ANALYSIS: Container Rates and Crude Oil Signal Freight Costs Have Not Yet Reached the Shelf

Container rates out of Asia have increased substantially in recent months. Through the most recent print in August, spot rates for 40ft dry containers stood at $9,421 from India's East Coast and $7,960 from India's West Coast, and $10,063 from Vietnam's East Coast — up from a range of roughly $2,500 to $3,000 as recently as this spring, a three-to-four-fold increase over several months...

Nueva Pescanova Sells French Chilled Seafood Business to Ecuador's Omarsa

Nueva Pescanova Group has completed the sale of its chilled products business in France to Ecuadorian shrimp producer Grupo Omarsa, the Spanish seafood company announced on September 30. The deal covers Nueva Pescanova's chilled-products operations in the French market; the company is retaining its frozen products division there, which will continue operating through subsidiary Pescanova France.

The divestment is the latest move in a strategic asset review Nueva Pescanova launched at the start of the year, aimed at improving efficiency and driving value creation...

BSF Extends Partnership with Lineage Agreement through 2028

Seafood processor and distributor BSF has extended its commercial agreement with temperature-controlled warehousing company Lineage through June 30, 2028, continuing a relationship that spans nearly 25 years.

Under the two-year extension announced Sept. 23, Lineage will continue managing warehousing and distribution for BSF across two dedicated facilities built to serve the company’s operations. BSF stores more than 800 cooked and raw seafood SKUs at the facilities and ships to major food retailers and foodservice companies nationwide.

The agreement comes as BSF, formerly known as Beaver Street Fisheries, moves forward...

Japan’s August Marine Products Exports Plummeted by 22% in Volume; Value Increased 18%

According to statistics released by the Ministry of Finance on September 29th, exports of fishery products (including fish, shellfish, prepared seafood products, and fish meal) totaled 39,357 tons in August, down 22% year-on-year (YOY), and 31.67 billion yen ($201.30 million), up 18%. Minato Shimbun reported that scallop exports declined in both volume and value, falling 23% to 4,608 tons and 23% to 6.651 billion yen ($42.28 million). Conversely, yellowtail exports rose 62% to...

California Cold Chain Laws Set to Add Costs for Industry

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed two bills into law that the Global Cold Chain Alliance (GCCA) says will add financial and regulatory burdens to the state’s food and pharmaceutical cold storage industry. Assembly Bill 817 (AB 817) and Senate Bill 716 (SB 716), signed Sept. 30, take effect Jan. 1, 2027. The measures were introduced following a June 17 industrial fire in Los Angeles that affected the Boyle Heights community and surrounding areas.

GCCA opposed both bills, saying they fall short of strengthening emergency preparedness...

FDA Warns NY Seafood Importer Over HACCP Gaps, Cat Roaming Warehouse Pallets

FDA has issued a warning letter to South Asian Food Inc., a Maspeth, New York-based importer, citing seafood HACCP violations and insanitary warehouse conditions found during a March 2–9, 2026 inspection.

The letter, CMS #728657, dated Aug. 20, faults the firm for lacking written importer verification procedures with affirmative steps for three vacuum-packed, ready-to-eat dried seafood products: RTE Anchovy with Chilli (Stolephorus indicus), RTE Lotia Bombay Duck with Chilli (Harpadon nehereus), and RTE Golden Dried Shrimp with Chilli, Garlic & Onion (Metapenaeus ensis)...

Pappadeaux Seafood Celebrates 40 Years of Good Times, Great Food and the Spirit of New Orleans

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, the iconic Pappas restaurant inspired by the lively spirit and bold flavors of New Orleans' French Quarter, is celebrating four decades of good times with special dishes, drinks, commemorative glassware and more throughout October.

Since opening its doors in 1986, Pappadeaux has built a reputation for pairing bold coastal flavors with the vibrant energy of New Orleans, creating a dining experience that guests keep coming back to year after year. Forty years later, that spirit...

ICES Advises 102% Increase in Northeast Atlantic Mackerel Catch for 2027

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has advised that Northeast Atlantic mackerel catches in 2027 should be no more than 352,938 tonnes, more than doubling the advice issued for 2026, according to the council's official advice sheet published Sept. 30.

The figure, calculated under ICES's maximum sustainable yield (MSY) approach, represents a 102% increase over the 174,357-tonne advice ICES issued for 2026 — a year in which the council had recommended a 77% cut after finding the stock...

Lawmakers Introduce Bill Requiring More Prominent Seafood Origin, Production Labels

Rep. Tim Moore (R-N.C.) has introduced legislation that would require seafood sold to consumers to more prominently disclose its country of origin and whether it was wild-caught or farm-raised.

H.R. 10580, the Let Americans Buy with Explicit Labeling Act, or LABEL Act, would require packaged seafood to display both the country of origin and production method on the front of the package. The information would need to appear in a font at least as large as that used for the...

Norwegian Salmon's Haaland World Cup Push Delivers Strongest US Campaign Results in Five Years

Norwegian salmon strengthened its position among US consumers during this summer's World Cup marketing campaign, according to new research commissioned by the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) and reported by multiple outlets.

Ipsos, the independent research firm that conducted the post-campaign measurement, called it the strongest campaign for Norwegian salmon in the US since NSC began tracking campaign effectiveness five years ago. That assessment came from NSC seafood envoy to the US Karine Rød Haraldsson, cited by both SalmonBusiness and Norwegian outlet iLaks...

Mega Sardines Enters US Retail Market Through Kroger

Philippine food manufacturer Mega Prime Foods Inc. is bringing its Mega Sardines brand to the US market, with the canned sardines set to arrive at Kroger and affiliated retail banners nationwide beginning Oct. 1.

The launch comes as the company cites rising US demand for canned sardines, including volume growth of more than 50% at major retailers and frequent out-of-stock situations. Mega Prime said the rollout is intended to help stabilize supply while expanding the brand’s presence in the market...

Commercial Food Preparers Seek Distribution of $10.4M Tuna Settlement

Lead counsel for the Commercial Food Preparer Plaintiffs (CFPs) has filed a motion asking the court to authorize final distribution of settlement funds in In re Packaged Seafood Products Antitrust Litigation, the decade-long tuna price-fixing case that reshaped the US canned tuna industry. The September 22 filing, made before Judge Dana M. Sabraw in the Southern District of California, covers a distinct plaintiff class from the retail-consumer track that reached final distribution earlier this year...

Andfjord Salmon Reports Strong Growth Momentum In All Pools

Today, Kvalnes-based Andfjord Salmon announced strong growth and high survival rates during September in all three stocked pools at Kvalnes, Andøya. The company is currently preparing for the first harvest of this production cycle.

Key performance indicators (KPIs) for the company's three operational pools - K0 (grow-out), K1 (grow-out) and K3 (post-smolt) - were as follows.

- Total standing biomass: 2,580 tonnes, up 25% during September.
- Net production (September): 512 tonnes
- Aggregate survival rate in 2026: 97.98%
- Accumulated feed conversion ratio in 2026: 1.036...

Russia, India Discuss Special Processing Zones for Russian Fish Exports

Russia plans to significantly increase exports of fish and fish products to India and is exploring a joint project to process its catch in India.

India has proposed processing Russian fish supplied to its market and re-exporting the finished products back to Russia. To support this, India is prepared to offer Russian fishing companies a special customs regime.

Exports of Russian fish and fish products to India have so far been subject to high duties. However, that could change this year, with the possibility that some duties may be...

ANALYSIS: Chilean Salmon Squeezed as Tariffs, Fuel Costs and El Niño Risk Converge

According to SUBPESCA, accumulated Chilean Atlantic salmon harvest volumes from January to August were 15.4% higher YTD at 523,474 metric tons (mt) (Figure 1). August harvest reached 78,588 mt, up 14.7% month over month (MOM) but down 5.4% year over year (YOY). Market participants doubt this pace continues through Q3 and Q4: lower YOY live biomass in sea cages reflects precautionary destocking tied to El Niño risk, detailed below...

USDA Splits $2 Million Atlantic Pollock Buy Between Two New England Processors

The US Department of Agriculture has awarded a new Section 32 Atlantic pollock contract worth just over $2 million, splitting the purchase between two Massachusetts processors after receiving competing bids — a departure from the agency's most recent pollock buy, which went entirely to a single supplier...

M&S Taps Ireland's Seafood Processor for Exclusive Organic Oak-Smoked Salmon Line

Marks & Spencer has launched an exclusive Organic Irish Oak Smoked Salmon developed with Bantry-based Keohane Seafoods, marking a new supply partnership between the UK retailer and Ireland's largest seafood processor.

The product is the result of a multi-year development process rather than a quick private-label add. Developed exclusively for M&S over three years, the premium ready-to-eat product represents a new collaboration between M&S and Keohane Seafoods, bringing together M&S's commitment to quality with the expertise of Ireland's largest seafood...