VIDEO: Ocean Can Provide More Food; NOAA Pick Withdraws; Dungeness Season Delayed; Crab Analysis

Join SeafoodNews Weekly Video hosts Lorin Castiglione and Ryan Doyle as they discuss how the ocean can provide up to six times more food than it does currently; Trump's pick to lead NOAA withdrawal from consideration; Central California Dungeness crab season delay until mid-December and a snow crab market analysis. 

This episode was brought to you by COMTELL, which will be receiving a complete redesign in 2020. Subscribers who utilize COMTELL to track market quotations, analyze trends and stay on top of key industry...

Weak Run Forecast for Southeast Pink Salmon in 2020

A joint forecast was released last Wednesday for a pink salmon harvest in Southeast Alaska in 2020 of 12 million fish. The prediction was made by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game with NOAA Fisheries Auke Bay Laboratories in Juneau. 

If realized, the harvest would be about one-third of the recent ten-year average harvest of 35 million pinks.

The forecast is based on juvenile pink salmon abundance indices collected by the Southeast Alaska Coastal Monitoring (SECM) project in northern Southeast Alaska inside waters. Surveys conducted cooperatively by NOAA...

Halibut’s a Wrap; a Glimpse at 2020 Next Week

The Pacific halibut fishery ended on November 14 amidst little fanfare. The eight-month fishery topped 17 million pounds for Alaskan longliners holding shares of the fish, or about 93 percent of Alaska’s total catch limit.

Most dock prices ticked up a bit hovering in the $5 to $6 per pound range during the fishery, likely due to bad weather hampering landings of competing for halibut from Canada.

Doug Bowen runs Alaska Boats and Permits at Homer.

“Their hurricanes and everything may have disrupted some of the fisheries there..."

Food Trends 2020: More Sustainable But (Surprise!) Not Necessarily Plant-Based

Datassentials, one of the largest food industry research groups, released its latest predictions for food trends at the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute’s (ASMI) annual meeting last month. Top findings of their online survey underscore their prediction that a shift toward more sustainable diets will continue in 2020, but the research shows that it doesn’t necessarily mean plant-based.

The increase of plant-based proteins replacing meat or seafood, in menu offerings like Burger King's Impossible Burger, were the subject of several discussions at ASMI's meeting.

But research commissioned by...  

Senators Cassidy, Jones Introduce Bill to Improve Red Snapper Numbers

U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Doug Jones (D-AL) introduced a bill earlier this week that aims to improve the health of reef fish (red snapper) populations in the Gulf of Mexico.

A common issue when catching red snapper is barotrauma, a condition that kills fish if they are caught and rapidly rough to the surface from deep water. Barotrauma kills fish because they cannot readjust to deep water upon release. Fishermen can venting tools and descending devices to reduce the impact and save fish...

OSU Prof Uses Drones, GoPros to Track Oregon Gray Whale Behavior, Poop

Using drones deployed in the air and GoPros underwater, Oregon State University marine ecologist Dr. Leigh Torres recently completed her fourth field season documenting previously unseen behaviors of gray whales – and gathering their poop – off the Oregon coast.

Torres also is the lead investigator on a collaborative project to determine where whales hang out by conducting repeat surveys along the Oregon coast four times a month for two years. The collaborative project with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Coast Guard, ...

SFP, IFFO and GAA Team Up to Address Challenges in South East Asia’s Fisheries

IFFO, The Marine Ingredients Organization and the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) commissioned a study on South East Asian fisheries and their relevance to fishmeal production. The final report, which was delivered by Duncan Leadbitter of Fish Matter was published.

The main findings of the report highlight a requirement for accurate information as being of prime importance to the management of sustainability of the aquaculture supply chain. It also concludes that an integrated approach, based on the concept of collaboration, is key to delivering change through positive...

FCC, CAIA Welcome New Canadian Minister of Fisheries and Oceans

The Fisheries Council of Canada (FCC) and the Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance (CAIA) welcomed new Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Bernadette Jordan on Wednesday.

Both organizations shared enthusiasm in working with the new head of the DFO.

“Seafood farming is a key driver of economic growth in Canadian rural, coastal and indigenous communities, and is the fastest growing food production sector globally,” CAIA President and CEO Timothy Kennedy said. “We look forward to working to develop a strong partnership with Minister Jordan to help Canada’s aquaculture..."

Central California Season Delayed Again; Whales Spotted in Sanctuary

The bad news: The San Francisco and Bodega Bay Thanksgiving crab feast won't happen this year. Crabbers and processors will have to wait until Dec. 15, at least, before bringing crab to the market. The good news: it appears domoic acid won't create another delay.

Based on updated information and in response to concerns from the commercial Dungeness crab fleet, including written requests from Port Associations to further delay the Central California or "San Francisco" season, California Department of Fish and Wildlife Director Charlton H. Bonham said Wednesday...

Shrimp Fisheries in Southeast Alaska

Four varieties of shrimp are taken at various times throughout the year by those with permits, with recent catches topping a million and a half pounds, worth nearly $3 million at the docks.

“We have 19 different areas around Southeast and each has its own appropriate harvest level for sustainability.”

Dave Harris is area manager with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game in Juneau.

In fact, shrimp trawling is Southeast’s longest ongoing fishery since 1915.

Beam trawlers target tiny northern, or pink, shrimp and larger sidestripes, mostly near Petersburg and Wrangell...

Cermaq Contributes to Traceability in France With Blockchain

French consumers of Labeyrie smoked salmon can now get information in text and photos regarding where the salmon they are purchasing was farmed, what food it was fed, and other information, thanks to Cermaq’s cooperation with Labeyrie in securing traceability and transparency.

All Cermaq salmon now comes with comprehensive information about the fish; its origin, when it was hatched, which fresh water facility it came from, how big it was when it was transferred to seawater, at which sea water facility it has been farmed, as well as health and welfare information ...

The Winding Glass:  Can we stop IUU fishing by thinking outside the box?

Campaigns against IUU fishing by both the industry and environmentalists continually run up against a problem:  government enforcement.

Enforcement is not as much of an issue for rich countries with well-developed fisheries management systems, and strong enforcement histories.

In these cases, when IUU fishing happens, it can be successfully exposed, prosecuted and ended.

For example, in 2012, 3 Scottish fish factories and 27 skippers plead guilty and were fined more than £1 million for illegally harvesting mackerel in excess of EU quotas.

Carlos Rafael, the largest owner of scallop vessels in New Bedford, went to jail in 2017 over falsifying sales records to hide illegal landings. 

Similar enforcement has happened in Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Japan, France and elsewhere.

But too often governments are not able to effectively enforce...

Huffman's Next Stop on Fisheries Listening Tour is Seattle This Friday

San Rafael, CA—Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) will meet with the public and industry on fisheries management issues in Seattle this Friday. Huffman, Chair of the House Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife, is hosting a national listening tour to discuss fisheries management and reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

His third stop is Seattle this Friday, November 22, at 1:45p.m. at the Seattle Aquarium, 1483 Alaskan Way, Pier 59. The tour is designed to engage diverse perspectives, interests, and needs of individuals who have a ...

Russian Government May Ease Tax Pressure on Domestic Fishermen 

The Russian government may revise the proposed tax reform for the domestic fish and seafood sector, in a move to reduce tax pressure on domestic fishermen, according to recent statements, made by some senior state officials and industry analysts.

According to initial state plans, the raise of taxes on domestic fish producers (which is scheduled for the beginning of next year) should have resulted in the attraction of additional revenue to the state budget on the sum of RUB 90 billion (USD$1.42 billion)...

Coast Guard Medevacs Fisherman 10 Miles off Oregon Coast

A Coast Guard aircrew medevacked an injured fisherman on Tuesday morning off the commercial fishing vessel Arctic Storm 10 miles southwest of Newport, Oregon.

An MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Facility Newport rendezvoused with the Arctic Storm at 7:36 a.m. and hoisted a 21-year-old male off the fishing vessel and transported him to Samaritan Pacific Community Hospital in Newport for treatment, the Coast Guard said in a press release.

The initial report of injury was received by Watchstanders at Coast...

Red Lobster, Postmates Announce Delivery Partnership

Red Lobster just jumped into the delivery game thanks to its partnership with Postmates.

Postmates, the only app that enables almost anything to be delivered on-demand, and Red Lobster, the world's largest seafood restaurant company, have partnered to bring a variety of high quality, traceable, sustainable and responsibly-sourced seafood options directly to customers' doors, Postmates said in a press release.

Today's Main Story: Bumble Bee Files for Bankruptcy With $925 Million Offer From Taiwan's FCF

Bumble Bee Foods filed for bankruptcy on Thursday, with an agreement to sell it assets to Taiwan-based FCF Fishery Co. for a price tag of $925 million. Bumble Bee’s London-based owner Lion Capital said the chapter 11 process will help facilitate the sale to FCF as well as reduce its debt burden caused by recent and significant legal challenges...

The Winding Glass: Can We Stop IUU Fishing By Thinking Outside The Box?

A new Winding Glass column from SeafoodNews founder John Sackton highlights an outside the box approach to stopping IUU fishing. John writes: “Investment in blockchain designed to reduce or eliminate IUU fishing from a regional hot spot could be a far less costly technological solution that does not depend on the enforcement budget of the governments involved..."

Packaged Facts: Food E-Commerce Sales will Increase 32% Annually

Online sales of food and beverages in the United States reached $17 billion in 2018, making the U.S. the second largest food e-commerce market in the world with 15% of global sales, according to U.S. Grocery Market Focus: The Amazon Food Shopper, 2nd Edition, a new report by market research firm Packaged Facts.

Through 2023, food e-commerce sales in the U.S. are forecast to increase 32% per year. As the availability of online grocery shopping expands and consumers begin to embrace online shopping for its...

Nielsen: 7 Important Factors that will Shape the Future of Convenience Retail

Across the U.S. retail landscape, we believe convenience stores will grow faster than all other offline channels over the next five years, reflecting the hyper focus consumers are putting on expediency. Convenience stores, however, are no longer just competing against other convenience store players. Channels are blurring and C-stores now compete with an array of players that include: quick serve restaurants, smaller formats of grocery and mass and drugstores that are increasingly focusing efforts on fresh and fresh prepared/grab-and-go offerings...

Nordic Blu Named Official Atlantic Salmon of EATALY

EATALY, a top retail and dining experience in North America, has chosen ‘Green-Rated’ Nordic Blu Salmon as its official Atlantic salmon to supply their stores. The salmon will be supplied by CleanFish, the only importer of Nordic Blue to the continent.

“We’re honored that the first national partnership for Nordic Blu Salmon is with Eataly, a brand respected around the world for quality and authenticity,” Mike Moniz, Managing Director of CleanFish, the sole importer of Nordic Blu to North America said.

Nordic Blu Salmon is called out by name at Eataly...

Study: Bigger Doesn't Mean Better for Hatchery-released Salmon

Fish permeate the culture of the Pacific Northwest (PNW). In particular, the iconic salmon has been an important part of the region for thousands of years, from ancient Native American trade routes and legends to modern fishing and sporting. In the area of the Salish Sea - inland waterways including Puget Sound, the Strait of Georgia, and the Strait of Juan de Fuca - the cultures, economies, and technologies there are all impacted and influenced by salmon. It is no wonder, then, that salmon are of high conservation interest and constitute a large...

United States Takes Leading Role in Global Fisheries Management

Today is the last day of the International Symposium on Fisheries Sustainability in Rome, hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization and it is also World Fisheries Day, which celebrates the “commendable efforts by many governments as well as by the industry” to advance sustainability measures. At the meeting in Italy, the symposium will shine a light on human and labor rights violations and other “unacceptable practices” that take place “not only in developing countries but ...also in the developed world, and at all stages of the value chain ...”

Omega-3 Fish Oil as Effective for Attention as ADHD Drugs for Some Children

Researchers from King’s College London and China Medical University in Taichung, Taiwan, have found omega-3 fish oil supplements improve attention among children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), but only among those with low levels of omega-3 in their blood.

The researchers say their results bring a personalised medicine approach to psychiatry by demonstrating that omega-3 only works for some children with ADHD. Previous research by the same group found that children with omega-3 deficiency are more likely to have more severe...

St. Lawrence Seaway May Play Bigger Role in North Atlantic Right Whale Deaths

In the intense efforts to prevent any further deaths of North Atlantic right whales, Canadian and U.S. governments, industry, and environmental groups have identified three main causes -- ship strikes, gear entanglements, and underwater noise pollution. Media coverage has often focused on fishing gear as the primary culprit, as entanglements are visible long after they occur and often appear in photographs of trapped or dead whales.

The crises pitted the two countries against each other, particularly after Massachusetts Senators Warren and Markey sent a letter to Dr. ...

US Perceptions Vary on Wild vs Fresh/Salt Water Fish Farms

Americans have very different perceptions on wild versus farmed fish. And they vary widely on fish farmed in fresh or salt water.  

A report out this week says that while more US adults are replacing red meat with seafood, concerns and misperceptions are slowing the pace of purchases.

In the study called Aquaculture/Mariculture, US Market Insights and Opportunities, food industry trackers Changing Tastes and Datassential surveyed 1,500 consumers and 400 restaurant operators about their wild and farmed preferences for America’s three favorites: salmon, tuna and shrimp...

NOAA: Rebound in Groundfish Leads to New Flexibility for Fishermen, Protection for Deep-Sea Corals

The changes made in West Coast groundfish fisheries adopted earlier this week are set to reopen access for fishermen to productive fishing grounds, NOAA said.

The groundfish population in the reopened areas have rebounded and the changes made by the fisheries will also protect deep-water habitat and deep-sea corals from bottom fishing.

The adjustments came into fruition in the form of an amendment to the Fishery Management Plan for groundfish off the West Coast. The Pacific Fishery Management...

Western Australia Octopus Now MSC Certified

The Western Australia octopus fishery achieved certification against the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Fisheries Standard for sustainability.

This is the first octopus fishery in the southern hemisphere to achieve certification, the MSC said in a press release. Across Western Australia, 12 species now have the blue fish tick, representing nearly 90 percent of fisheries by value in the state.

Fishing license-holders involved in the certification celebrated in Fremantle, Western Australia on Wednesday with an event for fishery reps. and stakeholders including the Hon Dave Kelly, Western Australia Minister for Water; Fisheries; Forestry...

ANALYSIS: Canadian Snow Crab Market Extremely Firm Since End of October

As we reported back in October, Canadian snow crab market has been firming through late summer and fall on all size. However, over this past week and a half, the market has been extremely firm. Since the end of October 8-ounce and 10-ounce crab has adjusted over $0.30 higher while 5-8s trended $0.15 higher.

Also noted is the continued strength of 8-ounce crab. Historically, 8-ounce crab prior to 2018 tracked much more closely with 5-8-ounce crab...

Today's Main Story: Bristol Bay Red King Crab Fishery Trends Toward Closure as Fleet Reports Slow Fishing, Aging Stock

The Bristol Bay red king crab fishery may close for the first time in 25 years next fall. The fleet is reporter slow fishing as the stock continues to show signs of decline. The current quota of 3.8 million pounds marks the lowest since 2005. With 99 percent of the harvest landed, there are mounting concerns about the future of the fishery...