Wild Alaska Salmon Season Starts With Alaska Air Cargo Delivering More Than 64,000 Lbs. to Seattle

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 18, 2018

Fresh fish is in flight.

Alaska Air Cargo announced on Friday that they’re set to deliver more than 64,000 pounds of wild Copper River salmon to Seattle … today.

“Alaska Airlines plays a significant role in supporting the Alaska seafood industry, which is recognized worldwide for its sustainable fishing practices,” Alaska Air Cargo managing director Jason Berry said in a press release. “Our cargo employees are working around the clock to ...

ASMI Celebrates Wild Alaska Salmon Season with Summer Grilling Push

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 18, 2018

Need a reason to grill this weekend? Look no further than the start of the harvest season for wild Alaska salmon.

The harvest season kicked off on Thursday, May 17 with sockeye and king salmon, but pink, keta and coho salmon will be coming to the docks throughout the summer. For the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI), the start of the season is the perfect reason to throw some fish on the grill.

Salmon boasts omega-3 fatty acids ...

Land Based Fish Farm Being Built in South Africa

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 17, 2018

Cape Nordic Corporation (CNC) has signed a contract with Gråkjær, a Denmark construction company that builds commercial, aquacultural and agricultural facilities, to complete a large-scale fish production facility near Cape Town in South Africa.

With an increased demand for fresh fish in African markets, CNC is looking to build a new facility that contains a hatchery to produce 1,800 tons of sea trout a year. According to Erik B. Rasmussen, the Danish director of CBC, Africa has been importing huge quantities of ...

Bristol Bay Salmon Fishermen Set Record for Chilling Their Fish

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - May 16, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – A big chill at Bristol Bay.

Salmon fishermen at Bristol Bay set a record last summer for chilling their fish.

Despite a surprise hit of one of the biggest sockeye runs in 20 years, 73 percent of the sockeye deliveries by the Bay’s nearly 15-hundred driftnet boats were chilled.

That’s a five percent increase over the prior year – and compares to a 24 percent chilling rate from 2008 ...

Listen to the Latest Seafood News Podcast Episode: Groundfish Market, FDA Menu Labeling and More

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 14, 2018

Join Seafood News Podcast co-hosts Amanda Buckle and Lorin Castiglione in the latest episode as they break down the latest on the groundfish market and give an update on the new FDA menu labeling requirements. Plus, find out the latest in plant-based seafood alternatives and join in on the debate surrounding wild vs. farmed salmon.

This podcast is brought to you by Urner Barry’s Comtell App. Listen and download for free on ...

Start to Alaska Salmon Season Just One Week Away

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - May 10, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – It’s nearly salmon time! 

The official start of Alaska’s salmon season is just one week away with the first 12 hour opener on May 17 at the Copper River near Cordova. The catch there this year calls for 19,000 kings and just under one million sockeye salmon (942,000).

Statewide, Alaska’s 2018 salmon harvest is projected at 149 million fish, down 34 percent from last year’s take of 226 million ...

New Zealand King Salmon Confirms Harvest Volumes of 8,000 tons

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by John Sackton - May 9, 2018

New Zealand King Salmon, the largest producer of farmed king salmon, has affirmed it will produce about 8,000 tons this year.   This is in line with previous guidance given by the publicly traded company.

Earlier this year, warm water temperatures were challenging for fish survival, however since March, temperatures have returned to morenormal, cooler levels.  The company said fish growth has been consistent with their prior forecast...

May Marks Official Start of Alaska Salmon Season

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - May 3, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – May means the start of salmon season.

May marks the official start of Alaska’s salmon season with the return of sockeyes and kings to the Copper River near Cordova.  State managers will announce the first opener any day – usually mid-month. That will be followed by other salmon fisheries throughout the state.

 Alaska’s 2018 salmon harvest is projected at just over 147 million fish, down 34 percent due to an expected shortfall of ...

AquaBounty Receives FDA Approval For Commercial Production AquAdvantage Salmon Facility in Indiana

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 27, 2018

AquaBounty Technologies has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to raise AquAdvantage Salmon at their land-based facility near Albany, Indiana.

AquAdvantag Salmon is a genetically enhanced Atlantic salmon that can grow to market size “in about half the time of traditional farmed Atlantic salmon.” The salmon is grown at the FDA-approved Indiana facility, the former location of Bell Aquaculture Fish Farm, which has a production capacity of 12000 tons per year ...

ADF&G Gets Small Budget Boost for FY 19

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio With Laine Welch] - April 24, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch. The commercial fisheries budget is set for a boost.

The commercial fisheries division is in line for a slight increase to its $69 million operating budget that will benefit projects around the state.

The budget, plus a nearly one million dollar increment, added by Representative Dan Ortiz of Ketchikan, was passed by Alaska  lawmakers.

“The amount is the same, the projects are the same, but the house version had them in our ...

Research Models How Deadly Virus Moves Among Columbia River Salmon, Trout

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 23, 2018

For the first time, researchers studying a deadly virus modeled how it spreads to young salmon and trout in the Columbia River Basin, showing that migrating adult fish are the main source of exposure.

The ecological modeling of the infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus, or IHNV, shows how it moves across the landscape over time, providing a crucial understanding for managers of hatchery programs attempting to protect juvenile salmon and trout.

"Knowing the relative role of these transmission pathways and ...

Norwegian Seafood Council Launches "Seafood From Norway" Quality Logo

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [The Nation] - April 20, 2018

The Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC), the representative of the world’s number one salmon exporter, in partnership with Thammachart Seafood Retail Co Ltd, has introduced the “Seafood from Norway” country-of-origin logo, as a trademark of quality.

The NSC works with the Norwegian fisheries and aquaculture industry to develop markets for Norwegian seafood. In Thailand, Thammachart is using the NSC’s Seafood from Norway brand, particularly for salmon. “Nobody knows salmon like the Norwegians”, said Jon Erik Steenslid, NSC’s regional director. “Norway is a country with a long, celebrated tradition of ...

Salmon vs. Goliath in Fight for Habitat Protections

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - April 17, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – It’s Alaska salmon versus Goliath when it comes to habitat protections. 

Resource developers are pulling out all stops to muddy the waters about the push underway to update and strengthen Alaska’s salmon habitat protection law for the first time since statehood.

Since early January the group Stand for Alaska has raised over $2 million to stop a ballot initiative this fall.  That’s 10 times more money than the grassroots group Yes for Salmon has raised ...

Frozen Salmon Prices Rise as Shortages Hit Beijing, Other Areas, After Smuggling Crackdown

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [FishFirst] translated by Amy Zhong - April 16, 2018

Recently China’s customs has cracked down on salmon smuggling . After this, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have suffered from frozen salmon shortages and the situation is especially serious in Huangsha Seafood Market of Guangzhou. Salmon prices have been increasing through April 8. Though importers like Sunkfa can still receive their ordered salmon, the supply hardly meets market demand.

According to insiders, the suspects involved in the case purchased very large quantities of salmon on a daily basis ...

Acme Smoked Fish Wins 2 Awards From Specialty Food Association

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 12, 2018

Brooklyn-based Acme Smoked Fish Corp. is being recognized for their Blue Hill Bay BBQ Smoked Salmon and Honey Maple Salmon. The fourth-generation smoked fish purveyor announced on Thursday that they took home two sofi awards from the Specialty Food Association.

Sofi stands for “specialty outstanding food innovation.” The awards are given to products that represent the “best of the beset in the specialty food industry.”

Acme Smoked Fish’s BBQ Smoked Salmon from their ...

New Zealand King Salmon Now Offering Four-Star BAP Salmon

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 10, 2018

New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS) is now offering four-star Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) salmon. The company announced on Tuesday that the Global Aquaculture Alliance awarded them with a fourth star for responsible aquaculture production, making them the world’s first King salmon producer and the first salmon producer in Australasia to achieve four-star status.

“Put into restaurant terms, this is the equivalent of earning a Michelin star,” NZKS CEO and managing director Grant Rosewarne said in a press release ...

Copper River Opens to Slow Catches, Record Prices

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - May 18, 2018

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch.

Alaska’s salmon season got off to a slow start on Thursday at the Copper River delta near Cordova. The fishery for sockeyes and kings opened at a drizzly 7am with more than 500 gillnetters on the grounds.

“So far, a lot of pictures of empty nets being posted on Facebook.” 

Bill Webber and his crew were waiting out a slack tide aboard the Paradigm Shift a few hours into the 12-hour opener ...

Companies and Chains Cash in on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Royal Wedding

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Amanda Buckle - May 16, 2018

Didn’t receive an invite to the royal wedding this weekend? Well, you can at least dine like a royal while Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tie the knot at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor. Multiple companies are cashing in on the nuptials – and U.K. smoked salmon company John Ross Jr. is one of them.

The supplier to Her Majesty The Queen is celebrating the royal wedding with their limited-edition rum cured smoked salmon ...

China Submerges First Salmon Cage Off Qingdao; Industry Hopes it Will Help with Salmon Shortage

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [FishFirst, News163] translated by Amy Zhong - May 16, 2018

China’s salmon wholesale prices have been increasing due to insufficient supply from overseas suppliers. As statistics on May 5 show, the prices of frozen salmon have already exceeded 100 yuan/kg ($15.68/kg USD) in both Beijing and Guangzhou, while a similar situation is likely to occur to Shenzhen in the near future. Faroe islands salmon are sold at 110 yuan/kilo in Beijing, while the ones from Scotland are ...

U.S. Salmon Importer North Landing Acquired By Bakkafrost

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 14, 2018

Clifton, New Jersey, salmon importer and distributor North Landing Ltd. has been acquired by Bakkafrost, the leading producer of salmon from the Faroe Islands.

Bakkafrost made the announced n Sunday, confirming that they have “entered into a conditional share purchase agreement with the owners of North Landing Ltd. to purchase all outstanding shares of the company.” North Landing has been a customer of Bakkafrost for over 10 years, and was the first U.S. company to import fresh salmon from the Faroe Islands ...

Marine Harvest Q1 Results: Estimated Harvest Volumes Reduced for 2018

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - May 9, 2018

Marine Harvest has released their first quarter results for 2018.

The company is reporting operational earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of EUR 158 Million, or approximately 187 million US, which is a decrease from the EUR 219 reported in Q1 of 2017. The decrease is reportedly due to reduced market prices from record high levels.

Earnings before EBIT came out to EUR 270 million, or 320 million USD, which is an increase from the first quarter in 2017 ...

Low Share of Aquaculture Continues to Drive Russian Fish Exports

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] by Eugene Gerden - May 8, 2018

Russia plans to continue to increase its exports of fish and seafood abroad in years to come, according to recent statements of some leading Russian fish producers and senior state officials.

In 2017, fish and seafood accounted for about 17 percent in the overall structure of food and agricultural products out of Russia. The main export position in this segment was frozen fish. After the decline in 2014 (up to 1.1 million tons), the country's exports has been growing for ...

Researchers Conduct First Land-use Study of Future Food Systems Focusing on Aquaculture

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] by Susan Chambers - May 1, 2018

A new study by California researchers shows land-based aquaculture could help solve protein problems and terrestrial biodiversity in the future.

To satisfy the protein demands of an anticipated nearly 10 billion people by 2050, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and researchers around the world estimate current animal production will need to grow by an average of 52 percent. Meeting this need without pushing the environment to the brink will be critical.

New evidence shows ...

California Federal Court Approves Bumble Bee Salmon Label Settlement

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 26, 2018

Back in February Bumble Bee Foods settled a class action lawsuit by agreeing to repackage their smoked salmon product. Now a federal court in California has given the final approval on the settlement.

The class action suit was brought against the company in December 2017 over “false advertising.” Miguel Rodriguez, a consumer in California, claimed that Bumble Bee’s Premium Select Medium Red Smoked Salmon Fillets Oil “deceptively stated or suggested the product was smoked, wild-caught salmon, when it was actually ...

Live Atlantic Salmon Available in Yantai of Shandong Thanks to Oriental Ocean's Aquaculture

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Shuichan] translated by Amy Zhong - April 24, 2018

Atlantic salmon are swimming freely inside the aquaculture facility of Oriental Ocean, an aquatic company in Yantai of Shandong. This is the first time live salmon have appeared in China. Now locals can get access to very fresh salmon meat.

Salmon are mostly raised in sea cages abroad, but some overseas companies have been challenged by problems of diseases, parasites, high cost and limitation of supply in recent years. It is likely that Oriental Ocean’s indoor industrialized aquaculture will  ...

Norwegian Government Rejects Marine Harvest's Cargo Ship Fish Farm Concept

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 20, 2018

In June 2016 Atlantic salmon producer Marine Harvest sent an application to the Norwegian government seeking to turn an old cargo ship into a salmon farm. Now, almost two years later, the Norwegian Fisheries Directorate has rejected their application for licenses.

Sea lice has not only threatened farmed fish in open waters, but young wild salmon as well. In 2017 the country began to freeze certain productions that caused a severe threat to wild salmon. While Marine Harvest was using “cleaner fish” to feed on ...

SalMar Acquires MariCulture, Developing Smart Fish Farm

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 17, 2018

Norwegian farmed salmon producer SalMar ASA announced late last week that they have acquired 51% of the shares in MariCulture AS.

SalMar will be working with MariCulture to develop and complete a “Smart Fish Farm,” an offshore fish farm that has the ability to operate under “rough weather conditions.” A unique concept, the Smart Fish Farm will be able to withstand wave heights of up to 15 metres. Once completed, the Smart Fish Farm will make it possible to operate at the high seas ...

Applebee’s Adds Shrimp, Salmon to Bigger, Bolder Grill Combos Offer

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 17, 2018

Applebee’s is giving customers a break this Tax Day. Inspired by the amount of things that people have on their plates, the chain restaurant is bringing back their Bigger, Bolder Grill Combos.

“This can be a stressful time of the year, and we know how important a good meal with friends or family is to help our guests relax and unwind,” said Applebee’s Chief Marketing Officer Joel Yashinsky. “Our Bigger, Bolder, Grill Combos special takes the pressure off deciding between ...

Tassal Expansion Plans Approved By Court, But Environmentalists Will Continue Fighting

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] - April 13, 2018

Despite efforts from environmentalists to stop salmon giant Tassal’s expansion plans, the court has rejected arguments in two separate decisions.

According to Australian Broadcasting Corporation News, environmental organizations were seeking to “invalidate the approval given by Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg for Tassal, the state’s biggest salmon producer, to expand its operation into Okehampton Bay where it has had 28 pens of fish in place since August last year.” However, a judge determined that the ...

West Coast Salmon Seasons Set After Week of Tensions, Struggles

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Seafood News] by Susan Chambers - April 12, 2018

This week the Pacific Fishery Management Council adopted ocean salmon season recommendations that provide recreational and commercial opportunities for most of the Pacific coast, and achieve conservation goals for the numerous individual salmon stocks on the West Coast.

“It has been another challenging year for the Council, its advisers, fishery stakeholders and the public as we strive to balance fishing opportunities with the conservation needs we are facing on Chinook and coho salmon stocks, both north and south of Cape Falcon,” Council Executive Director Chuck ...