, Consequences, and Mitigations
SeafoodSource by SeafoodSource Staff - December 31, 2025
An on-demand video of “Seafood in a Changing Climate: Causes, Consequences, and Mitigations” is available free for SeafoodSource Premium members and for USD 500 (EUR 427) to non-members through the Complete Digital Ticket: Seafood Expo Global.
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