Sec. Lutnick Taps Eugenio Piñeiro-Soler as Assistant Administrator for NOAA Fisheries

Yesterday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration—currently the parent department for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), or NOAA Fisheries—named Eugenio Piñeiro-Soler as the Assistant Administrator of NOAA Fisheries, effective immediately.

Piñeiro-Soler takes the reins of the agency tasked with overseeing the nation’s marine fisheries and conservation work, which comes only a few weeks after several hundred fishery researchers and managers lost their jobs due to the recent decisions of the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)...

ANALYSIS: Tariff Headwinds and Seasonal Demand Shake Up Global Salmon Markets

The global salmon market is currently navigating a complex web of tariff impacts, seasonal demand shifts, and evolving supply dynamics as April unfolds. With Holy Week beginning April 14 and the recent imposition of a universal 10% tariff on several major salmon-exporting nations, volatility has intensified across both the farmed fillet and whole fish markets...

Oregon Dems Urge Commerce Department to Declare 2024 Season a Disaster

Oregon’s Democratic Congressional leaders want to send help to salmon fishermen after a 2024 season showed meager results.

Earlier this week, Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, Maxine Dexter and Janelle Bynum urged the U.S. Department of Commerce to declare a federal fishery resource disaster for the 2024 Oregon troll salmon fishery.

“This declaration is critical to provide economic relief to Oregon’s fisheries and coastal communities in addition to protecting the sustainability of wild salmon populations,” the lawmakers said...

Hokkaido Herring Fishery Down 60%, Spiking Beach Prices

Herring catches in Hokkaido are currently poor, showing a 60% year-on-year decrease in total catch for the entire prefecture from January to April 8, compared to last year, with the total catch amounting to 3,700 tons, according to estimates from the Hokkaido Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations (DOGYOREN).

With catches off the coast of Ishikari Bay nearly finished by early April, fishermen have shifted fishing grounds to Rumoi, Okhotsk, and eastern Hokkaido. Catches, however, have not increased.

In addition, due to a shortage of raw materials, market prices in the...

SEAD Testing Shows 43% of Gulf Shores Restaurants Are Falsely Labeling Shrimp Dishes

According to genetic testing conducted last week by Seafood Development Consulting (SEAD), approximately 43% of restaurants in Gulf Shores, Alabama (19 out of 44 establishments) are currently misrepresenting farm-raised imported shrimp as local wild-caught Gulf Coast shrimp.

The testing was commissioned by the Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA), along with previously conducted genetic testing for other Gulf coast shrimp towns like Baton Rouge, Savannah, Galveston, St. Petersburg, and Tampa, which showed notable percentages of mislabeling...

US Coast Guard Rescues Three Crew Members from Aground Vessel Near Green Island, MA; Fuel Discharged

On the morning of April 11, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and Boston Police completed a rescue of three crew members from a vishing vessel that ran aground near Green Island, Massachusetts.

According to the USCG's recent news release, watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Boston first received a broken radio transmission from the commercial fishing vessel Eileen Rita at 7:46 a.m., the home port of which was New Bedford, Massachusetts. Upon establishing contact with the vessel’s captain, watchstanders confirmed that Eileen Rita had run...

NOAA Officially Closes Scallop Fishery in Northern Gulf of Maine

Effective April 11 at 3:00 p.m. EST, NOAA Fisheries closed the Northern Gulf of Maine (NGOM) Scallop Management Area to all scallop vessels fishing under federal scallop regulations.

The temporary closure applies to all scallop vessels fishing within the federally permitted limited access general category and prohibits such vessels from fishing for, possessing, or landing scallops in or around the fishing area specified above.

This decision adheres to federal scallop regulations, which require NOAA to close areas projected to reach 100% of the annual NGOM Set-Aside, or until...

Grounded Cargo Ship Off Newfoundland’s West Coast Raises “Growing Alarm” for Fishing Fleets

FFAW-Unifor President Dwan Street is urgently calling attention to the grounding of the MSC Baltic III cargo ship on the province’s west coast as members of her group — the Fish, Food & Allied Workers Union, representing over 14,000 workers in Newfoundland and Labrador — begin fishing the rich waters near the grounded vessel.

“This ship is sitting on the rocks of Cedar Cove with hazardous materials and fuel onboard,” Street said. "We’ve seen reports of structural damage, leaks, and an oily mixture in the engine room...

FFAW Applauds Panel’s Decision on NL Snow Crab Price

According to a news release published yesterday afternoon by the Fish, Food & Allied Workers Union (FFAW), the Standing Fish Price-Setting Panel finally reached a decision on snow crab pricing for the 2025 season in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL), ruling in favor of the FFAW’s proposed floor price of $4.97 per pound.

Per the Panel’s decision, the FFAW’s starting price was approved across the board, with an adjustment at the end of the season based on market performance, says FFAW-Unifor President Dwan Street. The chosen floor price is...

Copper River Opens May 22 with Projected Catch More Than Twice the 10-Year Average

The opening of the Copper River salmon season signals the start of another salmon year in Alaska. This year, the Copper River will open on May 22, a week later than historical tradition, with a much higher sockeye run than in recent years, which justifies a commercial harvest forecast of 1.92 million fish in the Copper River alone. That prediction is 2.3 times the 10-year (2015–2024) average of 824,000 fish.

Copper River Chinook salmon, which has been decreasing for many years across most...

ANALYSIS: Tariffs and Tight Supply Lead to a Season of Strain for the Global Mahi Market

The global mahi market is entering a renewed period of uncertainty following the Trump administration’s latest tariff adjustments. While a 10% blanket duty remains in place, countries previously subject to higher rates—such as Vietnam, Taiwan, and Indonesia—have been granted a 90-day pause, temporarily aligning them with the lower tariff and offering a window for negotiation with the White House. Ecuador and Peru, the two largest mahi-producing nations, continue under the 10% rate...

North Atlantic Right Whales Detected in Massachusetts Waters; DMF Urges Caution

On April 11, the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) released an announcement urging all mariners to use extreme caution navigating Massachusetts coastal waters after detecting large numbers of North Atlantic right whales in the area. 

Together, utilizing aerial and acoustic surveillance methods, the Center for Coastal Studies, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) detected significant North Atlantic right whale activity in the area of Cape Cod Bay, with additional sightings in Massachusetts Bay, between the dates of March 28 and April 10...

Tariff Talks 2025: Expana's Weekly Rundown #4

Expana’s global team of specialist reporters has been tracking every twist and turn in the fluid tariff situation.

Click to read "Tariff Talks 2025: Expana's Weekly Rundown #4."

This report allows the Expana community to see where key commodity markets stand as of this past week... Click the above PDF report, or keep scrolling to read in plain text...

StarKist Brings Back Nostalgic “Sorry Charlie” Marketing Campaign

Earlier this month, StarKist Co. revived its 1961 slogan “Sorry Charlie” by incorporating it into the company’s new marketing campaign, StarKist® – The First Name in Tuna.

The campaign will roll out throughout the year and showcase three ads, each of which will include 15-second ad spots and shorter cuts, appearing across Connected TV (CTV), Online Video (OLV), paid social, and other digital channels.

The original 1961 slogan gave voice to Charlie the Tuna, who wore a red beret and glasses and who endearingly hoped to be the next tuna chosen...

Russia Wraps up Successful Pollock Fishing Season "A"

Russian fisherman recently completed a successful "A" season for domestic pollock fishing, which led to the growth of catch in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, Russia’s main pollock-producing area of the country, amounting to about 850,000 tons and over 1 million tons for the entire Far Eastern basin.

This was recently confirmed by Alexey Buglak, President of the Russian Pollock Association (ADM), who commented in an interview with the Russian magazine Fish News that despite difficult weather conditions, the growth of catch in the Sea of Okhotsk was...

ANALYSIS: US Tariffs and Their Potential Impact on the Tuna Trade

On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced changes to tariffs affecting more than 180 countries, introducing a minimum 10% tariff that will take effect on April 5. Higher increases in reciprocal rates will come into effect on April 9. The US Trade Representative (USTR) has determined the elevated reciprocal tariff rates based on a formula that focuses on the trade deficit with its partners, along with each country’s monetary tariffs, non-monetary trade barriers, currency manipulations, and other factors...

Navigating the Trump Tariff Turbulence: A Comprehensive Timeline

US President Donald Trump and his administration have paused reciprocal tariffs on most countries.

“Based on the lack of respect that China has shown... I am hereby raising the [tariff] charged to China by the [USA] to 125%, effective immediately,” wrote Trump on Truth Social at 1:18 pm ET. 

It’s not clear if this 125% is in addition to the 20% imposed on Chinese imports to the US. In early March, Trump noted that he would add another 10% tariff on Chinese goods...