Russian Seafood Industry Could Bear Huge Losses if Kurils Transferred to Japan

The transfer of the Kuril Islands to Japan, currently discussed by the governments of both Russia and Japan, may cost the Russian seafood industry up to $5 billion USD losses a year and a shortage of salmon in the domestic market, according to recent statements of some independent analysts in the field of fish business and experts of Rosrybolovstvo.

According to analysts, the Kurils could be considered as gates through which all fish, and especially salmon, go to the Russian coast of Kamchatka and Sakhalin.

If they are ...

Restaurant Report: Lent Makes Waves in Seafood Offerings

Lent begins March 6th, and with it comes the advent of the seafood promotional season at many QSR and fast casual concepts. In anticipation of the season, many restaurants have either launched new LTOs, revived previous offerings, or rolled out tests for new menu items.

White Castle Brings Back Seafood Crab Cake Slider and Shrimp Nibblers for Lent

White Castle’s Shrimp Nibblers and Seafood Crab Cake Sliders are back for a limited time – and just in time for the kickoff of Lent on March 6.

While Fish Sliders and Fish Nibblers, both made with Wild Alaskan pollock, are a staple menu item for White Castle, the chain only brings back their Shrimp Nibblers and Seafood Crab Cake Sliders once a year. And this year, the Seafood Crab Cake Slider is an option for White Castle’s new 3 for $3 value deal...

Maine Lobster, Tuna and More Seafood Star on Wolfgang Puck's 2019 Oscars Menu

The 91st Academy Awards are this Sunday and you know what that means – the stars will feast! While all eyes are generally on the Best Picture nominees, foodies focus on what celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck will be serving at the post-Oscars Governors Ball. And just like last year, seafood has a strong presence on the menu.

Wolfgang Puck has been catering the Governors Ball for 25 years and is responsible for the over 30 dish menu...

Southern Oregon Crab Under Evisceration Order Again

After waiting two months for the Dungeness crab season to open in southern Oregon, crab from the are must now be eviscerated before being sold due to elevated levels of domoic acid. The meat remains safe for consumption.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife announced late Thursday the establishment of a biotoxin management zone from Bandon (43° 07’) to the California-Oregon border (42° 00’), effective immediately. Traceability measures will be used to ensure whole crab are...

Oregon Dungeness Crab Tests All Clear of Biotoxins

Capping off a tumultuous Dungeness crab season of spotty open and closed areas from Washington to California, the entire Oregon coast is now open for crab business -- and all without any restrictions. The industry has had to adjust its business plans on the fly since meat recovery rates and high domoic acid levels created open areas a few miles at a time.

Some hiccups still remain regarding northern California crab, as they relate to processing in Oregon and Washington.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture and the...

Russia May Consider Change in This Year's Crab Quota Auctions to 20% Instead of 50%

California, Oregon Choose Different Dates to Open Remaining Coastline to Crabbing

It seems the process to open as much of the coastline as possible to crabbing at the same time went out the window when domoic acid and meat recovery rates became monkeywrenches in the system.

This year's West Coast Dungeness crab season required a lot of industry and fishery managers' time and patience as only some areas showed crab were fully and clear of toxins in December and early January. The new year proved no different as the California/Oregon border area crab had issues stretching past ...

Coast Guard Formalizes Investigation into F/V Mary B II Capsizing

The U.S. Coast Guard announced Tuesday a formal marine casualty investigation has been convened into the sinking of the F/V Mary B II that capsized on the Yaquina Bay bar on Jan. 8.

The marine casualty resulted in the loss of three fishermen's lives and the loss of the vessel, a 42-foot wooden boat the captain purachsed earlier this year.

Rear Adm. David Throop, Coast Guard 13th District Commander, authorized the investigation pursuant to the authority contained in ...

California Delays Part of Northern Dungeness Opening; Oregon Crabbers Deliver Product

The West Coast Dungeness crab openings look like a patchwork quilt of open and closed areas between San Francisco and the Canadian border.

On Monday, California Department of Fish and Wildlife Director Charlton H. Bonham delayed the opening of the commercial Dungeness crab fishery from Patrick’s Point, Humboldt County, north to the California/Oregon state line due to elevated levels of domoic acid. It was originally scheduled to open at the same time as the rest of the northern area, from the California/Oregon border south to the...

Coast Guard Readies West Coast Commercial Fishermen for Safe Crab Season

WARRENTON, Ore. — Coast Guard personnel have worked with many members of the Pacific Northwest fishing fleet during the last four months preparing them to be safe and knowledgeable during the commercial Dungeness crab season beginning soon.

Coast Guard personnel have conducted more than 90 fishing vessel exams and trained more than 75 fishermen during drill conductor courses held at various ports including Coos Bay, Newport, Garibaldi and Astoria, Ore., since September, according to a USCG press release.

The fishing vessel exams ensure the vessels are...

Crab Season Delayed Again in California; Oregon/Washington Seasons in Flux

The West Coast Dungeness crab season openings remain in flux following winter storms the week before Christmas and limited testing in southern Oregon.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced Friday that the Northern California crab season would remain closed until Jan. 15 due to poor meat quality.

A third round of testing showed southern Oregon still has issues with meat recovery and domoic acid, so Curry County and part of Coos County will remain closed for the time being.

A Washington vessel that agreed to ...

NMFS Releases Latest Fisheries of US Report; Alaska On Top for Volume, Value

Alaska topped the U.S. in commercial fisheries landings and value in 2017, according to the latest Fisheries of the United States 2017 report released this week by NOAA.

While Alaska's 6 billion pounds of landings generating $1.8 billion led the nation, fishing and seafood consumption increased across the board last year. Landings and value of U.S. fisheries continued a strong, positive trend, according to NOAA. Fishermen landed 9.9 billion pounds of fish and shellfish in 2017, while the U.S. imported 5.9 billion pounds of seafood, up 1.6 percent.

Given the increases in ...

Commercial Dungeness Crab Season to Open in Sonoma County; Northern Area Remains Delayed

At last -- the northern part of the Central California season will open to commercial crabbing, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced Monday.

Levels of domoic acid dropped to acceptable levels, allowing the area north of San Francisco to open from Bodega Head to the Sonoma/Mendocino county line. Public health agencies have determined that domoic acid no longer poses a significant risk to public health in the area, the agency said.

CDFW Director Charlton Bonham declared the fishery to open at ...

OSU Researchers Contribute to National Climate Report; Warn of More Disastrous Years Ahead

New federal report: Northwest climate could see more years like 2015

By most accounts, 2015 was a very bad climatic year in the Pacific Northwest, with early flooding followed by severe and prolonged summer and fall drought. The results included fish die-offs, irrigation shortages and crop losses, large wildfires, record cases of infectious diseases and reduced recreation, according to a new report from Oregon State University.

A new federal report on the impacts of climate change released on Friday – that includes a chapter focusing on ...

San Francisco Crab Season Opens Nov. 15; Areas North to Mendocino Delayed Due to Domoic Acid

Other changes coming to California Dungeness fishery this season, too

Several Changes are coming to the California Dungeness crab fishery this year, the worst being a season delay for part of the coastline.

The Central Coast/Southern season, frequently referred to as the San Francisco opener, is scheduled to open Nov. 15, but California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director Charlton H. Bonham on Friday delayed the season opening from Bodega Head, Sonoma County, north to the Sonoma/Mendocino county line due to ...

Russian Crab Auction Winners Could Get Tax Breaks; Historical Quota Owners Would Not

The Russian government plans to provide additional tax incentives to companies that participate in the forthcoming crab quota auctions, according to recent statements of some senior officials of the Russian Ministry of Agriculture.

In accordance to the recent proposal of the Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service, the government will suspend a further increase of the existing tax, "for the use of aquatic biological resources," for companies that will receive quotas on the crab catch as a result of the auctions...

Coast Guard Seeks Additional Information in F/V Mary B II Capsizing

The U.S. Coast Guard continues its marine casualty investigation of the fishing vessel Mary B II, which capsized off Newport, Oregon, on Jan. 9, 2019, and resulted in the loss of the three crew members and the vessel.

A public hearing will be held in Newport around mid-spring, the Coast Guard said in a press release Friday.

The Coast Guard also encourages anyone with information pertaining to the loss of the Mary B II provide it to the investigation team by email to...

Russia Plans Accelerated Research Activities and Construction in Domestic Industry

Russia plans to significantly increase funding of research and development activities in the domestic fishing industry during the next several years, according to recent statements of some senior officials from the Russian Ministry of Agriculture and local fishermen.

For this purpose, up to RUB 33 billion ($500 million USD) will be allocated in the building of new research vessels intended for Russian fishermen and marine scientists.

This has already been confirmed by the head of Rosrybolovstvo, Ilya Shestakov, who said at the initial stage...

King Crab and Lobster Again Shine for Chinese New Year, 'The Most Important Dinner in China'

China’s largest-scale shopping carnival has come to an end with the ending of its lunar New Year holiday recently. Impressively, its residents spent more than 1 trillion yuan celebrating the holiday. One new feature of festival consumption is that imported commodities have become increasingly popular and affordable for frenzied Chinese consumers.

According to Alibaba, the country’s e-commerce giant, king crabs have become a hot choice for the festival feast. Their sales ballooned by 769% on its T-mall platform around...

Court Denies California's Attempt to Delay Whale Entanglement Case

A federal court has rejected the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s bid to delay a lawsuit alleging it’s not doing enough to prevent its commercial Dungeness crab fishery from entangling whales and sea turtles in violation of the federal Endangered Species Act.

The Center for Biological Diversity sued the department in October 2017 after whale entanglement numbers broke records for three straight years.

“This is an important win in our fight to protect whales and sea turtles from suffering and dying in crabbing gear...

Smaller Winter Crab Fisheries Give Economic Boost to Coastal Communities

When most people think of Alaska crab, they envision huge boats pulling up “7 bys” for millions of pounds of bounty in the Bering Sea. (7 bys refers to the 7’x7’x3’ size of the crab pots.) But it is the smaller, local crab fisheries that each winter give a big economic boost to dozens of coastal communities across the Gulf of Alaska. They occur at a time when many fishing towns are feeling a lull while awaiting the March start of halibut and herring openers...

Roughly One-Third of Russia’s Fish Harvest Continues to be Lost or Destroyed

Up to 30% of Russian-caught fish and seafood is destroyed, despite the recent efforts of the state to reduce these figures over several years, according to recent statements of some leading Russian fishermen and experts of the Russian Federal Agency of Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo).

According to latest assessments of scientists of the All-Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography, one of Russia’s leading research institutions in the field of fishing, of the 5 million tonnes of fish annually produced in Russia, about 1.7 million tonnes are not used.

In general, most of the ...

Russian King Crab Endure Convoluted Shipping Methods to China

In late December of 2018, 53 tons of live king crab were shipped from Russia to Shanghai. Thanks to new technologies, most king crabs are still alive after the 6-day travel period. Russian seafood used to be flown to Shanghai or arrive there after a transfer in Dalian or Qingdao. But things have started to change since June 2017 when king crab were delivered to Shanghai by sea for the first time.

This new mode of transportation not only brings fresher seafood but also lower costs and greater competitiveness...

Russia Initiates Plans for Pollock, Crab Harvests in Arctic Seas This Year

Russia plans to start more active production of pollock and crab in its Arctic seas during the next several years, according to recent statements of some leading Russian fish producers and officials from Rosrybolovstvo, the Russian fisheries agency.

Plans include increasing production of pollock and crab the Chukchi Sea - a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, bounded on the west by Long Strait, off Wrangel Island, and on the east by Point Barrow, Alaska. Implementation of these plans is already scheduled for the current...

Dungeness Crab Fishery Opens in Southern Washington, Northern Oregon

Some ports and processors in Washington and Oregon were busy over the weekend, loading Dungeness crab pots on vessels in anticipation of the crab fishery to finally get under way this week.

Southern Washington and northern Oregon will open the Dungeness crab fishery, since meat recovery tests showed Long Beach, Wash., crab well above the 23 percent target.

Pre-season test results for the stations off Long Beach were completed over the weekend and showed that meat recovery was 27.9 percent -- an improvement from the 22.8 percent...

Fees for Halibut, Sablefish, Crab Program Costs Increase for 2018

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch. Alaska fishermen who hold catch shares of halibut, sablefish and Bering Sea crab and whitefish pay an annual fee to the federal government to cover management and enforcement costs for those fisheries.  

The fee, which is capped at 3 percent, is based on dock prices through September and averaged across the state. 

This month bills went out to 1,834 holders of halibut and sablefish quota shares, down 60 from last year.

The fee is up slightly for this year...

Russia Tightens its Trade Relationship with Hunchun as Chief Chinese Port of Entry for Live Crab

There has been dramatic increase in Russia’s export to Hunchun city of China’s Jilin province during the first three quarters of this year. Live crabs are one of the winners with the export growing by 277 percent to reach 683 million yuan (~$99 million USD) compared with the same period last year.

In total, 32 companies in Hunchun specialized in seafood trading with Russia. Their total import value has skyrocketed by 1.5 times to reach 1.254 billion yuan...

California Dungeness Crab Season Opener Good for Holiday Sales

The California Dungeness crab season opening was a mixed bag of good sales and high ex-vessel prices.

Fishermen reported an opening price of $3.50 a pound -- one of the highest opening prices on record -- but that price may have been a little bit lower at the very beginning but quickly rose. Preliminary data from the Pacific Fish Information Network (PacFIN) shows the average ex-vessel price for Dungeness crab in California in November was $3.38 per pound. In November 2017, the average price was $3.03 per pound.

Landings are down from last year, however. Crabbers in November delivered 3.14 million ...

Bay Area Consumers Have Dungeness for Thanksgiving; Rest of West Coast Seasons Likely Delayed

The celebrated San Francisco Dungeness crab season starts tomorrow, but delays due to domoic acid or meat quality in other areas are likely, according to officials from Oregon and California.

“California’s Dungeness crab fishery is one of the most progressively designed and collaboratively managed fisheries on the West Coast,” Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations Executive Director Noah Oppenheim said in a press release. “Our crab populations are stable and doing well. Yet climate change continues to threaten crab fisheries in complex and unpredictable ways ...