Canada Targets US Lobster, Salmon, Pollock With 25% Counter-Tariffs

Canada will impose 25% counter-tariffs on American fish and seafood effective September 8, escalating a trade war that now threatens one of the world's most deeply integrated bilateral seafood supply chains.

The measures, announced August 25 by Prime Minister Mark Carney, cover roughly 700 US product lines at rates of 15%, 25% and 50% — a dollar-for-dollar response to US Section 338 tariffs of 50% that took effect August 19 on select Canadian imports after trade talks between the two countries collapsed. Fish and seafood fall...

ANALYSIS: Frozen Whiting Fillet Prices Hit Multi-Year Highs as Argentine Imports Slump

The US frozen whiting fillet market continues to strengthen as reduced imports, limited production, and logistical disruptions restrict available supply. Imports from Argentina totaled 2.48 million pounds through June 2026, down 36.6% from 3.92 million pounds during the same period last year and approximately 37% below the five-year average. This was the lowest first-half volume recorded over the period shown, underscoring the depth of the current supply shortfall and the limited availability of replacement product...

Court Closes NRDC Lawsuit That Forced MMPA Seafood Import Rules Into Effect

The federal lawsuit that compelled the US government to implement long-dormant Marine Mammal Protection Act import restrictions on seafood has been formally closed, with a judge ruling that nothing remains to adjudicate.

Judge Gary S. Katzmann of the US Court of International Trade dismissed the case on August 19, denying as moot a motion by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Center for Biological Diversity, and Animal Welfare Institute to enforce an earlier settlement agreement. All parties — including the government and the seafood industry intervenors led by the...

SalMar Posts Record Biological Performance in Q2, Raises Full-Year Harvest Guidance

SalMar reported record-strong biological performance in the second quarter of 2026, with the Norwegian salmon farming giant delivering its highest-ever group harvest volume and raising its full-year guidance on the strength of the results.

Group harvest volume for Q2 reached 81,800 tonnes, with operational EBIT for the group coming in at NOK 1,237 million for the quarter. The Norwegian operations were the primary driver, delivering operational EBIT of NOK 1,227 million on 71,500 tonnes harvested — with Icelandic Salmon and SalMar Ocean accounting for the remainder...

China Southern Launches Direct Oslo-Shanghai Cargo Route for Norwegian Salmon

China Southern Airlines has launched a new direct cargo route between Oslo Airport and Shanghai, adding approximately 200 tonnes of weekly Norwegian salmon capacity to a trade lane that has become increasingly central to Norway's export strategy as US tariffs bite.

The route began operations on August 19, running twice weekly with Boeing 777F freighters carrying roughly 100 tonnes per flight. It is China Southern's first cargo route to Norway.

"China is one of the most important growth markets for Norwegian seafood, and we see significant potential for further...

USDA Announces Harvest to Hallways Initiative to Invest in Child Nutrition Programs  

Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced sweeping new efforts to strengthen school meals by connecting more American farmers with local schools, investing in school kitchen infrastructure, and giving states and school districts new tools to serve healthier, more nutrient-dense meals to America’s children.

Secretary Kennedy joined Secretary Rollins at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), alongside farmers, students, school nutrition leaders, athletes, chefs, and parents, to announce the next phase of the Trump Administration’s...

Long John Silver’s Adds Fried Pickles, OLD BAY Ranch Starting Aug. 24

Long John Silver’s is tapping into the pickle craze with a new limited-time menu item. Starting today, the chain is adding fried pickles coated in its signature batter to its offerings.

"Pickles are having a moment, but we weren't interested in making just another Fried Pickle," said Meredith Smith, director of brand marketing at Long John Silver's®. "We batter fish for a living, so putting it on pickles felt like the obvious place to start. Then we paired them...

ANALYSIS: Gulf of Mexico Shrimp Landings Up 30% Through April, but Monthly Momentum Is Fading

Gulf of Mexico shrimp landings through April 2026 totaled 15.48 million pounds — 30% above the 11.91 million pounds recorded in the same period of 2025 and 9% ahead of the prior five-year average. The four-month cumulative figure is notable in context: 2025 was the weakest full year in the 10-year NMFS dataset, at 80.3 million pounds. The 2026 start suggested a recovery from that baseline. The monthly trajectory since January complicates that read...

Peru Declares 120-Day Fishing and Aquaculture Emergency as Coastal El Niño Intensifies

Peru's Ministry of Production (PRODUCE) has declared a state of emergency across its fishing and aquaculture subsectors for 120 calendar days, activating a framework of exceptional measures to protect the livelihoods of fishers, aquaculturists, and workers across the sector's supply chain as Coastal El Niño conditions worsen.

The declaration, announced August 23, comes as Peru's El Niño monitoring body ENFEN maintains its Coastal El Niño Alert and warns that the event is expected to continue through the 2026–2027 period at a magnitude ranging from strong...

Wild Planet Foods Named in Class Action Over Alleged Arsenic Levels in Canned Sardines

Wild Planet Foods has been named as a defendant in a federal class action lawsuit alleging that one of its canned sardine products contains arsenic levels that exceed California's daily safe exposure threshold and that the company failed to disclose the risk to consumers.

The complaint was filed August 18 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California by plaintiff Ryan Moore of Napa, California, on behalf of a proposed nationwide class and California subclass of purchasers...

Norway's Polar Quality and Fram Seafood to Merge, Creating $800M Northern Norwegian Export Player

Norwegian seafood exporters Polar Quality AS and Fram Seafood have announced plans to merge, creating a Bodø-based export company with combined annual revenues of approximately NOK 7.7 billion — roughly $800 million — and a strengthened position in international salmon markets.

"Our goal has always been to build a solid and future-oriented export company with a long-term perspective and a clear position in the world market," said Jarle Solemdal, Chairman of the Board of Polar Quality AS...

Peru Closes First 2026 Anchovy Season Early on Precautionary Grounds

Peru's Ministry of Production has officially closed the first anchovy fishing season of 2026 in the north-center zone, ending operations ahead of schedule on precautionary grounds after a series of mid-season suspensions disrupted fishing throughout the period.

PRODUCE ordered the closure on August 21, citing scientific evidence from IMARPE — Peru's fisheries research institute — and the results of the EUREKA survey operation, which monitors stock conditions in real time. The decision follows multiple in-season fishing suspensions, including a significant halt in June linked to excessive catches of juvenile...

Price of Frozen Pacific Ocean Perch from Alaska Soared 60％ Amid China's Strong Imports from the US

The domestic wholesale price for dressed Alaska-origin Pacific Ocean Perch (400–500g size) has reached approximately 700 yen/kg ($4.40/kg) this summer.

After remaining flat at around 430 yen/kg ($2.70/kg) for about three years leading up to last spring, the price surged by 60%, driven mainly by increased demand from Chinese processors. Direct imports into Japan for re-processing dropped sharply last year, and trading sources suggest that "volumes could decline further this year." Although Japan...

Three Cited for Shrimping Violations in Louisiana's Terrebonne and Plaquemines Parishes

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries enforcement agents cited three individuals for alleged shrimping violations in Terrebonne and Plaquemines parishes on August 13 and 14, the agency announced.

Paul J. Pierre, 56, of Houma; Michael Champlin, 55, of Buras; and Mikeal Bethelot, 25, of Buras were each cited for allegedly using skimmer nets during a closed season. The inside waters in both parishes had not yet opened to shrimping at the time of the alleged violations.

Using skimmer nets during a closed shrimp season...

Maine DMR Launches Electronic Application System for Aquaculture Leases

The Maine Department of Marine Resources has launched an electronic application system for aquaculture leases, modernizing a process that had long relied on paper submissions and is described by state officials as a significant step forward for the industry.

The new system, which went live on August 18, is available through DMR's online licensing portal, LEEDS — the Licensing Enforcement and Environmental Data System — and is open to both experimental and standard lease applicants. DMR said the platform will "significantly streamline" the lease application process for Maine's aquaculture industry...

Oregon's Commodity Commissions Meet With Gov. Kotek on Chronic Processing Wastewater Issue

Wastewater treatment remains a persistent challenge for seafood processors, as state water quality agencies issue notices—and eventually fines—when new regulations are not met. In earlier eras, hoses cleaned off floors and decks and the tide took care of the rest. Today, wastewater must be treated to remove a long list of pollutants, some of which are already present in the municipal water supplied to the plant. Requiring processors to output water cleaner than the drinking water they receive creates serious problems...

US Sanctions 10 Ecuadorian Fishing Vessels for Alleged Role in Maritime Drug Network

The US Treasury Department has sanctioned 10 Ecuador-based fishing vessels and 15 individuals and entities as part of a crackdown on a maritime cocaine trafficking network operating out of Ecuador — a move with direct implications for the country's commercial fishing industry.

Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the designations on August 20, identifying the vessels as blocked property for their alleged roles in covertly shipping thousands of kilograms of cocaine each month toward Mexico and ultimately...