LISTEN: TAGeX CEO Neal Sherman Talks Media Attention Surrounding Red Lobster Liquidation And More

Join Seafoodnews Podcast hosts Amanda Buckle and Lorin Castiglione as they welcome Neal Sherman, the CEO and founder of TAGeX, a company that has been a resource for businesses in all stages of facility and equipment lifecycle since 1987. TAGeX made headlines this week with the announcement that they were handling the Red Lobster equipment liquidation auctions. And Neal joins the Seafoodnews Podcast to share insight on how those auctions went.

Silver Bay Seafoods, Channel Fish and More Win Latest USDA Seafood Purchase Requests

Earlier this month the USDA issued a handful of bid invitations for seafood products, including catfish, salmon and walleye, and Alaska pollock. While offer invites for the Alaska pollock products ends today, the USDA has already announced the winners for the catfish, salmon and walleye products.

Looking first at catfish, the bid invitation from the USDA went out on May 2. The bid was for a total of 392,000 lbs of catfish products for use in domestic food distribution programs, including unbreaded raw fillets and...

ANALYSIS: Tilapia Market Troubles – Supply Shortages and Supply Chain Disruptions

The tilapia frozen fillet market from China is experiencing significant turbulence, driven by several key factors affecting both supply and demand. U.S. importers are currently facing low inventory levels as the industry expected that supply would improve by late May or early June. However, weather-related setbacks in April, as well as reports of premature harvesting have caused further delays.

The two major tilapia farming regions in China, Guangdong and Hainan, have faced unusual weather patterns, which have contributed to higher mortality rates and...

Japan: March Surimi Products Output Fell 5.2% to 36,547 Tons, Household Spending up 2.9%

The Food Marketing Research & Information Center has released data indicating a significant shift in the national production of surimi products. In March, the production volume stood at 36,547 tons, marking a 5.2% decrease from last year. This trend, which began in February, saw only the other surimi products category, including crab sticks, surpassing the previous year's results, while the production of other categories experienced a decline.

According to a report in the Suisan Keizai Shimbun, this is the second consecutive month that...

VIDEO: Red Lobster Closures; Gulf of St. Lawrence Grid Closures; New Atlantic Sapphire CEO

Urner Barry seafood market reporters Lorin Castiglione and Josh Bickert host the latest episode of the Seafoodnews Weekly Video. Watch as Lorin and Josh break down the top stories of the week, from the shocking closure of a number of Red Lobster locations, to updates on fishing out of the Gulf of St. Lawrence and more...

Cooke Accused of Violating American Fisheries Act and Jones Act

Canadian seafood giant Cooke Inc. has been accused of violating the American Fisheries Act (AFA) and the Jones Act. The allegations stem from a lawsuit that was initially filed in June 2021, but sealed until this past April. However, the issue actually goes back to 2017 when Cooke acquired Omega Protein.

Cooke CEO Glenn Cooke said at the time that the acquisition of Omega Protein would help “further diversify the supply side of our business and support our strategy of responsible growth as a leader in...

Russia Confirms Plans to Increase Volume of Krill Catch This Year

Russia plans to significantly increase the volume of krill catch this year as part of its attempts to become one of the world’s largest krill catchers.

Russia (at that period the USSR) initially conducted complex expeditionary work to study and develop Antarctic krill resources in the 1960s, and began the actual fishing in 1971. Other countries joined later. The fishery was primarily conducted in the Antarctic Atlantic. The record krill catch (528.700 tons) was achieved in 1982, with the share of the...

A Timeline Of Red Lobster Leading Up To May 2024 Liquidation Of Select Restaurants

The largest seafood chain in the U.S. is now part of the “largest restaurant liquidation ever.”

Red Lobster, which has over 700 locations around the world, has been struggling in recent months. And on Tuesday the extent of the seafood chain’s financial issues became apparent when a facility and equipment liquidation company called TAGeX revealed that it would be auctioning off the equipment and contents of select locations this week.

“People have heard about the closure of select...

More Than a Dozen Additional Temporary Grid Closures Announced for Gulf of St. Lawrence

More temporary grid closures in the Gulf of St. Lawrence are being put in place by Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) following the sighting of an entangled North Atlantic right whale (NARW) late last week. 

According to a notice put out by the DFO on Tuesday, fishing is now temporarily prohibited in the following grids beginning May 16, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.: GX36, GX37, GX38, GY36, GY37, GY38, GZ35, GZ36, GZ37, GZ38, GZ39, HA35, HA36, HA37, HA38, HA39,...

17 Industry Groups Ask Congress to Fund North Pacific Fisheries Surveys at No Less Than $15M

A letter from 17 industry leaders to Senators Patty Murray of Washington and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska urged Congress to “prioritize immediate and long-term funding” for the annual surveys of core commercial fisheries populations in the North Pacific done by the Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC). 

The May 10 letter was based on an earlier letter from the Freezer Longline Coalition (FLC), a trade association representing the owners of 19 longline vessels that target Pacific cod, urging the...

Conveyor Belt Sushi Market Increased by 8% in 2023, 5.5% Increase Projected For 2024

The domestic conveyor belt sushi market, as reported by Fuji Keizai, reached a significant size of 782.9 billion yen ($5.04 billion) in 2023. This marked an 8% increase in sales from the previous year. The market maintained a stable number of 4,220 stores, similar to the previous year. Notably, the top chains experienced a recovery in customer numbers, attributed to higher average customer spending and increased stores and sales. The market is projected to grow by 5.5% in 2024, reaching...

Prince William Sound Citizens’ Council Remains Committed to its Mission

Editor's Note: This opinion piece is in response to an opinion piece published earlier this week called “Prince William Sound citizens’ council must recommit to its environmental mission.” 

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council is an independent nonprofit corporation whose mission is to promote the environmentally safe operation of the Valdez Marine Terminal and associated oil tankers. Our work is guided by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and our contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. Although the council is funded chiefly by Alyeska...

NL Snow Crab Drama Continues With Talks Of Plant Worker Strikes

It wouldn’t be Canadian snow crab season if there wasn’t drama in Newfoundland and Labrador. This year the standoff over pricing only lasted a week before harvesters and processors were able to come to an agreement to start the season. But now there are issues on the plant worker side, with the Fish, Food & Allied Workers (FFAW) Union threatening to take a strike vote.

Plant workers, who currently make on average between $16 and $18 an hour, have reportedly been without a deal since...

Pioneering Hi-Tech Crabber “North American” Sinks Near Seattle’s Ballard Bridge

Early Tuesday morning, the well-known Bering Sea crab fishing vessel North American sank slowly in shallow water at a pier in Seattle’s Lake Washington Ship Canal. 

The Coast Guard received a call that the 91-foot vessel was partially sunk at 7:30 a.m. and first responders from the Seattle Fire Department set up a containment boom for oil or fuel leakage. A dive team plugged vents to reduce additional fuel discharges, and a second layer of boom was deployed  ...

Photo of North American courtesy US Coast Guard.

PANOS Brands Acquires Smoked Salmon Producer The Santa Barbara Smokehouse 

Consumer food products company PANOS Brands has acquired The Santa Barbara Smokehouse (SBS), the smoked salmon producer behind the Cambridge House and Coastal Harbor brands. 

“SBS products are differentiated in the marketplace,” commented PANOS Brands CEO Darby Zbninovec. “The portfolio is aligned with consumer trends, including the demand for super-premium quality, and the continued interest in better-for-you foods like smoked salmon that are rich in protein and omega-3. We are excited to partner with customers to expand availability of this distinctive smoked salmon across...

ANALYSIS: Canadian Spring Lobster Season Update

Supply

We're currently in the fourth week of Canada's spring fishing season, and by all accounts, fishing activities have been quite successful. Unlike the fall and winter season, weather conditions have been near perfect as robust landings have been reported across all open LFAs (Lobster Fishing Areas). With the start of the Cape Breton season on the horizon (LFA 27,28,29,30) (Wednesday set), we are entering peak availability for raw material. 

Prior to the start of the spring fishing season, net inventories for both the live and frozen markets were at...

The Retail Rundown: Memorial Day Promotions; Latest CPI Data

Spring is in the air… and the first inklings of summer are making a reappearance too. Memorial Day is less than two weeks out and grocers are enthusiastically preparing for the official start of the grilling season.

Cookout staples like charcoal, outdoor serving ware, grilling cuts, and all things barbeque are migrating toward the front page of circulars, bringing increased visibility to the meat case, deli counter, and prepared foods sections of the store. 

In the week leading up to Memorial Day weekend last year, 78-84% lean ground beef was...