ANALYSIS: Improved Lobster Landings Meet Disciplined Buying Ahead of Summer

The Canadian spring lobster season is now fully underway, with all spring LFAs open and Nova Scotia’s LFA 33 and 34 scheduled to close this weekend. While some areas were scheduled to open earlier than usual, persistent weather issues throughout May limited landings and slowed the broader build in production.

Live demand is typically weak during the early spring period, particularly after Easter and before late-May holiday demand tied to Mother’s Day and Memorial Day. The market did see a modest uptick in activity around those calendar events...

Bumble Bee Forced Labor Case Advances Despite Legal Setback for Indonesian Fishermen

A California federal court delivered a mixed ruling on May 27 in the human trafficking lawsuit against Bumble Bee Foods, granting part of the tuna company's request to reconsider an earlier decision while allowing the Indonesian fishermen's core claims to proceed.

Chief Judge Cynthia Bashant acknowledged that the court had mischaracterized a key Ninth Circuit precedent in her November 2025 ruling denying Bumble Bee's motion to dismiss. The court had incorrectly stated that the Ratha v. Phatthana Seafood case definitively "held" that trafficking...

Shipping Executives Warn WTO of Rising Costs From Global Trade Route Disruptions

Major shipping industry leaders told World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala that mounting capacity pressures and alternative routing costs are driving up expenses for shippers and consumers during a May 28 meeting in Geneva.

The executives, representing companies including MSC, CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping, and Hapag-Lloyd, cited disruptions in the Gulf region and other maritime chokepoints that are forcing cargo onto saturated alternative routes, with significant cost implications.

One executive highlighted the scale challenge, noting that approximately 70 freight trains are needed to match...

Chile Launches On-the-Ground Rollout of Artisanal Fishing Fuel Coupon

Chile’s Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Subpesca) officially launched its new Artisanal Fishing Coupon program in Caleta La Vega, Calbuco, providing small-scale fishers with direct access to subsidized fuel.

The launch was led by Undersecretary of Fisheries Osvaldo Urrutia, accompanied by Los Lagos Region Economy Seremi Gisela Strauch and Subpesca zonal director Gustavo Castro. During the visit, local fishers tested the system by purchasing fuel on-site for their vessels and paying through their BancoEstado RUT accounts.

The coupon is an extraordinary government...

Middle East Market Intelligence Brief: Week Ending May 29, 2026

Three months into the Iran war, the United States and Iran have reached a tentative framework to extend a ceasefire, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and ease some US blockade measures, though the deal has not been approved by US President Donald Trump, reports Reuters. 

The proposed agreement would create a 60-day window for broader negotiations after months of conflict disrupted global oil, LNG, and other commodity markets. Major unresolved issues include Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief, and security in the Strait of Hormuz.

The framework is seen as a temporary de-escalation measure aimed at stabilizing energy markets rather than...

US Seafood Groups Demand Section 301 Investigation Into Unfair Trade Practices

Twenty-three American seafood organizations have formally asked US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer to launch a comprehensive Section 301 investigation into unfair seafood trade practices, escalating industry pressure for trade enforcement against imports they say are decimating domestic producers.

The May 19 letter, signed by groups ranging from the Southern Shrimp Alliance to the Hawaii Longline Association, asks USTR to address a sweeping range of alleged violations, including dumping, subsidies, environmental harm, banned veterinary drugs, false labeling, prohibited fishing gear, structural excess capacity, and labor abuse...

Pacific Heat Wave Triggers Closure of Large Area off California to Protect Loggerhead Sea Turtles

California’s swordfish drift gillnet fleet will need to stop fishing in a 25,000-square-mile area off California during June, July and August this summer to protect endangered loggerhead sea turtles.

“I am writing to request immediate closure of the Pacific Loggerhead Conservation Area to drift gillnets,” wrote Catherine Kilduff, Senior Attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity in her May 18 letter to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.

“The above-normal sea surface temperature anomalies in the Southern California Bight during the months...

Starving Gray Whales Are Dying at an Alarming Rate in the Pacific Northwest

On Tuesday, the number of gray whales that have perished along Washington’s ocean coastline and in Puget Sound had reached 22. Yesterday the number rose to 23.  

Researchers at the Cascadia Research Collective say the most recent one was found on the Olympic National Park shoreline. It’s the sixth stranding death recorded in May, significantly down from April’s staggering count of 17.  

We haven’t been able to do a detailed exam on [the Olympic Peninsula whale] yet, so we don’t know too much about it...

Scottish Sea Farms Fined £70,000 for Greenhouse Gas Rule Violations

Scottish salmon processor Scottish Sea Farms Limited was fined £70,000 by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency following violations of fluorinated greenhouse gas regulations at its Lerwick facility in Shetland.

SEPA issued two £35,000 civil penalties after discovering that refrigeration equipment at the Gremista Industrial Estate site was operating without required leakage detection systems during a routine compliance inspection.

The violations involved Ice Plant 4 and Ice Plant 5, both containing fluorinated gases above the 500-tonne CO₂ equivalent regulatory threshold but lacking working leakage detection...

USDA Seeks Over 300,000 Pounds of Salmon Products for Government Food Programs

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is soliciting bids for salmon products totaling more than 304,000 pounds, marking the agency's third major seafood procurement this month as government purchasing activity accelerates.

The May 27 solicitation seeks canned pink salmon and frozen wild salmon fillets for domestic food distribution programs, with bids due June 5 at 1:00 PM Central Time and acceptances announced by June 18. Deliveries are scheduled between August 1 and December 15, 2026.

The procurement consists of over 100,000 cases of canned pink salmon...

Japan’s April Marine Products Exports Up 6% in Volume, Soared 37% in Value

According to trade statistics released by the Ministry of Finance and reported by The Minato Shimbun, April exports of marine products (fish and shellfish and their preparations, and fish meal) increased by 6% year-on-year (YOY) to 54,968 tons and by 37% to 41.138 billion yen ($258.28 million). Scallop exports decreased by 8% to 4,876 tons but increased by 8% to 8.471 billion yen ($53.18 million). Yellowtail exports increased by 26% to 3,502 tons and doubled to 9.751 billion...

NZ Bottom Trawl Footprint Remains Small

New data shows New Zealand's trawl footprint continues to cover only a tiny fraction of the country's waters, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says.

"The analysis, published on the Ministry for Primary Industries' website, shows the trawled area within New Zealand's territorial sea and Exclusive Economic Zone is concentrated in specific fishing grounds. It represented only 1.7 per cent of the total area in the 2024/25 fishing year, with most of that area previously...

"I know the topic of bottom trawling provokes strong reactions from...

ANALYSIS: Early Copper River Results Show Familiar Market Patterns Amid Lower Volume Start

Copper River's 2026 wild salmon season commenced Friday, May 22, marking the start of another anticipated harvest cycle. Opening day results showed 39,100 sockeye landed according to Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) data, representing a measured beginning typical of early-season operations.

Tuesday's harvest delivered 34,100 additional sockeye, though this tracked below the forecast for the period of 55,000. Combined landings reached approximately 73,200 fish, a volume progression that aligns with traditional seasonal patterns as fishing operations gain momentum. Another opener was scheduled for...

ANALYSIS: Skipjack Tuna Prices Steady Despite Lower EPO Landings

The latest data from the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) shows cumulative yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) landings from January to March 2026 fell 24.9% year-over-year in the Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO). Mexico leads yellowfin landings with a 43% share, followed by Ecuador at 20%...

Iceland Seafood Q1 Profit More Than Doubles as Sales Rise 22%

Iceland Seafood International reported sharply higher first-quarter profitability for 2026, with net profit more than doubling as sales climbed across all three business divisions.

The company posted Q1 sales of €146 million, up 22.4% year-over-year (YOY), while net profit increased to €2.1 million from €1 million YOY. EBITDA rose to €5.7 million, with 12-month EBITDA reaching €22.8 million.

Sales growth was led by the company’s S&D division, where revenue jumped 41% to €72.2 million...

Expana's Weekly Top 10

Today, Expana’s Weekly Top 10 highlights the headlines shaping the week, as reported by Expana’s writers and market experts.

As summer gets underway, weather‑driven shifts in grilling demand are pushing retailers to pivot toward Father’s Day promotions. Trade and geopolitics remain major market disruptors, with renewed USMCA talks, evolving US‑China tariff signals, seafood trade enforcement pressure, and Middle East developments influencing energy and freight markets. This week’s update also covers industry consolidation, product reformulation amid easing cocoa prices, and new fertilizer supply coming online as Brazil...

Louisiana-NOAA Joint Patrols Result in Eight Fishing Citations in the Gulf

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries enforcement agents and NOAA Fisheries officers cited eight individuals for alleged fishing violations during joint patrols conducted on May 15 in the Gulf of America.

The citations included both recreational and commercial violations across multiple fisheries. Among the violations were possession of red snapper over legal limits, fishing without required federal permits, and possession of species during closed seasons.

Notable cases included a Mississippi shrimp vessel captain cited for lacking a federal shrimp permit, a Louisiana angler possessing eight red snapper...