ANALYSIS: Container Rates and Crude Oil Signal Freight Costs Have Not Yet Reached the Shelf

Container rates out of Asia have increased substantially in recent months. Through the most recent print in August, spot rates for 40ft dry containers stood at $9,421 from India's East Coast and $7,960 from India's West Coast, and $10,063 from Vietnam's East Coast — up from a range of roughly $2,500 to $3,000 as recently as this spring, a three-to-four-fold increase over several months...

Nueva Pescanova Sells French Chilled Seafood Business to Ecuador's Omarsa

Nueva Pescanova Group has completed the sale of its chilled products business in France to Ecuadorian shrimp producer Grupo Omarsa, the Spanish seafood company announced on September 30. The deal covers Nueva Pescanova's chilled-products operations in the French market; the company is retaining its frozen products division there, which will continue operating through subsidiary Pescanova France.

The divestment is the latest move in a strategic asset review Nueva Pescanova launched at the start of the year, aimed at improving efficiency and driving value creation...

Norwegian Salmon's Haaland World Cup Push Delivers Strongest US Campaign Results in Five Years

Norwegian salmon strengthened its position among US consumers during this summer's World Cup marketing campaign, according to new research commissioned by the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) and reported by multiple outlets.

Ipsos, the independent research firm that conducted the post-campaign measurement, called it the strongest campaign for Norwegian salmon in the US since NSC began tracking campaign effectiveness five years ago. That assessment came from NSC seafood envoy to the US Karine Rød Haraldsson, cited by both SalmonBusiness and Norwegian outlet iLaks...

BSF Extends Partnership with Lineage Agreement through 2028

Seafood processor and distributor BSF has extended its commercial agreement with temperature-controlled warehousing company Lineage through June 30, 2028, continuing a relationship that spans nearly 25 years.

Under the two-year extension announced Sept. 23, Lineage will continue managing warehousing and distribution for BSF across two dedicated facilities built to serve the company’s operations. BSF stores more than 800 cooked and raw seafood SKUs at the facilities and ships to major food retailers and foodservice companies nationwide.

The agreement comes as BSF, formerly known as Beaver Street Fisheries, moves forward...

Mega Sardines Enters US Retail Market Through Kroger

Philippine food manufacturer Mega Prime Foods Inc. is bringing its Mega Sardines brand to the US market, with the canned sardines set to arrive at Kroger and affiliated retail banners nationwide beginning Oct. 1.

The launch comes as the company cites rising US demand for canned sardines, including volume growth of more than 50% at major retailers and frequent out-of-stock situations. Mega Prime said the rollout is intended to help stabilize supply while expanding the brand’s presence in the market...

Commercial Food Preparers Seek Distribution of $10.4M Tuna Settlement

Lead counsel for the Commercial Food Preparer Plaintiffs (CFPs) has filed a motion asking the court to authorize final distribution of settlement funds in In re Packaged Seafood Products Antitrust Litigation, the decade-long tuna price-fixing case that reshaped the US canned tuna industry. The September 22 filing, made before Judge Dana M. Sabraw in the Southern District of California, covers a distinct plaintiff class from the retail-consumer track that reached final distribution earlier this year...

FDA Warns NY Seafood Importer Over HACCP Gaps, Cat Roaming Warehouse Pallets

FDA has issued a warning letter to South Asian Food Inc., a Maspeth, New York-based importer, citing seafood HACCP violations and insanitary warehouse conditions found during a March 2–9, 2026 inspection.

The letter, CMS #728657, dated Aug. 20, faults the firm for lacking written importer verification procedures with affirmative steps for three vacuum-packed, ready-to-eat dried seafood products: RTE Anchovy with Chilli (Stolephorus indicus), RTE Lotia Bombay Duck with Chilli (Harpadon nehereus), and RTE Golden Dried Shrimp with Chilli, Garlic & Onion (Metapenaeus ensis)...

Pappadeaux Seafood Celebrates 40 Years of Good Times, Great Food and the Spirit of New Orleans

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, the iconic Pappas restaurant inspired by the lively spirit and bold flavors of New Orleans' French Quarter, is celebrating four decades of good times with special dishes, drinks, commemorative glassware and more throughout October.

Since opening its doors in 1986, Pappadeaux has built a reputation for pairing bold coastal flavors with the vibrant energy of New Orleans, creating a dining experience that guests keep coming back to year after year. Forty years later, that spirit...

ICES Advises 102% Increase in Northeast Atlantic Mackerel Catch for 2027

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has advised that Northeast Atlantic mackerel catches in 2027 should be no more than 352,938 tonnes, more than doubling the advice issued for 2026, according to the council's official advice sheet published Sept. 30.

The figure, calculated under ICES's maximum sustainable yield (MSY) approach, represents a 102% increase over the 174,357-tonne advice ICES issued for 2026 — a year in which the council had recommended a 77% cut after finding the stock...

Lawmakers Introduce Bill Requiring More Prominent Seafood Origin, Production Labels

Rep. Tim Moore (R-N.C.) has introduced legislation that would require seafood sold to consumers to more prominently disclose its country of origin and whether it was wild-caught or farm-raised.

H.R. 10580, the Let Americans Buy with Explicit Labeling Act, or LABEL Act, would require packaged seafood to display both the country of origin and production method on the front of the package. The information would need to appear in a font at least as large as that used for the...

NOAA Fisheries Releases Public Comment Summary on Alaska Aquaculture Opportunity Areas

NOAA Fisheries issued a summary of public comments on a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement to identify (or not) one or more Aquaculture Opportunity Areas in Alaska state waters. The report Alaska Aquaculture Opportunity Area Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement Public Scoping Summary Report summarizes input since last April on identifying one or more Aquaculture Opportunity Areas.

The call for comments elicited only 20 comments, but most provided input on all of the prompt questions provided by NOAA, plus one or two other issues...

South Korea Overtakes US in Crab Imports

South Korea moved ahead of the United States in the first quarter of 2026 to become the world's second-largest crab importer after US purchases fell 10%, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported today.

World crab imports were stable at about 92,000 tonnes in the first quarter, but a greater share of the trade moved toward Asia. China took roughly 37% of global imports.

Canadian snow crab exports were low during the quarter as sea ice and price disputes delayed the start of the fishing season...

Japan's Processed Seafood Production Fell 3％ in 2025; Surimi Products Dropped by Half in 30 Years

According to Minato Shimbun, citing newly released statistics from Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), domestic production of processed seafood products for human consumption in 2025—excluding roasted and seasoned nori seaweed—totaled 1,241,499 metric tons, down 3% year over year.

Surimi products remained the largest category, accounting for 34% of total output at 418,747 tons, up 3% from a year earlier. Although this represented an improvement from the record-low volume reported in the previous year...

Mitsubishi Exits Japanese Food Wholesaler Maruichi Sansho in Final Share Buyback

Mitsubishi Corporation has sold its entire remaining stake in Maruichi Sansho, completing an exit from the Japanese food wholesaler that the trading house had signaled was coming, according to a company notice.

Maruichi Sansho bought back 2,312,500 of its own shares from Mitsubishi on Sept. 30 for JPY 2.41 billion (€13.6 million/$15.4 million), a stake representing 11.7% of voting rights, IntraFish reported, citing the stock exchange filing.  The buyback closed via an off-auction transaction on the Nagoya Stock Exchange, completing a repurchase plan...

Expana Exclusive: Supplying 46,000+ Restaurants in Complex Context - McDonald's Supply Chain Leader

Darcy Gilbert, Vice President of Global Food and Beverage Sourcing at McDonald's, leads a global team accountable for overseeing approximately $30 billion in annual spend across 46,000+ restaurants in 100+ markets, and a global network of supplier partners. At its heart, the team’s job is making sure the food customers love shows up in every restaurant, every day. Yet navigating such a vast system in a fast-changing world requires far more than simply leveraging scale.

In an exclusive interview ahead of her appearance...

Class Action Accuses Mama Bear Salmon Owner of Greenwashing Amid Chilean Environmental Violations

A consumer has filed a proposed federal class action against Trapananda Seafarms LLC, the Miami-based North American sales arm of Chilean salmon producer Australis Seafoods S.A., alleging the company's "Mama Bear" brand deceptively markets its frozen Atlantic salmon products as "Sustainably Farm-Raised" despite a pattern of environmental violations at Australis's Chilean farming operations.

The lawsuit, Harris v. Trapananda Seafarms LLC, was filed August 27 in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois by plaintiff Cathryn Harris of Lansing, Illinois. Harris says...

North American Bluefin Tuna Increased Sharply in August at Toyosu Market

According to a report by the Minato Shimbun, Jiji Press data show that the volume of imported fresh tuna arriving at Tokyo's Toyosu Market in August totaled 3,261 fish, up 44.9% from the same month last year. While supplies of wild bluefin tuna and southern bluefin tuna rose steadily, bigeye tuna numbers declined. 

The total number of bluefin tuna reached 770 fish, up from 386 the previous year, effectively doubling. Amid a sharp drop in domestic wild catches, active procurement efforts—particularly from North America...

Japan’s August Marine Products Exports Plummeted by 22% in Volume; Value Increased 18%

According to statistics released by the Ministry of Finance on September 29th, exports of fishery products (including fish, shellfish, prepared seafood products, and fish meal) totaled 39,357 tons in August, down 22% year-on-year (YOY), and 31.67 billion yen ($201.30 million), up 18%. Minato Shimbun reported that scallop exports declined in both volume and value, falling 23% to 4,608 tons and 23% to 6.651 billion yen ($42.28 million). Conversely, yellowtail exports rose 62% to...

California Cold Chain Laws Set to Add Costs for Industry

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed two bills into law that the Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) says will add financial and regulatory burdens to the state’s food and pharmaceutical cold storage industry. Assembly Bill 817 (AB 817) and Senate Bill 716 (SB 716), signed Sept. 30, take effect Jan. 1, 2027. The measures were introduced following a June 17 industrial fire in Los Angeles that affected the Boyle Heights community and surrounding areas.

GCCA opposed both bills, saying they fall short of strengthening emergency preparedness...

Russia, India Discuss Special Processing Zones for Russian Fish Exports

Russia plans to significantly increase exports of fish and fish products to India and is exploring a joint project to process its catch in India.

India has proposed processing Russian fish supplied to its market and re-exporting the finished products back to Russia. To support this, India is prepared to offer Russian fishing companies a special customs regime.

Exports of Russian fish and fish products to India have so far been subject to high duties. However, that could change this year, with the possibility that some duties may be...

ANALYSIS: Chilean Salmon Squeezed as Tariffs, Fuel Costs and El Niño Risk Converge

According to SUBPESCA, accumulated Chilean Atlantic salmon harvest volumes from January to August were 15.4% higher YTD at 523,474 metric tons (mt) (Figure 1). August harvest reached 78,588 mt, up 14.7% month over month (MOM) but down 5.4% year over year (YOY). Market participants doubt this pace continues through Q3 and Q4: lower YOY live biomass in sea cages reflects precautionary destocking tied to El Niño risk, detailed below...

USDA Splits $2 Million Atlantic Pollock Buy Between Two New England Processors

The US Department of Agriculture has awarded a new Section 32 Atlantic pollock contract worth just over $2 million, splitting the purchase between two Massachusetts processors after receiving competing bids — a departure from the agency's most recent pollock buy, which went entirely to a single supplier...

M&S Taps Ireland's Seafood Processor for Exclusive Organic Oak-Smoked Salmon Line

Marks & Spencer has launched an exclusive Organic Irish Oak Smoked Salmon developed with Bantry-based Keohane Seafoods, marking a new supply partnership between the UK retailer and Ireland's largest seafood processor.

The product is the result of a multi-year development process rather than a quick private-label add. Developed exclusively for M&S over three years, the premium ready-to-eat product represents a new collaboration between M&S and Keohane Seafoods, bringing together M&S's commitment to quality with the expertise of Ireland's largest seafood...

Common Cents Act Clears Congress, Giving Restaurants a Federal Cash-Rounding Framework

The penny’s days as a working part of the US cash register are nearing an end, and restaurants are getting a clearer set of rules for dealing with the change.

The Senate passed H.R. 10167, the “Common Cents Act,” on Sept. 28, sending the legislation to President Trump for his signature. The bill would formally end production of pennies for general circulation and establish a federal framework for rounding cash transactions when exact change is unavailable.

For restaurant operators, the legislation provides some...

Value, Convenience Drive Restaurant Choice as Consumers Pull Back on Spending

Restaurant operators may be seeing modest improvement in consumer spending, but diners remain highly price-conscious and increasingly selective about where and how they spend. A new report from Popmenu found U.S. consumers are spending an average of $100 per week on restaurants, up from earlier in 2026 but still $15 below June 2025 levels.

The report underscores a key challenge for operators: consumers still want to dine out, but they are actively looking for ways to spend less. According to Popmenu...

Yumbah Aquaculture Appoints Naomi Matthews as Chief Marketing and Sales Officer

Yumbah Aquaculture has named Naomi Matthews as its new Chief Marketing and Sales Officer, tapping a marketing leader with global seafood and Australian retail experience to lead the company's next growth phase across its multi-species portfolio.

Matthews succeeds Dale Williams, who is retiring as Head of Sales and Marketing. She joins Yumbah from Trident Seafoods Europe and Pickenpack Seafoods, where she served as Managing Director, bringing a combination the company says spans both international seafood marketing and hands-on domestic retail experience...

Atlantic Economic Panel Calls for Seafood Sector to Anchor $100 Billion Natural Resource Push by '35

A federal advisory panel is urging Ottawa and the four Atlantic provinces to treat fisheries and aquaculture as a core pillar of a decade-long economic transformation. The panel named oceans one of just three "opportunity" pillars — alongside natural resources and defense — in a new blueprint for Atlantic Canada's growth through 2035.

The Atlantic Economic Panel, chaired by Don Mills and commissioned with support from federal minister Sean Fraser, released its "Bolder Ambitions: Greater Prosperity for All" report identifying seafood... 

ANALYSIS: Rising Freight and Fuel Costs Support Firmer US Frozen Tuna Market

The frozen tuna market has taken on a firmer undertone as rising freight and fuel costs continue to work into replacement values. Market participants have increasingly pointed to higher transportation costs as a factor behind firmer offers, particularly on product moving from Asia to the US East Coast. Ocean freight remains elevated and uneven, with carriers continuing to manage capacity through blank sailings, port omissions and tighter booking controls. At the same time, higher fuel costs continue to add expense throughout the supply chain, from fishing and processing through...

NCLA Asks for Summary Judgment in Case Over WDFW Electronic Monitoring Program for Crab Fleet

The New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) filed a brief last Friday asking for summary judgment in Franey and Young v. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, arguing that the WDFW's opposition motion contained concessions supporting much of the plaintiffs' case that the agency's new Electronic Monitoring Program for crab boats is unconstitutional.

Plaintiffs Sarah Franey, Brent Young and Mark Young — all crab captains fishing off Washington State — are represented by the law firm Davis Wright Tremaine and the NCLA...

US Scallop Imports, Chilean Mussel Exports Fell Sharply in Q1

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations reported today that mussel and scallop trade weakened in the first quarter of 2026, while oyster and clam flows changed little.

Mussel shipments returned to around 2024 levels after an exceptionally strong first quarter in 2025. Chile remains the world's largest mussel exporter, but its shipments fell to about 22,000 tonnes during January-March, down 6,000 tonnes year-on-year. Spanish exports also declined as harvesting closures and mortality events in Galicia reduced available supply...