Wednesday, September 24, 2025
- admin04655
- Sep 23
- 5 min read
Alaska
Could this gear innovation curb bycatch in Alaska’s pollock fishery? Trident Seafoods thinks so
The company plans to expand use of a redesigned trawl footrope next year.
Intrafish by Rachel Sapin - September 24, 2025
Trident Seafoods plans to deploy a newly engineered footrope across its entire Alaska pollock fleet next year, part of a broader effort to reduce bycatch and minimize seafloor contact in one of the largest and most valuable US fisheries.
Alaska pollock impacted by warming oceans ahead of quota decision
Alaska pollock shows stable biomass, but some climate-driven impacts, according to a new NOAA survey.
Intrafish by Rachel Sapin - September 23, 2025
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries surveys show Alaska’s pollock biomass remains broadly stable heading into the 2026 harvest season, despite warming ocean conditions, as federal fishery managers review the new data to guide next season’s total allowable catch (TAC).
Research reveals extent of Alaska pollock’s impact on US, Alaska economies
Seafood Source by Christine Blank - September 23, 2025
Two new studies presented at the Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers’ (GAPP) recent annual meeting revealed the economic importance of the Alaska pollock fishery on both the state’s and the country’s economies.
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SE Alaska Economy "Relatively Strong" but Leaders "Losing Confidence" In Federal Government
SeafoodNews.com by Peggy Parker - September 23, 2025
The Southeast Conference is a three-day conference where business and government leaders see newly compiled data from the year prior, updates on current economic indicators, and a look ahead at what residents of the Alaska Panhandle can expect given current economic dynamics.The report was not optimistic about the future.“Recent policy changes have weakened the capacity to provide scientific and regulatory expertise to sectors like seafood and timber, created concerns about the impact of tariffs, and raised questions about future Medicaid coverage and social services funding,” conference economists wrote. “Together, these factors have created a climate of uncertainty that is slowing local hiring and business investment.”In a business survey conducted earlier this spring, the SEAK Conference asked 422 regional leaders if they would benefit from the Trump administration’s economic policies, including increased tariffs, federal worker layoffs and the cutting of government programs. “Just 4% of Southeast Alaska business leaders surveyed this spring believed that they would benefit from President Donald Trump’s aggressive reshaping of the federal government and tariff campaign that he has been pursuing since taking office, according to a survey by Southeast Conference,” wrote the Ketchikan Daily News last week. Southeast Alaska’s economy is driven by five industries, with state, local, and federal government driving 26% of the jobs and 29% of the earnings region-wide. Tourism is the next highest industry, accounting for 19% of jobs and 13% of earnings. Following that is seafood, which declined in 2024 to account for only 7% of the jobs in the region and 7% of the earnings. Healthcare is the fourth largest sector in the region, accounting for 8.5% of all jobs and 11% of all wages in the area. In 2024, wages increased in all sectors except the seafood sector, which declined by $33 million from the previous year. There were 140 fewer jobs than in 2023 in the seafood industry. Catches were also at their lowest since the pandemic in 2020, and the value to fishermen was the second lowest in the past decade.The value of seafood processed in the region dropped by more than half between 2022 and 2024. “The seafood industry continues to face headwinds,” Conference organizers said. “Uncertainty in the market with the unknown impact of tariffs will have downward pressure on ex-vessel value. We continue to face increasing costs of doing business (insurance, fuel, parts, moorage, labor, etc). As harvesters, we have nowhere to pass those additional/ increasing costs on to, all while we are getting paid less per pound than we were decades ago.” This year’s catch as of September 14, was down for all species of salmon except coho, which was up 33% from YOY averages. Pink salmon landings this year, compared to landings two years ago, were down 57%.
Nutrition expert calls for update to US FDA guidelines on seafood consumption“We’re letting the ghosts of the past deprive our future generations of reaching their full potential.”
Seafood Source by Chris Chase - September 23, 2025
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) current guidance on seafood consumption during and before pregnancy – and for young children – highlights the importance of omega-3s, but according to nutrition expert Maya Maroto, it is still focusing more on the fear than the facts.
NOAA reports higher than average number of large whale entanglements in 2024
Seafood Source by Erin Spampinato - September 23, 2025
According to a new report by NOAA Fisheries, the number of large whale entanglements recorded by the agency in 2024 was higher than average, with 95 entanglements confirmed nationally – 87 of which featured entangled animals that were still alive at the time of the entanglement report.
Russian Pollock Fillet Market Expected to Double by 2028
SeafoodNews.com by Eugene Gerden - September 23, 2025
The Russian pollock fillet market is expected to double by 2028, reaching 90,000–100,000 tons, driven by steadily increasing domestic production and consumption.This forecast was recently made by experts from the Russian Association of Fishing Fleet Owners (ASRF) in an interview with local newswire RIA Novosti.According to the Association, more than 40,000 tons of pollock fillets were supplied to the domestic market last year—twice as much as in 2023. This growth was driven mainly by Russian processors redirecting product from foreign markets amid ongoing sanctions, tariffs, and other restrictions on international trade. Association data also show that pollock fillet exports decreased by 35% last year.Further growth in the domestic pollock fillet market is expected to come primarily from increased consumption by state and municipal organizations. ASRF experts estimate the annual pollock consumption potential in this category at approximately 50,000 tons. However, currently, most procurement of pollock fillets in Russia is limited to secondary schools, meaning that legislative amendments would be necessary to expand supply to other organizations.Additional increases in domestic pollock fillet supply will also depend on industry modernization and the launch of new processing facilities—both onshore and via modern trawlers equipped with onboard processing capacity.Production of pollock fillets in Russia continues to rise this year. ASRF experts believe that increased domestic supplies will help mitigate some of the negative factors affecting Russian pollock products in major export markets.Plans for ExportsAt the same time, there are significant plans to further increase exports. According to the All-Russian Association of Fishery Enterprises, Entrepreneurs, and Exporters (VARPE), Russia entered the world’s top three fish fillet exporters in 2024 and aims to strengthen its position further this year.In 2024, Russia supplied 161,000 tons of frozen fish fillets to the global market, according to Indexbox data cited by VARPE, behind Vietnam (648,000 tons) and China (508,000 tons).Currently, Russian pollock fillets are actively supplied abroad, benefiting from competitive prices, high quality, and convenient logistics due to the Far East’s proximity to Asian markets. In 2024, Russian pollock fillets were sold at lower prices than similar products from the US or Norway. This allowed Russian processors to at least partially replace US suppliers in some key markets, particularly South Korea and Japan, where Russian pollock processors have significantly strengthened their positions in recent years.
GAPP touts Alaska pollock fishery’s low carbon footprint
Seafood Source by Erin Spampinato - September 23, 2025
New research has confirmed Alaska pollock's status as a low carbon emission-producing protein.
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