The Retail Rundown: Weekly Protein Recap; CPI Update

Seafood leads protein advertising for a third consecutive week, accounting for nearly 31% of total ad space. Pork follows with nearly 23% and beef makes up 21%. Chicken represents 19% of the advertising share, while eggs capture less than 1%.

The seafood category shows mixed price trends year-over-year (YOY), with fresh cod fillets discounted to $8.37 per pound last week—down 53 cents from the previous year. Prices for catfish and tilapia remained steady YOY, each averaging about $6.60 discounted...

Faroese Government Applies New Tax Model to Salmon Farmers in the Faroe Islands, Valid Until 2032

The Faroese government recently announced an industry-wide tax restructuring for salmon farming in the region, affecting all salmon farmers in the Faroe Islands as of January 1, 2025. Heavy hitters Bakkafrost, Mowi Faroes, and Hiddenfjord are impacted by the change.

The new tax model—which remains in place until 2032—is part of a broad, long-term agreement between the Faroese government and the largest opposition party. Per the agreement, Faroese salmon farmers will have a reduced maximum revenue tax and an additional...

Judges Confirm No Overtime Pay for Alaska General Seafoods Employees During Pandemic

A US appellate court ruled that Kanaway Seafoods, doing business as Alaska General Seafoods (AGS), did not have to pay its employees overtime for those who remained on-site during COVID-19 lockdowns.

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's ruling, which was issued on January 10, confirmed that the district court's ruling that AGS did not have to pay overtime to its employees was correct.

“First, the court correctly concluded that Plaintiffs were not entitled to compensation for their on-call time. Although Plaintiffs...

Norwegian Prime Minister Met With Export Companies on Incoming Trump Presidency

Last week, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a closed-door summit with nine leaders of Norway's biggest companies, as they all “braced for the next four years” wrote the Nordic Daily.

Ivan Vindheim, CEO of salmon farming giant Mowi, was joined by the CEOs of Norway’s eight largest exporters: oil and energy firm Equinor, defense contractor Kongsberg, energy and industrial firm Aker, finance company DNB, renewable power supplier Statkraft, metals producer Hydro, Chemicals giant Yara, and the Wilhelmsen group of shipping companies.

Industry leaders are ...

4ocean Announces Cleanup Partnership with Garden of Life® Brand

Ocean cleanup company 4ocean recently announced its new partnership with dietary supplements company Garden of Life®.

Garden of Life® is a Certified USDA Organic and Non-GMO Project Verified nutrition brand that was founded in 2000.

The two entities will team up to remove 500,000 pounds of plastic and trash from oceans, rivers, and coastlines by the end of 2027, while also delivering immediate support to a dozen active cleanup operations worldwide.

This partnership marks Garden of Life®’s official entrance into the clean ocean movement as...

Hodges: US Crab Sales are Strong with Limited Inventories

The year ended as it began, with strong retail support for snow crab. According to Urner Barry, April prices when the 2024 Canadian snow crab season began rose by 19% compared to the remarkable levels of 2023. Despite the higher prices, the trade perceived snow crab as being a strong value, leading to 78 million pounds being imported in the first three months of the season. Favorable import prices persisted throughout the summer and into fall.

Canada dominates the U.S. snow crab market, accounting for 91% of total snow crab imports through...

Washington Crab Season Opens as State Releases the Third Season Review Edition

The weather is cooperating and crabbers in northern Oregon and Washington have begun setting their gear for the anticipated Jan. 15 Dungeness season opener.

While most of Oregon opened in December and some parts of California opened earlier this month, northern California and the Washington/Oregon area around the Columbia River were both set to open Wednesday.

Dungeness crab supports Washington’s most valuable commercial fishery, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife said. The value of state landings for the ...

Dubai’s Aqua Bridge Group Steps Into Greek Aquaculture with AVRAMAR Takeover

Dubai-based Aqua Bridge Group has confirmed its acquisition of the Greek arm of AVRAMAR.

AVRAMAR is one of the largest aquaculture players in Greece, primarily focused on farming seabass and seabream. Mohammad Tabish, the founder and CEO of Aqua Bridge Group, posted about the deal on LinkedIn.

“I want to express my deepest gratitude to everyone who has supported us over the past six months. Your unwavering commitment, belief in our vision, and tireless efforts have been instrumental in reaching this milestone,” Tabish wrote...

ANALYSIS: Expana's Shrimp Demand Index Signals Market Stabilization Amid Industry Adjustments

US shrimp imports in November 2024 reached 157.8 million pounds, showing modest growth of 1.2% year-over-year despite persistent market pressures. Year-to-date imports through November totaled 1.530 billion pounds, maintaining a 3.7% decline from 2023 levels as the market continues to adjust post-pandemic dynamics...

ANALYSIS: Review of Chilean Atlantic Salmon Exports Through November 2024

Chile is the second-biggest salmon producer worldwide after Norway. The Chilean National Fisheries Service (Sernapesca) reported a total production of 769,239 metric tonnes (MT) in 2023, accounting for growth of 1.36% year-on-year (y-o-y). However, as market participants have reported, a decline in production is expected in 2024. According to the Chilean Customs export database, the main Atlantic salmon (Salmon salar) categories (Fig 1) saw a 5.32% reduction in total exports from January...

Pacific Seafood Responds to Labor Union's Campaign on Environmental Violations

A California-based labor union had its sights on Pacific Seafood as it unveiled a website showcasing the Oregon-based seafood firm’s past environmental violations.

UNITE HERE Local 49, a group that represents gaming, hotel, food service, and airport workers in the greater Sacramento, California, region,, showcases the public violations Pacific Seafood has already faced in recent years in the states of Oregon and Washington.

Expana spoke with Lacy Ogan, director of communications at Pacific Seafood, and shared that the company...

FFAW Calls for Transparency and Accountability in Fish Harvesters’ Resource Centre 

ST. JOHN’S, NL – It’s been more than nine months since the Fish Harvesters’ Resource Centre (FRC) has refused to call a board meeting or provide members with important information regarding the organization’s operations. FFAW-Unifor President Dwan Street is now calling for the FRC to operate with transparency and accountability. 

FRC is a nonprofit, governed by a board of directors, that  provides dockside monitoring services to fish harvesters in Newfoundland and Labrador.

“Our elected Inshore Council has been calling for increased transparency and accountability regarding the boards our Union ...

Næra® Snacks to Unveil New Crunchy Salmon Bites at Winter Fancy Food Show 2025

Næra® Snacks (a brand by Responsible Foods, ehf.) recently launched a new salmon snack line, Crunchy Fish Bites.

The all-natural salmon bites are batch-crafted and gently dried and come in the following flavors: wasabi, jalapeno, and ranch.

Næra® Snacks will be showcasing additional Crunchy Fish bite varieties at the Specialty Food Association’s (SFA) Winter Fancy Food Show 2025, Booth 941, which takes place this Sunday, January 19, 2025.

“Næra® Crunch Fish Bites are truly snackable and conquer hunger without sinking..."

Largest US Shrimp Farmer Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy; Robin Pearl Back in as CEO

American Mariculture (AMI), the largest shrimp farmer in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on January 8, per court documents.

According to its bankruptcy petition, the Florida-based company has 50-99 debtors. American Mariculture estimated that its assets range between $1 million and $10 million, and its liabilities range from $10 million to $50 million.

On January 9, Judge Caryl E. Delano of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida granted an expedited motion directing the joint administration...

Russian Fish Prices Surge as Raw Material Costs Soar

Leading Russian fish processors will significantly increase prices for their products this year due to a significant increase in prices for raw materials and other costs.

So far, a decrease in the catch of some types of fish and rising prices for raw materials have led to increased costs for processors, while some have already announced an increase in prices by up to 25% this year.

According to Russian media reports, leading local players such as Baltiysky Bereg, Russian Sea, Evroprom, and others recently announced these plans...

GAO Submits FDA Recommendations to Congress for Increased Inspection Efforts

On January 8, 2025, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released its Q&A report to Congress, titled “Food Safety: FDA Should Strengthen Inspection Efforts to Protect the U.S. Food Supply.”

FDA inspections fail to meet mandated annual targets

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for ensuring the safety of nearly 80% of the nation’s food supply including fruits, vegetables, processed foods, and most seafood.

Since 2007, the FDA has been on the GAO's High-Risk List, which highlights 37 areas across the federal government that are...

Gidrostroy Built Two Pollock Processing Plants in Japan’s Northern Territories that Russia Occupies

Last year, the foremost Russian fishery company, Gidrostroy Group, built two new fishery processing plants in Japan's disputed Northern Territories, which Russia occupies. The investment amounted to approximately RUB 3.2 billion ($31,29 million). The plants were built on Etorofu Island and Shikotan Island and will process Alaska pollock. The Russian Federal Fisheries Service announced this on January 6.

Minato Shimbun reported that the new plants were built based on the winning bid in the second round of investment fishing quotas...