Snow Crab Update: NL Minimum Price to Harvesters Increases, Plus Landings Updates As Of June 2

The minimum price of snow crab for Newfoundland and Labrador harvesters is going up. Per FFAW-Unifor’s agreement with the Association of Seafood Processors (ASP), the snow crab fishery started with a minimum price of $2.20. However, both parties agreed that the price would increase if Urner Barry’s price increased. On Thursday Urner Barry’s price for 5-8s increased to $4.85, bringing the minimum price to harvesters from $2.20 to $2.25...

NOAA Fisheries Selects Alaska to Begin Aquaculture Opportunity Area Identification

NOAA Fisheries has chosen Alaska as the next region in which to look for Aquaculture Opportunity Areas.

An Aquaculture Opportunity Area is a defined geographic area that NOAA has determined to be environmentally, socially, and economically appropriate to support multiple commercial aquaculture operations. NOAA also evaluates these areas through both spatial analysis and the National Environmental Policy Act process. Sustainable marine aquaculture-also referred to in Alaska as mariculture-currently helps support Alaska's blue economy, contributing to sustainable seafood, and local economies.

The effort to identify Aquaculture... 

ANALYSIS: Wild Salmon Week in Review May 28-June 3 

A few weeks into the wild salmon season and sockeyes out of Copper River have already surpassed both 2022 and the five year average in landings year to date (YTD). As of this writing the cumulative total for Copper River sockeyes is 257,000. 28% higher than the five year average of 200,000 fish and 42% higher than...

NEFMC Names Dr. Catherine O’Keefe As New Executive Director

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) announced on Friday that Dr. Catherine “Cate” O’Keefe, who has over 20 years of experience in fisheries science and management, will be replacing Tom Nies as Executive Director. The Council had previously revealed in January that Nies, a 25-year veteran of the Council staff, would be retiring this summer.

“Dr. O’Keefe has extensive experience with New England fisheries, and her broad-based background makes her uniquely suited for this position,” said Council Chair Eric Reid...

One Year Into The Ban On Russian King Crab And Snow Crab -- What Now?

Inflation is weighing on Americans across income levels. Customers are clearly feeling cautious and making trade off decisions. Private label sales are soaring as consumers trade down on goods. Consumers are still spending money however. Airlines and cruise ships are booked at capacity. But they are still concerned about inflation and cutting back on expensive food items.

According to a Bloomberg survey of economists the odds of a U.S. recession in 2023 are as high as 65%. Consumers still have some stimulus savings...

Further Closures of Salmon Farms in BC Put Surrey’s Economy and Indigenous Reconciliation at Risk

Surrey, B.C. – The Surrey Board of Trade is concerned to hear the news that the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), the Honourable Joyce Murray, intends to propose additional closures of salmon farms as part of her British Columbia salmon farming transition plan.

Surrey is the hub of salmon farming in Metro Vancouver, home to numerous operations in salmon feed milling, fish processing, trucking, packaging, and the provision of goods and services, and is already experiencing negative...

Major Japanese Fish Feed Manufacturers Decide to Withdraw From Feed Production Certified by ASC

Minato Shimbun revealed in an interview that major domestic fish feed manufacturers have effectively decided to withdraw from the production of feed for farmed fish certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC). ASC established feed certification, effective in February. It will be officially enforced from February 1, 2025, and is transitioning. According to an interview, only one company in Japan, Skretting, is engaged in ASC feed production. The Minato Shimbun reports that the government has set a goal of turning farmed fish into a growth...

Blue Star Foods to Supply Crab Meat to Bloomin’ Brands For Outback Steakhouse Locations

Blue Star Foods has entered into a $1 million supply agreement with Bloomin’ Brands, the restaurant holding company that owns Outback Steakhouse, Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill and Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar. As part of this agreement, Blue Star will deliver approximately 115,000 pounds of pasteurized crab meat to Bloomin’ Brands for Outback Steakhouse’s crab related menu, including their new Crab-Topped Barramundi. 

“We are very excited to enter into this new relationship with Bloomin’ Brands for its Outback Steakhouse locations...

Former Stonewall Kitchen Exec Joins Atlantic Sea Farms as VP of Operations

Dean Frost, who most recently served as the Chief Operating Officer at Stonewall Kitchen, has landed at Atlantic Sea Farms as their new Vice President of Operations. Briana Warner, the CEO of the regenerative seaweed aquaculture company, made the announcement on LinkedIn this week. 

“As a completely vertically integrated company, we produce our own seeds, we have built our own farming network, we do our own transportation, logistics, manufacturing, sales and marketing (just to name a few areas of our work!),” Warner shared...

Read President Joe Biden's Proclamation on National Ocean Month 

National Ocean Month is celebrated in June every year. Ahead of the first day of the month, President Joe Biden released a Proclamation on National Ocean Month for 2023, addressing the climate crisis and the impact that it has on marine life, coastal communities, and the ocean economy. You can read President Biden’s Proclamation on National Ocean Month in it entirety below:

The ocean makes life on Earth possible — feeding us, sustaining livelihoods, and connecting economies across the globe. It bonds us as a source of recreation and rejuvenation for our...

Bipartisan Bill Introduced to Support Rural Fishing Communities

This week U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Angus King (Maine) introduced bipartisan legislation to expand financial support for America’s fishing communities. Called the Fishing Industry Credit Enhancement Act, this bill would allow businesses that provide direct assistance to fishing operations, such as gear producers or cold storage, to access the same loans from the Farm Credit System that’s offered to farmers, ranchers and loggers.

For those unfamiliar with the Farm Credit System, it was founded in Congress in 1916 to aid farmers who struggled to access reliable credit...

Summer of Sockeye Salmon Kicks Off in Bristol Bay, Alaska

The highly anticipated annual wild sockeye salmon season in Bristol Bay, Alaska has officially commenced and fishermen are gearing up for what is expected to be one of the most bountiful in history. The 2023 harvest runs through September, and is forecast to be among the top five strongest in the last 20 years, estimating a haul of around 37 million fish. This means plenty of delicious, wild sockeye salmon in restaurants and grocery stores nationwide, making this sure to be the summer of sockeye...

Norway's Resource Rent Tax on Aquaculture Passed By Parliament

On Thursday the Norwegian Parliament officially passed the additional resource rent tax on aquaculture in Norway.

As SeafoodNews reported late last week, a new agreement had finally been made lowering the resource rent tax in Norway to 25%. The initial proposal had been at 40% before being lowered to 35% earlier this year. 

“After a long process, we are now ensuring that the Storting [parliament] adopts the principle of ground rent in aquaculture,” Geir Pollestaf of the Centre Party said in a press release at the time. “The parties to the...

Marine Reserves Staff Tackling Ocean Temperature, Hypoxia Research in Oregon

While some sport and commercial fishermen were wary of Oregon Marine Reserves' value when first implemented more than 20 years ago, ongoing studies are showing their importance to fisheries.

For example, recent monitoring for ocean temperature changes and hypoxia are proving useful for potential changes to adapt for the future, especially as they relate to groundfish and Dungeness crab.

On-going ocean monitoring in Oregon’s Marine Reserves is unlocking secrets about temperatures and oxygen levels known to impact groundfish and invertebrate ... 

Cooke Continues to Provide Support In Battling Nova Scotia Wildfire 

A fire is ravaging thousands of acres in Nova Scotia, forcing more than 18,000 Canadians to evacuate their homes. Cooke Aquaculture revealed earlier this week that they sent trucks, a side-by-side ATV, a support trailer with a trio of high-pressure water pumps, as well as 60 radio batteries and other supplies to aid local first responders who are near Saint Andrews. 

The company released another update on Wednesday, confirming that they dispatched a convoy of equipment and supplies from New Brunswick to support the first responders...

Cousins Maine Lobster Appoints Wendy’s Veteran Angela Coppler As Head of Development

Angela Coppler, formerly of The Wendy’s Company, has joined the team at Cousins Maine Lobster as their new Head of Development. In her new role, Coppler will be responsible for accelerating growth of the company’s food truck and brick and mortar business.

“Angela brings an incredible skill set ranging from real estate to brand strategy, and financial acumen to talent development to our Cousins Maine Lobster system,” said CML co-founder Jim Tselikis. “Her leadership and expertise are critical for us as we are...

This First Half of the Year Looks Rewarding for White Shrimp in Chinese Market

China’s domestic white shrimp prices have ballooned during mid-April under the influence of factors like weather, shrimp diseases and insufficient supplies. Those weighing at 50 shrimps/jin (1 jin=0.5 kilo) were sold at 29 yuan/jin at that time, which increased by 21% from that during this Chinese New Year, while the 18-shrimps-per-jin ones were priced at 48 yuan/jin, according to Agricultural Wealth.

Though shrimp prices have contracted after Workers’ Day on May 1st, they remain at high levels...