Tuna Price-Fixing Scandal Winds Down as Court Approves Settlement

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California approved the settlement agreement between tuna companies StarKist, its parent company Dongwon Industries and Lion Capital, the owner of Bumble Bee Foods and consumers.

The agreement, approved by U.S. District Court Judge Dana Sabraw, marks the end of a nearly decade-long antitrust case that alleged massive tuna companies engaged in a price-fixing conspiracy. The case involved massive fines and prison sentences.

The latest settlement agreement will see StarKist pay $130 million in cash to consumers...

Captain Fresh Eyeing Profitable Fiscal Year with Looming IPO Push

India-based Captain Fresh is aiming for a profitable end to the fiscal year ahead of its looming IPO push, according to the Financial Express.

The founder of the B2B seafood firm, Utham Gowda, explained to the publication that Captain Fresh had become a “global-to-global firm” at the end of FY2024, and FY2025 would mark the first time the company's global scale would be felt.

The global push has the company eying profitability and revenue growth in the range of $500-550 million...

Russian Fish Processors Plead for Relief Amid Investment Quota Struggles

Leading Russian fish processors have called on the state to ease the existing requirements of the investment quota program due to their inability to ensure the required output at present. Processors are also eyeing exemption from possible fines that would be levied due to not fulfilling the obligations.

So far, the "Russian Cod," one of Russia’s fish processors and producers, has already contacted the local Federal Agency with a request to ease the existing requirements for participants in the investment quota program and exempt them from fines in the...

NOAA Receives $147.5M to Modernize Fisheries Science and Build Climate Resilience

The Biden-Harris Administration and NOAA announced a $147.5 million investment through the Inflation Reduction Act that will focus on NOAA’s capabilities to support “climate-ready fisheries.”

NOAA said the funding will enable it to “modernize its science enterprise, delivering critical information and tools to support decision-making and adaptation strategies for rapidly changing marine ecosystems.”

“This funding, made possible thanks to President Biden’s historic Inflation Reduction Act, will make our nation’s fisheries, protected species and coastal communities more resilient to the impacts of climate change...

Cooke Finalizes Acquisition of Peruvian Fishing Giant Copeinca

Global seafood company Cooke Inc. (“Cooke”) just finalized its acquisition of Corporación Pesquera Inca S.A.C. (“Copeinca”), Peru’s largest fishing company.

This comes after Cooke’s November 7th announcement that Cooke would enter into a binding share purchase agreement with Copeinca Canada Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cooke, and seller PF Cayman New Holdco Limited, allowing Cooke to indirectly acquire all outstanding shares of Copeinca.

Copeinca, established in Peru in 1994, is one of Peru’s largest anchoveta processors and one of the world’s largest anchoveta fishmeal and fish oil producers and exporters.

Cooke, which entered the marine ingredients...

SeafoodNews Closed on Thursday, November 28 and Friday, November 29

SeafoodNews will not be publishing on Thursday, November 25 and Friday, November 26 in observance of Thanksgiving. We will return to our normal publishing schedule on Monday, November 29.

In the meantime, catch up on our recent major news stories by checking our Featured Stories page. 

From all of us here at SeafoodNews, we wish you and yours a safe and happy holiday...

Nordic Aqua Finalizes 30-year Rental Agreement for Step Up to the 20,000 Tonnes Facility

Nordic Aqua (Ningbo) Co., Ltd, a fully owned subsidiary of Nordic Aqua Partners ("Nordic Aqua") has entered into a 30-year rental agreement for land and production facilities with Xiangshan Government through its affiliated company, Xiangshan Strait Economic & Technological Cooperation Co., Ltd.

The agreement enables Nordic Aqua to develop Stage 3 of its land-based farming facility in Ningbo, China, allowing for an annual production capacity of 20,000 tonnes; adding 12,000 tons to the 4,000 tons in production and the 4,000 tons under construction (first harvest Q3/26)...

ANALYSIS: Record Price Swings and Seasonal Shifts for Atlantic Halibut in 2024

Atlantic halibut pricing in 2024 has been marked by notable volatility, driven by seasonal factors and external market dynamics. Fishermen shifting gear to target species like swordfish, tuna, or lobster, combined with the unpredictable nature of North Atlantic weather, have significantly impacted fishing efforts. These disruptions often result in abrupt changes in supply, leading to rapid price fluctuations. While volatility is characteristic of this market, this year has seen more pronounced swings than usual.

The year began with an average price of $15.75 per pound, reflecting the...

Strong Middle Eastern Demand Boosts Thai Tuna Export Figures

The export of Thai tuna increased by 33.27% y-o-y in September, as Global Trade Tracker informed. The increase in export levels was linked to a strong rise in demand led by Middle Eastern markets such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Israel, with a growth in exports of 10.84%, 129.93%, and 120.36% YTD, respectively.

Thailand’s Office of Trade Policy and Strategy (OTPS) under the Ministry of Commerce credited Middle East nations behind Thailand's strong canned tuna exports in an update published earlier this month. OTPS pointed towards stockpiling...

Soaring Costs Squeeze Japan’s Surimi Producers, Industry Calls for Support

According to a press release on November 27 of the Japan Kamaboko Association, the manufacturing costs of fish surimi products are soaring. The price of surimi, the primary raw material, has risen significantly this year, and the cost of packaging materials, labor, logistics, and energy costs such as electricity and gas have also risen sharply.

In this harsh environment, member companies have been working to reduce costs as much as possible by streamlining and improving production efficiency and reviewing raw materials...

Canada and Province of New Brunswick to Fund $38M in Fish and Food Sector Improvements

The Government of Canada and the Province of New Brunswick recently announced the allocation of $38 million in funding for a variety of projects that will enhance New Brunswick’s fishing and seafood sector. Projects will focus on key updates to infrastructure and improvements to productivity and ecologically friendly practices as well as scientific partnerships.

The fisheries in New Brunswick are vital to Atlantic Canada’s economy, with commercial fish landings amounting to $4.289 billion in 2022, inaddition to the economies of the individual...

Russia's Salmon Catch Declines to the Lowest Figures Since 2005

The salmon catch in Russia has declined to the lowest figures since 2005, according to the latest statements of representatives of local industry associations and Russian media reports.

According to data from the All-Russian Association of Fish Producers (VARPE), as of November 19, the salmon catch in Russia had “barely reached” 235.400 tons. The result became the worst in almost 20 years. VARPE recalled that less than a week remains until the end of the season, and active fishing is no longer underway...

Tohoku University Researchers: Ocean Nutrients Have Decreased by 24% in the Past 80 Years

According to a Tohoku University press release, an international research team led by Associate Professor Azumi Kuroyanagi of the Graduate School of Science at Tohoku University analyzed a database of marine plankton from around the world for the past 100 years and found that their population has declined by approximately 24% (24.24±0.11%) in just the past 80 years. As a result of global warming, plankton are shifting 10 kilometers per year to cooler areas, changing their habitats. Still, in the future...

Rhode Island Awarded $15.5M For Port of Galilee & DEM Marine Facilities Climate Resilience Project

The State of Rhode Island was recently awarded a $15.5 million grant through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Grant Program to implement a climate resilience project at the Port of Galilee and three state marine facilities.

This marks the largest grant ever received by the state through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. The state will match the remaining project costs not covered by the grant, which amount to $1.7 million.

The $17.2 million project, which will improve port resilience...

UMAMI Bioworks and Steakholder Foods to Scale 3D-Printed Fish Fillets for Global Commercialization

UMAMI Bioworks, a leading global cultivated seafood platform provider and Steakholder Foods (Nasdaq: STKH), a leading innovator in alternative proteins and 3D printing technologies, today announced the culmination of a two-year R&D collaboration funded by the Singapore-Israel Industrial R&D (SIIRD) grant. The partnership established the feasibility of producing 3D-printed cultivated fish products at scalable volumes and will now advance to bring commercial-ready seafood products to market...

Pacific Seafood Lands $1.3 Million USDA Salmon Contract

Clackamas, Oregon-based Pacific Seafood Group won a $1.3 million contract to sell 108,000 pounds of frozen wild salmon fillets to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for use in child nutrition and domestic food distribution programs.

Specifically, the Purchase Award Description from the USDA indicated that Dulcich Inc., Pacific Seafood Group’s parent company, won the entire contract. The USDA did note that 12,160 cases (8 truckloads) of Kosher caned pink salmon and an additional 48,640 (32) truckloads of product was not awarded due to price consideration.

Novo Holdings to Acquire Benchmark Genetics

Novo Holdings, the Denmark-based holding and investment company responsible for managing the assets and the wealth of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, just announced that it will acquire the Norwegian fish genetics company Benchmark Genetics from Benchmark Holdings plc for an enterprise value of up to £260 million.

Benchmark Genetics is an aquaculture biotechnology company headquartered in Bergen, Norway, with customers in more than 50 countries and breeding centers located in Norway, Iceland, Chile, the U.S., and Colombia. A leader in aquaculture genetics, Benchmark Genetics employs more than...