Special BOF Meeting Addresses Gear Switch in Cook Inlet, Traditional Knowledge Reg Language

A Special Meeting of Alaska’s Board of Fisheries will be held today, online only, to address four proposals, one adding regulatory language for the use of Traditional Knowledge (TK) in Fish and Game processes, and three regarding salmon fisheries in Western Alaska and Upper Cook Inlet.  

The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. Alaska Standard Time (AST) and will not include public testimony. However, written testimony can be submitted until 5 p.m. AST today. Comments can be submitted submitted online at https://boardoffisheries.adfg.alaska.gov/...

Lutnick Pledges Maine Lobster Coordination, Disaster Relief Reform Under Bicoastal Senate Pressure

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faced intense scrutiny from senators representing both coasts during his April 22, 2026, Senate Appropriations Committee testimony, addressing mounting concerns over federal fisheries management from Maine's lobster industry to Alaska's disaster-stricken crab fleet.

Senator Susan Collins secured multiple commitments from Lutnick regarding Maine's lobster industry as the sector approaches a critical regulatory transition. With Congress's 2022 moratorium on new NOAA regulations affecting the American Lobster Fishery set to expire in 2028, Collins pressed for comprehensive industry coordination...

Japan's Black Cod Imports up 4% in 2025, Price Increased by 13%

According to a report by Minato Shimbun, Japan's imports of frozen black cod in 2025 increased by 4% year-on-year to 11,188 tons. The import price rose 13% from 1,133 yen/kg ($7.10/kg) the previous year to 1,280 yen/kg ($8.03/kg). The total import value reached a record high of 14.3 billion yen ($89.65 million). This year, due to the global surge in prices for fatty fish species in general, fatigue from low prices in the main producing region, the United States...

Coast Guard Removes Press Release on American Seafoods Pollock Roe Seizure

The US Coast Guard removed a press release from its website detailing the seizure of $65,000 worth of Alaska pollock roe from American Seafoods' catcher-processor Northern Eagle.

The Coast Guard told Alaska's NBC-2 KTUU that it removed the posts to prevent "unintended consequences, distractions from NOAA's ongoing investigation, or confusion about the compliance record within the Alaska pollock fishery."

The USCG said it pushed back on the case's conclusions, noting the issue shouldn't be viewed as evidence of illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing in one...

Alaska Seafood Industry Seeks Extension of EU CATCH Deadline Amid Trade Disruption Concerns

A coalition of US and European seafood trade groups is urging the European Union to extend the July 10, 2026, deadline for compliance with updated EU CATCH certification requirements, warning that current traceability demands could effectively ban Alaska seafood from EU markets.

The coalition includes Seafood Europe, Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI), At-Sea Processors Association (APA), National Fisheries Institute (NFI), and Pacific Seafood Processors Association (PSPA).

The groups cite a "core challenge" in requirements that each imported shipment provide traceability of each harvest vessel's...

Alaska Yellowfin Sole Gets the Spotlight in French Campaign With Herve and Cite Marine

Alaska yellowfin sole’s versatility and flavor became the focus of an advertising campaign in France led by well-known French influencer Hervé and the largest trader of Alaska Yellowfin Sole in France, Cité Marine. 

Hervé has over one million followers on YouTube and nearly a million followers on Instagram.  

He launched one of France’s first cooking channels in 2007 and is known for his social media presence and YouTube Channel. His recipes are easy, fast, and accessible, ranging from traditional French cuisine to international dishes...

Access Determines Price: The Global Crab Market Tightens in 2026

Global crab trade expanded in 2025, but 2026 is developing into a more difficult operating environment defined by tighter positioning and more contested negotiations.

The structure of the market continues to narrow. Supply remains concentrated, and access to key destinations is increasingly controlled. The central issue is no longer how much crab is produced, but who can place product into the markets that set the price.

Most major producing regions enter the year with workable quotas. Russia increased total crab quotas by 2% to 109,485 metric tons and continues to...

Alaska’s Gubernatorial Candidates Focus on Trawl Behavior While Trawl Allies Fire Back in Radio Ads

The governor’s race in Alaska to replace termed-out Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy now includes 18 candidates, many of whom have found a common criticism against the mostly Seattle-based fleet of groundfish trawlers and their bycatch of salmon, crab, and other non-targeted species. 

Despite the primacy of the seafood industry in Alaska's economy, most political candidates have been less than up to date on the intricacies of fisheries management or policies. Mary Peltola’s campaign for Don Young’s House seat changed all that when...

Alaska Peninsula Communities File Suit to Void Conflicted Fisheries Regulations 

Coast Guard Seizes $65K in Unreported Pollock Roe from American Seafoods Vessel

In a collaboration between the US Coast Guard and NOAA Fisheries office of Law Enforcement (OLE), federal officers seized 5.4 metric tons of unreported pollock roe, valued at over $65,000, from the catcher-processor Northern Eagle, owned by American Seafoods, in late March. 

The Northern Eagle was approximately 15 nautical miles north of Dutch Harbor, AK on Thursday, March 26, when the crew of the US Coast Guard Cutter Waesche boarded the trawler/processor. 

In a statement yesterday, the Coast Guard described the boarding as being...

Alaska Board of Fish Is Silent on Mid-Water Bottom Contact But Proposes Joint Protocol With NPFMC

Four proposals addressing pelagic (mid-water) trawls brought before the Alaska Board of Fisheries were unanimously voted to “take no action.” 

Proposal 11, submitted by Linda Kozak, F/V Alaska Trojan, called for a closure of state waters west of 170 degrees West longitude for non-pelagic (bottom) trawls and pelagic (mid-water ) trawls. Proposals 163, 164, and 165 were submitted by the Alaska Healthy Habitat Alliance (AHHA), and called for a redefinition of pelagic trawls; new requirements for sensors...

NOAA Study Reveals How Pacific Cod Size Affects Snow Crab, Tanner Crab Predation Patterns

A new study by NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center biologists illuminates predator-prey dynamics between Pacific cod and commercially important snow and Tanner crabs. 

Scientists examined diet data collected during surveys of the eastern Bering Sea since 1985, along with spatial models over that time period. They discovered that the single most important factor related to total crab consumption by Pacific cod is not only the abundance of the Pacific cod population, but also the size of the cod when it is near crab...

New Bill in AK Senate Bans Trawls or Dredge Gear; Kodiak Whitefish Trawlers Oppose 

A new bill, SB161, introduced by Tok, AK Republican Mike Cronk, would ban the use of  “…any trawl or dredge fishing gear that makes substantial bottom contact with the seafloor while in use, as determined by the department, in the water of the state.” 

The bill also calls for a comprehensive study to assess the “…health of seafloor ecosystems and fish habitat in state water.” That study, to be done by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, would be due by January 1, 2027...

Alaska Board of Fish Charged with Conflict of Interest in Area M Chum Salmon Issue

The Aleutians East Borough and regional tribal governments filed a formal ethics complaint against members of the Alaska Board of Fisheries last week. The complaint was centered on a 4-3 vote that dismantled the Area M adaptive management program aimed at avoiding migrating chum salmon that spawn in the Yukon and Kuskokwim River systems. The complaint calls the program “the most successful in-season salmon conservation program in Alaska history.”

The vote was taken at the February 18-25, 2026, Board of Fisheries meeting...

New Atlas Identifies Potential Opportunities for Aquaculture in the Gulf of Alaska

Last week, NOAA published the Atlas for Aquaculture Opportunity Areas (AOAs), identifying 77 locations that have potential for shellfish and seaweed aquaculture operations in the Gulf of Alaska.  

This atlas is the third released in recent months. The other two are focused on the Gulf of America (previously known as the Gulf of Mexico) and off the state of California.  

Identifying Aquaculture Opportunity Areas fulfills President Trump’s 2020 Executive Order “Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth” and supports the 2025 Executive Order “Restoring American Seafood Competitiveness...

Frank O’Hara III Takes Helm at Wild Alaska Sole Association

The Board of the Wild Alaska Sole Association (WASA) elected Frank O’Hara III as the group’s new president, it announced on February 18.

Currently, O’Hara serves as the Executive Vice President of the fishing company O’Hara Corporation, which harvests flatfish and other groundfish species in Alaska’s Bering Sea. He will succeed Jim Johnson of North Star Fishing Company, who served as President of WASA since it was created in 2023.

“I’m looking forward to working with WASA and growing markets for our Wild Alaska Sole...

Alaska Delegation Secures $115.4 Million in Federal Port Infrastructure Funding

US Senators Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan and Congressman Nick Begich (R-AK) secured over $115.4 million in federal funding for ports across Alaska, the delegation announced on April 22.

The funding will go to seven projects selected through the US Department of Transportation's Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP), a competitive grant initiative administered by the DOT's Maritime Administration that funds projects to improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of goods moving through US ports.

Alaska has more ocean coastline than all other US states combined, making port infrastructure...

Alaska's 2026 Salmon Forecast Falls 36% on Lower Pink Salmon Returns

The most recent forecast from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game was released April 21 with a total predicted harvest of 125.5 million salmon, a 36 percent drop from last year’s harvest of 197.4 million fish.

ADF&G’s final report for the coming season, “Run Forecasts and Harvest Projects for 2026 Alaska Salmon Fisheries and Review of the 2025 Season,” provides context for how fisheries managers develop forecasts, including a comparison of actual returns and harvests against forecasts over several years...

Governor Appoints Three to Alaska Board of Fish While State Legislators Express Escalating Concern

For most of his two terms, Alaska’s Governor Mike Dunleavy has issued a press release in late March or early April on appointments to the state’s Board of Fisheries, which, along with the Board of Game, oversees the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. 

Not this year. Almost a month ago, Dunleavy penned an identical letter to two new appointees and one incumbent, thanking them for accepting the appointment to the seven-member board. 

The two new appointments, Josh Hayes and Blair Hickson, are replacing...

Alaska to Homeport First Two Arctic Security Cutters, USCG Scales Back Seattle’s Expansion

Although the announcement was made yesterday, the U.S. Coast Guard decided on March 11 that the first two Arctic Security Cutters will be homeported in the State of Alaska. Delivery is expected by the end of 2028, and the USCG is planning for the necessary infrastructure and support to receive the two icebreakers.

“Ensuring these vessels are supported by trained and ready crews, and ready homeport facilities including housing, will be essential to delivering full, enduring operational capability required to meet emerging Arctic security challenges...

NOAA Wants Public Comment on Aquaculture Opportunity Areas in Alaska State Waters

Section 7 (Aquaculture Opportunity Areas or AOA) of President Trump’s Executive Order 13921 titled “Promoting American Seafood Competitiveness and Economic Growth” from May 2020 is in its final stages with a 45-day public comment period that started yesterday and will close on May 28, 2026. 

The Notice of Intent asks for feedback on the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS), the document that assesses impacts that AOAs may bring to Alaska state waters and the communities nearby. 

The action has nothing to do with permitting sites...

Center for Biological Diversity Sues NOAA Over Northern Fur Seal Protection, Targets Pollock Fleet

In late 2024, NOAA Fisheries finalized the Conservation Plan for the Eastern Pacific Stock of Northern Fur Seal in an effort to conserve and restore the stock to its optimum sustainable population. The Eastern Pacific (formerly Pribilof) stock of northern fur seals was designated as depleted under the Marine Mammal Protection Act on June 17, 1988, because the population had declined by over 50 percent from the highest population levels of the 1950s. NMFS first published a Conservation Plan in 1993, followed by a revised version...

American Seafoods Refutes Federal Seizure of Pollock Roe, Calling it a Paperwork Discrepancy

American Seafoods is taking issue with the US Coast Guard and the Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) of the NOAA Fisheries Service within the Department of Commerce. In response to a USCG press release last Monday, the Seattle-based owner of seven vessels, some of which harvest and process pollock in the Bering Sea, issued a press release the next day saying the investigation of, as the Coast Guard press release said “major discrepancies between the vessel’s production reports and electronic logbook” is nothing more...

Coast Guard Rescues Crew From Grounded Fishing Vessel Near Unalaska Island in Bering Sea

Last Thursday afternoon, a US Coast Guard Jayhawk helicopter from Kodiak Island hoisted a crew of five from the 58-foot F/V Ocean Bay, which was taking on water after grounding near Umnak Island’s north shore, just southwest of Unalaska Island. 

The incident began at 4:45 that day, when the Ocean Bay called for help after running aground and taking on water. 

The Coast Guard sent an MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew and an HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Kodiak’s air station...

Southeast Alaska Troll Chinook Limit Jumps 57% to 146,000 Fish for 2026

Yesterday, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced that the annual all-gear allowable catch limit for Southeast Alaska/Yakutat (SEAK) is 207,400 treaty Chinook salmon, or non-Alaska hatchery-produced Chinook salmon.  

This year’s all-gear catch limit includes a 1% reduction that will serve as a buffer to avoid exceeding the all-gear limit and payback provisions within the treaty.  

The resulting preseason troll treaty harvest allocation for 2026 is 146,000 Chinook salmon, which is 53,200 fish above the preseason limit available in 2025...

AK, WA Governors Tap Two for NPFMC While NOAA Head Urges More Industry Members on Councils

Amid comments from NOAA Fisheries Assistant Administrator Eugenio Piñeiro Soler for “better council members” at the regional fisheries management councils, both Governors Mike Dunleavy of Alaska and Bob Ferguson of Washington submitted their preferred nominations for two seats on the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC).  

That council oversees 26 federally-managed species caught in Alaskan waters, including the nation’s largest fishery, Alaska pollock. Taken together, about 30% of the nation’s total seafood production is managed by the 11-member NPFMC...

Alaska Pollock Fishery Recertified as Sustainable by Marine Stewardship Council For Next Five Years

The nation’s largest fishery, and the second largest volume fishery in the world, Alaska pollock was certified for the fifth time by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) yesterday. Alaska pollock, caught primarily in the eastern Bering Sea, was first certified in 2005 and has now been recertified until 2031, following a comprehensive, independent assessment. 

“We are proud that the Alaska pollock fishery continues to meet the rigorous, science-based standards of the Marine Stewardship Council,” Matt Tinning, CEO of the At-sea Processors Association (APA), which...

US Attorney’s Office in Anchorage Charges Three SE Alaska Fishermen With Sinking Their Vessels

According to a case put together by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, Environmental Crimes Unit, three fishermen from Southeast Alaska have been charged with intentionally sinking their own boats and abandoning the wreckage.

The vessels were allegedly scuttled in waters near Sitka and Petersburg. Separate criminal filings were made by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska in Anchorage yesterday.

The accused are John Fisher, 59, of Sitka, is charged with...

Silver Bay Seafoods Pauses Processing in Cordova, AK, Blaming Low Salmon Forecasts in 2026

Last Friday, Silver Bay Seafoods, a leading processor in Alaska, announced that it will not be processing fish in Cordova, home port for the fleet of more than 800 gill netters and seiners that harvest salmon from the Copper River and Prince William Sound, due to low forecasted returns in both areas.  

But the Sitka, AK and Seattle, WA-based processor will be buying fish from the Cordova fleet, transporting the catch to either Valdez or Seward for processing at Silver Bay's facilities there...

Weather-Related Delays Impact Opening and Closing of Southeast Alaska’s Tanner Crab Fishery

A severe winter storm delayed the opening of the 2025/2026 Southeast Alaska commercial Tanner and golden king crab fishery for 24 hours last week, and yesterday, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) delayed the closure in certain areas for tanner crab for a further twelve hours due to weather.