ANALYSIS: 2024 Scallop Season Expectations

The 2024/2025 Atlantic sea scallop fishery season began on April 1, 2024. This fishery extends from the Mid-Atlantic region to the U.S.-Canadian border. The New England Fishery Management Council approved Framework Adjustment 38 in December, forecasting a catch of 27.4 million pounds of Atlantic sea scallops for the season. On March 22, 2024, NOAA issued the final rule in the Federal Register, effective from the season's start. Per NOAA Fisheries, for the initial 60 days of the fishing year, vessels with limited access can utilize their remaining 2023 scallop allocation from the...

AQUA Cultured Foods’ New Partnership To Aid In Development, Advancement of Alternative Seafood 

Food technology company AQUA Cultured Foods has announced a new partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks. 

Chicago-based AQUA has developed the world’s first whole-cut seafood alternatives through microbial fermentation. This process produces sustainable, fish-free tuna, scallops and more using less resources than traditional aquaculture. And now, Boston-based cell program and biosecurity company Ginkgo will help AQUA optimize that technology in order to elevate the quality of its 100% fish-free seafood products. These products are made from microbes and fibers combined with...

Wanchese Fish Company Appoints Jack Crouch As National Sales Manager

Wanchese Fish Company has appointed Jack Crouch as National Sales Manager. Crouch joins the Virginia-based company with more than a decade of experience in seafood processing, distribution and supply chain management. 

“We’re excited to have Jack join our team and we’re confident that his experience will be instrumental in driving our national sales strategy, particularly in the Patagonian scallop, crab, and shrimp markets,” said Ross Butler, Wanchese Fish Company’s CEO.

Prior to joining Wanchese — which was purchased by Cooke Seafood USA in 2015 — Crouch worked with the...

NOAA Announces Proposed Rule For Framework Adjustment 38 For 2024 Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishing Year

On Monday NOAA Fisheries announced a proposed rule for Framework Adjustment 38 to set specifications and management measures for the Atlantic Sea Scallop fishery for the 2024 fishing year. According to the notice in the Federal Register, Framework 38 “would implement measures to protect small scallops to support rotational access area trips to the fleet in future years.” 

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) first signed off on Framework Adjustment 38 in mid-December. At the time NMFC said that Framework 38 contains...

NEFMC Advances Framework Adjustment 38 For Fishing Year 2024

With just a few weeks to go until the new year, the New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) has officially signed off on Framework Adjustment 38 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan.

Framework 38 contains specifications and other measures for 2024, as well as default specifications for 2025. This Framework was guided by NEFMC’s Scientific and Statistical Committee’s scallop report.

Framework 38 will give full-time limited access scallop vessels three 12,000 pound access area trips, with two trips into Area II and one into the New York Bight...

Chinese Processors Consider Processing Japanese Scallops in Thailand for Re-exporting

According to a report in the Suisan Keizai Shimbun, Chinese scallop processors are starting to try to receive whole scallops from Japan in third countries. 

Recently, Chinese processors have been importing 80,000 to 90,000 tons of frozen scallops from the Okhotsk Sea and Funka Bay in Japan annually. In China, processors have thawed the shellfish, shucked adductor muscles, and added water to export to Europe and America. 

However, in late August of this year, this procurement route was disrupted due to the Chinese government's suspension of imports of Japanese...

NEFMC Shares Findings of 2023 Scallop Survey; A Look at the Current Scallop Market

The New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC) focused on the recent 2023 scallop survey and progress in Framework Adjustment 38 as the Council preps for the 2024 season.

The survey found that scallop biomass remained low compared to the exceptionally high levels observed from 2015 through 2019, the NEFMC shared in a press release. However, biomass did jump between 2022 and 2023. NEFMC said the growth was driven by a large year class in Closed Area I and the Great South Channel...

Japan: July Exports to China Halved, Shell-on Scallops Plunged 60%

Wanchese Fish Company Welcomes New Scallop Vessel for Argentina Operations

Cooke-Owned Wanchese Fish Company announced its subsidiary, Wanchese Argentina, christened its new Agrentine scallop vessel, the Erin Bruce II, at a ceremony in Vigo, Spain.

The new vessel is the largest new build of a factory freezer trawler in the Argentine fishery and was the first to be built specifically for scallops. It is expected to set sail for Argentina in early 2024.

“This new vessel is designed to be fuel efficient, offer modern accommodations for the crew, and leverage new technology and...

Japan: Okhotsk Sea Scallops Growing Well, June End Landings 108,600 Tons Up 11% 

According to a report by the Hokkaido Fisheries Federation, as of June 30, scallop landings in the Okhotsk area were about 108,600 tons (preliminary figure), including the Wakkanai area in the north and the Kitami area in the south. Suisan Keizai Shimbun reported that the figure is 11% higher than the preliminary figures for the same period last year and is progressing at a favorable pace.

The total landing plan for this season is 306,570 tons, down 6% from the previous year, and is...

VIMS to Expand Restoration of Seagrass, Bay Scallops on Eastern Shore

A team led by researchers at William & Mary’s Virginia Institute of Marine Science will use a $2.25 million grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to expand their already successful efforts to restore seagrass and scallops to the seaside bays of Virginia’s Eastern Shore.

During the four-year project, led by Christopher Patrick and Richard Snyder of VIMS, scientists from the institute and its Eastern Shore Lab will join with staff and volunteers from The Nature Conservancy to plant at least...

Hokkaido Scallop Landings Exceed Processing Capacity, Beach Price Well Below Last Year at JPY 100/kg

According to Suisan Keizai Shimbun, the scallop fishing season in Funka Bay, Hokkaido, is now in full swing, with 1,000 tons being landed daily in the Iburi and Toshima districts. With the market absence for frozen whole scallops and most of the shellfish being used for boiled adductors, a landing and processing flow has been put in place that prioritizes the processing of raw shellfish. The beach price is around 100 yen/kg ($0.66/kg), significantly lower than the previous year...

Ocean Choice Has Sold Its Offshore Nova Scotia Scallop Quota To These 3 Companies

Ocean Choice International announced on Thursday that the company has not only decided to sell off its offshore scallop quotas, but has already found buyers and completed the purchase and sale agreement with three Nova Scotia companies who have “a long history harvesting sea scallops off the coast.”

Ocean Choice held 16.77% of the offshore scallop quota in Nova Scotia. The quota is worth an estimated $200 million. And now these three Nova Scotia-based companies have acquired it: Mersey Seafoods Limited, LaHave Seafoods Limited, and Comeau’s Sea Foods Limited. 

FDA Issues Advisory About Scallops Harvested From Prohibited Area in Massachusetts

UPDATE: The Fisheries Survival Fund and the American Scallop Association issued a statement after the FDA advisory was released to clarify that shucked Atlantic sea scallop meats are safe to eat. 

“It is important to avoid confusion, and for the public to understand, that the scallops referenced in a recent advisory from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are not the type of scallops typically available in markets and restaurants across North America, and the adductor muscle of the Atlantic Scallop (placopecten magellanicus), commonly referred to as the...

Clearwater Seafoods Fleet Achieves FISH Standard for Crew Certification

FISH Standard for Crew Inc. is pleased to announce seven vessels of the Clearwater Seafoods fleet have been awarded FISH certification. The fleet comprises Canadian flagged clam, lobster, and scallop harvesting vessels operating in Canadian waters in the northwest Atlantic. Certification body MRAG Americas awarded the certification after extensive policy and procedure review, on-site vessel inspections, and face-to-face interviews of crew members.

“We are very proud to be the first Canadian company to attain FISH certification, a recognition that is consistent with Clearwater’s commitment to our people...

Exploring Ways to Move Away from Dependence on Chinese Processing; LDP Meeting with Scallops in Mind

The Liberal Democratic Party's Fisheries Subcommittee and the Fisheries Comprehensive Investigation Committee held a joint meeting at party headquarters on October 5 to discuss measures to suspend imports of Japanese seafood products from countries such as China and Hong Kong due to the release of ALPS-treated water from the TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, reported Minato Shimbun

Several LDP members have proposed moving away from dependence on China for processing domestically produced scallops. In addition, Shigeru Ishiba, chairman of the Policy...

Hokkaido Scallop Market Overview and Outlook; Report from Hokkaido Fishery Coop Fall Conference

At the Autumn Conference of the Hokkaido Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations (DOGYOREN) held in Tokyo on August 30, breakout sessions were held on fall chum salmon and salmon roe products and scallop products in two separate venues. Following the presentation of the business policy by DOGYOREN, sales representatives active on the front lines of daily transactions exchanged meaningful opinions on how to succeed in the coming sales season for the new harvest, and it shared the market analysis provided by trading companies. The following is an...

ANALYSIS: Uncertainties Within The Scallop Market

The 2023-2024 Atlantic sea scallop season had pressures mounting even before the fishery opened on April 1. With another consecutive year of fallen quota announcements, the estimated 25 million pounds of scallops landed in 2023 is a 26.5 percent retreat from the 2022 projection of 34 million pounds and a notable 60 percent drop from the 2019 projection of 62.5 million pounds just four years prior.

With the anticipated fall in seasonal landings, firm prices and premiums throughout the season were expected. However, a pullback on demand, as seen across seafood...

China, Hong Kong Start Full Inspection of Japanese Seafood, Opposing Fukushima Treated Water Release

According to a report by the Suisan Keizai Shimbun on July 19, based on Jiji Press in Beijing, it was learned that the Chinese government had started a full-fledged inspection for radioactive substances when importing Japanese marine products. China has criticized the Japanese government's policy of releasing treated water from the Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the sea, increasing pressure on Japan. Due to this, it is said that customs clearance for marine products arriving from Japan has...

ANALYSIS: Scallop Market Experiencing Robust Fishing Efforts and Conflicting Pressures

The Atlantic sea scallop sector continues to report an unsettled undertone with conflicting pressures affecting the market. Framework Adjustment 36 to the Atlantic sea scallop Fishery Management Plan has resulted in notable catch reductions for the 2023 and 2024 (default) fishing years. Yearly survey results have noted that while the resource is healthy and not overfished, a diminishing harvestable biomass as well as not enough recruitment in recent years were reported...

Japan: March Scallop Exports Down to the US and EU, Preparations Up 5.2 Folds to Hong Kong

According to the Ministry of Finance's customs statistics, scallop exports in March 2023, mainly frozen scallops, declined for the U.S. and EU but remained steady in Asian countries such as Hong Kong and Taiwan. Whole scallops in shells destined for China decreased. Sales of prepared products grew 2.2 times. Suisan Shimbun reports that live scallop exports, destined primarily for South Korea, are increasing.

The volume of shucked products, which consist mainly of frozen adductors, decreased by 6% to 1,082 tons...