ANALYSIS: C&SA 2025–2026 Mahi Season; Early Outlook Amid Economic and Regulatory Headwinds 

The Central and South American mahi season opened in October, with first arrivals expected to reach the U.S. market toward late December and into Q1 2026. Early indications point to a typical start, with smaller-sized fish being landed, well-suited for 4-oz portion production. According to NOAA’s latest ENSO update, La Niña is expected to persist through winter, with a transition to ENSO-neutral most likely during January–March 2026. These evolving conditions may help moderate weather patterns as the...

Norwegian Scientists Advise 44% Cut to 2026 King Crab Quota

Norway’s Institute of Marine Research has recommended a steep reduction in next year's king crab catch, citing a significant drop in the harvestable stock after its latest assessment. The institute's annual advice calls for the 2026 quota to be set at 850 metric tons (mt) of male crab, representing a 44% cut from the 2025 quota. The 2025 quota was approximately 1,520mt, reflecting a sizable reduction moving into 2026.

The king crab fishery is an increasingly important segment for Norway’s seafood sector, both for domestic sales...

Oregon AG, Groups File Lawsuit to Return Newport’s Helicopter 

Don’t mess with Newport’s helicopter – doing so results in angry residents, upset lawmakers and the state, one county and an organization filing a lawsuit to get it back. 

Attorney General Dan Rayfield on Friday announced that the State of Oregon, together with Lincoln County and the Newport Fishermen’s Wives organization, are filing lawsuits to compel the federal government to return the U.S. Coast Guard search-and-rescue helicopter abruptly removed from the Newport Air Facility recently. The Fishermen’s Wives and Lincoln County filed their lawsuit Friday; the State...

Canada: Fishers Urged to Put Safety First During Lobster Season

Another busy lobster season is ahead for fishing crews in southwest Nova Scotia, and the Province is encouraging them to keep safety top of mind.

"Heading out in the cold and darkness, exposed to the elements and the power of the sea, makes fishing a high-risk job," said Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Kent Smith. "Safety isn’t optional, it’s essential. We strongly encourage fishing captains and their crews to take every possible precaution to ensure they return home safely to their loved ones...

Navigating the Trump Tariff Turbulence: A Comprehensive Timeline

US President Donald Trump and his administration have paused reciprocal tariffs on most countries.

“Based on the lack of respect that China has shown... I am hereby raising the [tariff] charged to China by the [USA] to 125%, effective immediately,” wrote Trump on Truth Social at 1:18 pm ET. 

It’s not clear if this 125% is in addition to the 20% imposed on Chinese imports to the US. In early March, Trump noted that he would add another 10% tariff on Chinese goods...

Oregon Crabbers Stay Tied to the Dock as Delay Pushes Season to Dec. 16 at Earliest

Oregon’s commercial Dungeness crab fleet will remain idle a little longer, with the season now delayed coastwide until at least Dec. 16, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife announced on November 21.

Although Oregon crab passed both meat quality and biotoxin tests, the opener is being held back because Long Beach, Washington, crab has not yet met the 23% meat fill requirement. Most members of the Dungeness Crab Advisory Committee backed the delay, calling it the least disruptive to longstanding harvest patterns...

India Releases New National Framework on Traceability in Fisheries and Aquaculture 2025

In an effort to achieve a target of ₹1 lakh crore [$121 billion USD] seafood exports by 2030, India is launching several initiatives to modernize its fisheries infrastructure, strengthen sustainability practices, and accelerate value-added products across the sector.

These include establishing Standard Operating Procedures on mariculture, the Development and Management of Smart and Integrated Fishing Harbours, Development of Minimum Basic Infrastructure at Notified Marine Fish Landing Centres as well as guidelines for Reservoir Fisheries Management and Coastal Aquaculture...

ANALYSIS: US Shrimp Imports Confirm Estimates; Supplier Export Patterns Signal Market Realignment

Official US import figures through August were broadly in line with our modeled projections, with total volumes inside the confidence interval despite notable variances in specific categories. Peeled shrimp imports were slightly above the high‑end forecast, while shell‑on imports were well below the lower bound. Cooked, breaded, and overall totals tracked closely to expectations. These differences match the pricing environment during the period, when higher landed costs from 19% tariffs on Indonesian shrimp and 20% tariffs on Vietnamese shrimp began influencing wholesale values...

ANALYSIS: Norwegian Salmon Harvest Up 20.9% YTD; Exports Cool After August Peak

The Norwegian Atlantic farm salmon sector is experiencing a notable increase in supply, with total harvests rising 20.9% year-to-date (YTD) through September, according to the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries. While seawater biomass remains relatively stable, the increase in harvest volume and export activity indicates a strong and expanding supply base, mainly driven by seasonal peaks in August. Conversely, the latest data from Statistics Norway show that weekly export figures for fresh and chilled salmon have slowed...

Canada Positions Itself for Growth at Strategically Timed Seafood Conference Ahead of CFSE

China’s role as a critical market for Canadian seafood took center stage at the 2025 Canada Seafood Conference, strategically held one day before the opening of the China Fisheries & Seafood Expo (CFSE), Asia’s largest and most influential seafood trade event. The timing gave Canada first dibs in visibility as global buyers arrived in Qingdao, creating an early platform for engagement with Chinese importers and distributors.

Organized by the Atlantic Canada Business Network (ACBN), the conference gathered more than 100 delegates from Canadian governments, industry associations...

Massport Launches Blue Edge Program to Boost Maritime Jobs and Innovation at Port of Boston

Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) has unveiled the Blue Edge program, aimed at boosting maritime jobs and fortifying the Port of Boston’s stature in the global blue economy sector. The initiative seeks to bring together established maritime industry leaders with new innovators, accelerators, and entrepreneurs, providing workspace at the Fish Pier to stimulate business growth.

Rich Davey, CEO of Massport, highlighted the program's goal: “Blue Edge will bring together all the great maritime partners that we work with daily with new startups...

Bio-UV Group Strengthens Leadership Team With New Appointments

France-based BIO-UV Group, the specialist in UV-, ozone-, salt-electrolysis- and AOP-based water-treatment technologies, has announced three senior appointments to support and strengthen the company’s expansion across new and existing markets.

The changes include the appointment of Jean-Philippe Picard de Muller as Deputy General Manager of BIO-UV Group, the promotion of Steven Brady to Managing Director of Triogen in the United Kingdom, and the arrival of Patrice Garrigues as European Sales Director for the Group’s pool division...

ANALYSIS: Global Scallop Supply Constraints Reshape Domestic Market Landscape

The global scallop import landscape reveals a complex story of shifting supply patterns and market disruption that extends beyond surface-level statistics. While year-to-date (YTD) imports into the US market through August appear robust at 37.6 million lbs, the third-highest level since 2018, this figure masks dramatic underlying changes that have reshaped the market throughout 2025.

August imports dropped 63% month-over-month (MOM), falling to 1.1 million lbs, a figure not seen in recent memory. This severe decline illustrates how early-year strength obscured rapidly deteriorating market...

Japan: September Surimi Products Production up 5% to 28,646 Tons

Food Marketing Research and Information Center released its estimated surimi products production volume (preliminary estimate) for September, up 4.6% from the same month last year to 28,646 tons, Minato Shimbun reported.

Fried surimi has increased 7.2% to 10,849 tons for the ninth consecutive month this year. Meanwhile, "other surimi products," which include crab-flavored kamaboko, or kanikama, were down 3.9% to 7,227 tons, marking the first year-on-year decrease this year. Chikuwa grilled cubes increased 9.5% to 4,613 tons, kamaboko...

Global Fishing Industry Urges CITES Parties to Reject Three Species Proposals

The International Coalition of Fisheries Associations (ICFA) has reviewed several trade-restrictive proposals concerning aquatic species ahead of the 20th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which begins today. ICFA is urging Parties to reject three proposals—covering eels, sea cucumbers, and Tope Shark and Smooth-hound Sharks—and to adopt a proposal aimed at developing clear guidance on look-alike species criteria.

During this CITES meeting, countries will decide whether to...

ICE Executes Second Raid at New Jersey Seafood Distributor

For the second time this year, a wholesale seafood distributor in Newark, New Jersey, was the target of a federal immigration enforcement action, local media reported. Ocean Seafood Depot saw roughly two dozen federal agents enter the premises and take 13 people into custody, according to WABC‑7.

The raid began the morning of Nov. 19, witnesses told reporters, with heavily armed, masked federal agents on site and the FBI involved. A statement reported by NJ.com said ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark, “working in coordination with federal partners, executed...

Klamath River Posts a One-Year Surprise: There are ‘Salmon Everywhere’

More than a year following the removal of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River, scientists with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife are observing the rapid re-occupation of upstream habitat by salmon — a development with significant implications for upstream-downstream connectivity, spawning success and ultimately commercial availability. 

Michael Harris, Environmental Program Manager of CDFW’s Klamath Watershed Program, said in a statement that he’s surprised at the activity.  

“The speed at which salmon are repopulating every nook and cranny of suitable habitat upstream of the dams...