Trump Removing Fishing Restrictions in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument

President Donald Trump announced on Friday afternoon that he will be removing fishing restrictions in the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument, opening up 5,000 square miles in the Atlantic Ocean for fishing. The order to designate that area of the Atlantic Ocean as a national monument was signed by former President Barack Obama during his final few months in office. 

"We're opening it up," said Trump. "Today I'm signing a proclamation to reverse that injustice, to reverse that order from the previous administration....

25 Crew on Two More American Seafood Trawlers Test Positive for COVID-19 in Bellingham

Two more trawlers in American Seafoods' Pacific whiting (hake) fleet have been the center of a COVID-19 outbreak, according to a Whatcom County, Washington Health Department announcement Thursday evening, June 4.

Whatcom County is home to the port of Bellingham, where three American Seafood ships have docked in the past week. The first, American Dynasty, has now confirmed 94 positive tests, plus one crew member recovering in the Bellingham hospital. Initial test results reported 86 positives cases, but further testing of the 124-person...

Tuna Companies Look to Halt Price-Fixing Antitrust Case as They Battle Class Certifications

The trio of tuna giants involved in a price-fixing class action suit are asking a U.S. Court of Appeals to halt the case while they dispute class certifications.

Legal counsel for Tri-Union Seafoods d.b.a Chicken of the Sea, Bumble Bee Foods and StarKist argue that if court proceedings continue in its antitrust litigation, they will be flooded with lawsuits.

The defense argued that the companies could be at the risk of “being pecked to death by ducks” if the judge presiding over the antitrust...

ANALYSIS: April Shrimp Imports Increase 6.2 Percent

April imports were released today and showed another increase over the same month last year, continuing the trend set in the first three months. The data showed a 6.2 percent increase over last April to 113.822 million pounds. Urner Barry Consulting expectations were in-line with actual figures against some others that believed imports would fall because of shutdowns across the globe.

Of our top five trade partners, gains from the consensus top two, India (+25.2%) and Indonesia (+44.6%) overpowered less...

ANALYSIS: April Shrimp Imports Increase 6.2 Percent

April imports were released today and showed another increase over the same month last year, continuing the trend set in the first three months. The data showed a 6.2 percent increase over last April to 113.822 million pounds. Urner Barry Consulting expectations were in-line with actual figures against some others that believed imports would fall because of shutdowns across the globe.

Of our top five trade partners, gains from the consensus top two, India (+25.2%) and Indonesia (+44.6%) overpowered less shipments from Ecuador (-30.9%), Vietnam (-10.5%), and Thailand (-5.9%)...

Alaska’s Nonresident COVID-19 Cases Jump to 41, With 17 New Seafood Related Cases

Yesterday, Alaska’s seafood-related COVID-19 cases jumped by 17 cases to 32, as fishermen, processing workers and other members of the industry arrive to spend months in the state during the summer fishing season. Another nonresident in an undisclosed industry has tested position in the Sitka area, according to the Alaska Health Department.

Ten of the 17 cases are out of Whittier, a small town in Prince William Sound. They were all hired by Whittier Seafoods for the just-opened salmon season in Prince William ...

Gulf of St. Lawrence Now Has 22 Season-Long Grid Closures Due to Right Whales

There are currently 22 season-long grid closures in the Gulf of St. Lawrence following multiple North Atlantic right whale sightings.

Following the death of nine North Atlantic right whales in Canadian waters in 2019, Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced that they would be implementing new fisheries management measures in 2020 to protect the endangered whales. The new management measures include season-long grid closures in the Gulf of St. Lawrence if whales are detected...

NaturalShrimp Commits $2.5 Million to Rebuild in LaCoste Following March Fire

NaturalShrimp, the company behind the first commercially viable system for growing shrimp in enclosed, salt-water systems, announced earlier this week that they have decided to rebuild in LaCoste, Texas, following a March fire that destroyed their main building.

CEO Gerald Easterling confirmed on March 18 that a fire had destroyed the main building at their LaCoste facility, which housed their nursery, grow-out tanks and EC machinery. The fire occurred a couple of weeks after the company received two separate 500,000 shipments of postlarvae shrimp...

NOAA Highlights International Day for the Fight Against IUU Fishing

June 5 marks the International Day for the Fight Against IUU Fishing and NOAA Fisheries highlighted the work that the United States and its global partners do to crack down on the practice in a letter from Assistant Administrator Chris Oliver.

“These are not just problems for fish; these practices hurt law-abiding fishermen, damage the economy, and threaten our food security,” Oliver wrote. “Furthermore, these offenses are often linked to other international concerns, such as human rights abuses, human trafficking, forced labor, and other forms of transnational crime...

American Seafoods to Test Crews on Fishing Vessels Following Outbreak at Sea

Days after 86 members of the crew aboard the American Dynasty, a vessel operated by American Seafoods tested positive for COVID-19, the company has announced it will test all crew members aboard two of its other vessels.

As a precautionary measure, the company will test members on the American Triumph and Northern Jaeger. Both vessels arrived in Bellingham, Washington over the past two days.

American Seafoods said that one crew member of the Northern Jaeger was feeling ill on-board last week and...

NOAA Forecasts Gulf of Mexico “Dead Zone” to be “Larger-Than-Average”

NOAA has released their annual prediction for the Gulf of Mexico “dead zone,” and according to their scientists, the area will be “larger-than-average” this year. The report predicts that the “dead zone” will be approximately 6,700 square miles, which is larger than the long-term average measured size of 5,387 square miles.

“Not only does the dead zone hurt marine life, but it also harms commercial and recreational fisheries and the communities they support,” said Nicole LeBoeuf, acting director of NOAA’s National Ocean Service...

Camanchaca Debuts Wild Argentine Red Shrimp Under Pier 33 Gourmet by Grand Krust Label

Camanchaca’s new Wild Argentine Red Shrimp offering is free of both sulfates and additives and frozen once before hitting the market. The shrimp is being promoted as 100% natural and completely “clean,” with a sweet flavor and beautiful red color throughout.

“At Camanchaca, we are committed to putting both our consumers and the communities we work in at the forefront of all we do.  We are constantly challenging ourselves to provide the best, most delicious seafood in the market,” said Jennifer Mata...

Shrimp Farmers in China Suffer From a Harsh Market, But There Are Some Luckier Ones

Many shrimp prices declined in the Chinese market at the end of May, and some regions like the Pearl River Delta have seen price decrease between 1 yuan/jin to 4 yuan/jin (1 jin=0.5 kilo) compared with the previous week. Farmers complain about continual price contraction, and seemingly they are far from optimistic about the near future.

There are said to be several factors which contribute to such market depression. First is high disease incidence due to recent changeable weather...

COVID-19 Continues to Take Toll on Norwegian Seafood Exports

For the second straight month, the value of Norwegian seafood exports fell, according to the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC).

For the month of May, Norway exported NOK7.8 billion ($863.1 million), a nine percent (NOK 764 million) drop compared to last May.

“The decline in export value is due to losing the restaurant segment in several markets,” Tom-Jørgen Gangsø, Director of Market Insight and Market Access with the NSC said. “In addition, we are experiencing increased freight costs because many passenger aircraft that previously carried fresh seafood are now...

Fishery Agency of Japan Announced a Measure to Address IUU Foreign Fishing Vessels

The Fishery Agency of Japan announced a measure on June 1 to address IUU foreign fishing vessels in the waters around the Yamato Bank of the Sea of Japan.

Significant deployment of fishing patrol boats

The squid fishery off the Sea of Japan is about to enter a full-scale season again this year. The waters around the Yamato Bank is one of the best fishing grounds within Japan. In recent years, illegal foreign fishing vessels aiming at this fishing ground keep invading our waters for...

Kodiak Coast Guard Medevacs Injured Fisherman in Bering Sea's Far North

The call came into the District 17 US Coast Guard Command Center in Kodiak at 1:00 a.m. early last Monday.  A 31-year old fisherman off the freezer-longliner Baranof was injured and needed a hospital. Watchstanders consulted with a flight surgeon and and launched four Kodiak-based aircrews to respond. 

The 196-foot Baranof was in the northern reaches of the Bering Sea, where cod is found in higher numbers than the traditional grounds further south. Often fishermen drive north not just to catch more, but to...

Alaskans Own Celebrates 11 Years, Expands Donations to Needy

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – Getting more fish to Alaskans and the needy.

Alaskans Own, the state’s first EVER Community Supported Fishery, is celebrating 11 years of its subscription service to seafood lovers. 

“A Community Supported Fishery project relies on forward funding from subscribers who pay in the beginning of the season and then receive fish on a regular basis, in our case, it's once a month of the fish coming into Sitka and processed locally.” 

Linda Behnken is director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association in Sitka...

Thai Union Donates Additional Products to Thai Red Cross to Help Those Impacted by COVID-19

Thai Union is continuing to give back during the coronavirus pandemic. The seafood company announced this week that they have donated 10,000 cans of SEALECT sardines as humanitarian assistance to Thailand’s Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP), Ministry of Commerce. The donation will support the mobile kitchen of the Thai Red Cross Society, which is working to help those impacted by COVID-19.

This isn’t the first time that Thai Union has given back during the pandemic. In mid-March the company donated...

Seafood Processors of Newfoundland and Labrador Accuse FFAW of Violating Collective Bargaining Act

FFAW has been feuding with the Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) for the past few months. Now the Seafood Processors of Newfoundland and Labrador (SPOL) are getting involved. The latest drama regarding the groups involves the 14B Committee unanimously agreeing to cease all lobster fishing until June 8.

On June 2 FFAW released a statement on the Committees for 14A and 14B holding an emergency call regarding the lobster fishery on the Northern Peninsula. “As many of you know, the lobster fishery on the Northern Peninsula is...

ANALYSIS: Upwards Pressure on the Scallop Market

As restrictions around the United States are lifted, prices on frozen Atlantic sea scallops during week 23 of 2020 are on the rise. Boat prices have been on a slow incline as more and more states give clearance for foodservice and restaurants to open in limited capacity. With the uptick in sales volume and growing demand for the species during its prime season, key industry players have taken a cautiously optimistic outlook for the coming summer.

Larger sized scallops, like U/10 counts, are...

ANALYSIS: Canadian Lobster Season Starts Strong as COVID-19 Continues to Limit Demand

The Canadian spring lobster season has been underway since mid-April, with the gulf region commencing May 15. The weather has been cooperating and initial landings have been strong. In any other year this would be a welcome relief. However, we are operating in the time of COVID-19. Restaurants are closed, there is very little demand from the foodservice sector, cruise lines are docked, and sales to the re-opened economies in China and Europe have been slow...

Cermaq Appoints New CFO, CTO

Salmon farmer Cermaq announced a pair of executive appointments on Thursday, naming Ole Martin Grimsrud its new Chief Financial Officer and Erlend Reiten as the company’s new Chief Transformation Officer.

Grimsrud recently worked as the CFO for Aker Solutions, he worked in various leaderships for that company since 2012. He holds a Master’s degree in Industrial Economics from Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and has also experience from Elkem and Norske Skog, Cermaq said.

“Aquaculture is an attractive and growing industry being essential to our future,” Grimsrud said...

Alaska Gov. Dunleavy Clarifies Travel Restrictions as Cases Rise for Fourth Day in a Row

Beginning this Saturday, travelers to Alaska will have a test-based option to enter the state, rather than a mandated 14-day quarantine. 

Governor Dunleavy laid out the new protocol Wednesday night as the numbers of positive cases in the state rose by another 18 residents and 2 non-residents. The state-wide total of of active cases is now 122. 

Two Icicle seafood workers in Unalaska have also tested positive bringing non-resident positive cases to 23. Those two cases were Unalaska’s first ....

PHOTO: Ocean Choice International's New Groundfish Vessel, The M.V. Calvert, Arrives in St. John’s

Ocean Choice International is celebrating the arrival of their first new groundfish vessel to join the Canadian offshore fishing sector since the mid-1980s. The M.V. Calvert, a 74-metres long, state-of-the-art, green class, offshore fishing vessel, arrived in St. John’s Thursday morning after its 4,200 nautical mile journey from Turkey.

“Today marks a significant milestone for our company, our 1,700 employees and the fishing industry, one that started over two years ago and has been made possible by the...

Kvarøy Arctic Implements Blockchain to Trace Farmed Salmon to Consumers

Norwegian salmon farmer Kvarøy Arctic will join the IBM Food Trust platform as it looks to enhance the traceability of its Arctic salmon and improve consumer trust throughout its supply chain.

The company noted a significant increase in demand for fresh seafood in the United States amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Kvarøy also noted the growing demand of salmon which grew faster than demand for both beef and poultry.

The increase in demand for salmon helped push the Norwegian-based company to join the IBM Food Trust...

RODA Pushing for Regulators to Adjust Approach to Oregon Offshore Wind Development

The Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) is urging both state and federal regulators to change their approach to offshore wind development off of Oregon.

RODA calling the regulator’s current, process for minimizing conflict between offshore wind energy and fisheries “broken and ineffective.”

The Alliance submitted a public comment letter on June 2 on the engagement plan for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) Oregon Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force.

In the letter, RODA urged BOEM to develop a new plan and engagement model...

Japan April Seafood Exports: COVID-19 Reduces Yellowtail fillets by 80%, Scallops to China up 60%

According to trade statistics released by the Ministry of Finance, the tonnage of marine product exports (seafood and its preparations, and fish meals) in April decreased by 9% from the same month of the previous year to 62,083 tons, and the value decreased by 35% to 15 billion yen ($138 million). In March, the export volume decreased by 11% and the value decreased by 22%, so the unit price has dropped further in April. It appears that the coronavirus pandemic brought...

Europol: 108 Smugglers Arrested, 2 Tonnes of Eels Seized During Operation Lake

Europol’s Operation Lake, aiming to combat trafficking of endangered species in the EU and taking down the organized crime groups overseeing the activities led to the arrest of 108 suspected smugglers and over 2 tonnes of smuggled eels.

The fourth edition of the Operation took place from October 2019 to April 2020. Europol, the EU Wildlife / CITES Enforcement Group, EnviCrimeNet and the EU FOOD FRAUD network coordinated law enforcement authorities from 19 countries across Europe.

During the Operation, the rescued animals were reintroduced to their natural habitats once...

Cooke Aquaculture Scotland Names New Plant Manager

Cooke Aquaculture Scotland announced Gavin Ross has been named Northeast Nutrition Scotland’s plant manager at the Invergordon Feed Mill.

Ross previously worked at SGL Carbon, a company focusing on graphite and composite materials as the Maintenance Manager at its Muir of Ord location. Ross’ earlier experience includes his role as Senior Engineering Manager for Johnson and Johnson overseeing Medical Device manufacturing sites around the world.

“We are delighted to recruit someone of Gavin’s caliber and experience to Northeast Nutrition Scotland” said Chris Bryden, General Manager at Invergordon Feed Mill...

Coast Guard to Offer Dockside Fishing Vessel Exams in Bristol Bay

The U.S. Coast Guard announced on Wednesday that they will be offering courtesy dockside examinations of fishing vessels in Bristol Bay, Alaska, in anticipation of the 2020 Bristol Bay salmon season.

According to the Coast Guard, the exams will be focusing on safety and address any issues that may be present before the operator gets underway. This includes checking on flares, charts, navigational signals, fire extinguishers, emergency position indicating radio beacons and the serviceability of immersion suits. No fines or other penalties will be issued if problems are...