The first salmon counting weir in Alaska was constructed on the Karluk River in 1921, and every summer since then the weir has provided a remarkable stream of information which has been vital to understanding salmon and successfully managing them.
Although the federal Gulf of Alaska pollock season opens on Jan. 20, fishermen have decided to stand down for two weeks in the hopes of harvesting higher-quality fish and roe later in the season.
Is it a coincidence that one of the world’s largest mineral deposits is located near the world’s largest sockeye salmon spawning grounds at Bristol Bay? And if the likes of a Pebble Mine removed the bulk of those deep deposits that also create the world’s magnetic field, could it disrupt the…
This year marks the 30th year that the weekly Fish Factor column has appeared in newspapers across Alaska and nationally. Every year it features “picks and pans” for Alaska’s seafood industry — a no-holds-barred look back at some of the year’s best and worst fishing highlights, and my choice…
As Alaska faces its toughest budget squeeze ever, the state’s commercial fisheries are set to get a bit of a breather. But it is due more to fund swapping than lawmakers’ largess.
Alaska coastal communities will get a bit of an economic boost in 2021 from increased catches of Pacific cod.
The Wild Alaskan Company based in Homer has taken “mission based” seafood e-commerce to a whole new level.
A lack of fish in the freezers is an encouraging sign for Alaska salmon as we head into the new year, driven by increasing customer demand. But headwinds from trade disputes and the COVID pandemic also loom large on the 2021 horizon.
Frozen sockeye salmon strips bring tasty nutrition and relief to teething babies.
Tamped down prices due to toppled markets caused by the COVID virus combined with low salmon returns to many Alaska regions added up to reduced paychecks for fishermen and will mean lower tax revenues for fishing communities.
The number of boots on deck in Alaska has declined and most fisheries have lost jobs over the past five years. Overall, Alaska’s harvesting sector ticked downward by 848 jobs from 2015 through 2019.
After a salmon season that successfully fished its way through a pandemic and upturned markets, the value of Alaska salmon permits is ticking up in two regions while toppling in others.
Many Alaska fishermen are likely to be involved in regulatory meetings next spring instead of being out on the water. And Alaska legislators will be distracted by hearings for hundreds of unconfirmed appointments as they tackle contentious budgets and other pressing issues.
Light-weight collapsible pots prevent whales from pirating pricey black cod from longline hooks and give a break to small boats.
More young Alaskans are officially among the next generation of professional fishermen and ocean stewards to hail from Cordova, Haines, Homer, Ketchikan and Sitka.
Now that the 2020 pack of Alaska salmon has been caught and put up, stakeholders will get a better picture of how global prices may rise or fall.
Some surprising results are revealed in the first of a series of briefing papers showing how Alaska’s seafood industry has been affected by the pandemic from dock to dinner plates.
Alaska fishermen can increase their federal trade relief funds by adding higher poundage prices for 15 fish and shellfish species. While it’s welcomed, the payouts are a band-aid on a bigger and ongoing problem.
Bering Sea crabbers will soon know how much they can pull up in their pots for the upcoming season that opens Oct. 15.
Pollock season got off to a slow start this year because of the unexpectedly fruitful pink salmon harvest during the summer. The delay comes as the price of pollock and other groundfish has dropped by up to 30% this year due to a variety of factors.
Kodiak has again scored a first debate between candidates in one of Alaska’s most high-profile political races: the U.S. Senate.
Alaska seafood processors are paying tens of millions of dollars extra to cover costs from the COVID pandemic, and most of it is coming out-of-pocket.
Several hundred dead salmon were found floating in the Buskin River over the weekend, the culmination of several naturally occurring factors, according to fish and game officials.
Snacks that are good for people and the planet now come in the form of crispy chips that are made from Bristol Bay sockeye salmon skins.
It was inaction on health care that ultimately made Dr. Al Gross of Juneau decide to challenge Republican Dan Sullivan, who is running for a second, six-year term to represent Alaska in the U.S. Senate.
The Saltery River Drainage, one of Kodiak’s most popular sport fisheries, reopened to sockeye harvesting on Tuesday following a 10-day closure.
Unless you fished for salmon this summer at Bristol Bay, it’s been slim pickings for fishermen in other Alaska regions. Salmon returns have been so poor that communities already are claiming fishery disasters.
top story
Pink salmon is dominating Kodiak’s commercial catch this year, with 7.1 million pinks harvested as of Wednesday out of the total of 8.3 million fish netted.
It got little attention from the mainstream media but seafood netted some historic firsts in the nation’s new dietary guidelines.
Alaska’s seafood industry stakeholders have a four bagger chance to provide input on policy decisions that directly affect their livelihoods: trade, relief payouts for cod and salmon, Board of Fisheries meeting plans and appointees. For several, the window of opportunity is tight.
Most Alaskans are surprised to learn that seafood is by far Alaska’s top export, the source of the state’s largest manufacturing base and its No. 1 private employer.
Governor Mike Dunleavy’s controversial selections to the state Board of Fisheries (BOF) will get a legislative hearing in early fall and the call is out for public comments.
top story
After a month of weak sockeye salmon runs, pink salmon have started appearing in larger numbers this week following the opening of the season on June 9.
The biggest red salmon run in the world is building at Bristol Bay.
Unexpected upheavals stemming from the coronavirus have slowed the process of getting relief payments into the hands of fishermen and communities hurt by the 2018 Gulf of Alaska cod crash.
All systems are go for keeping close tabs on fish and crab stocks in waters managed by the state, meaning out to 3 miles. While constraints from the coronavirus resulted in nearly all annual stock surveys being cut in deeper waters overseen by the federal government, it’s “closer to normal” …
Surveys of Alaska’s fish, crab and halibut stocks in the Bering Sea have been called off or reduced due to constraints and dangers posed by the coronavirus.
Recycled fishing nets from Cordova will soon help launch a new clothing line by Grundens, the maker of the iconic foul weather gear “built by fishermen for fishermen for over a century.”
A rapid response by nearly 800 Alaska fishermen will provide a guideline for giving them a hand up as the coronavirus swamps their operations.
Giving COVID relief funds to the seafood industry and stepping on the gas for offshore fish farming are two big takeaways from the executive orders and congressional packages coming out of the nation’s capital.
Some fast food restaurants in the Lower 48 have stopped serving hamburgers. Meatpacking plants have shut down. Grocery stores are frequently sold out of flour and rice. But Americans can buy Alaskan seafood directly from the fishermen who caught it — and, in increasing numbers, that’s what t…
Sales of Alaska’s most popular seafoods are being hit hard by markets upended by the coronavirus, but perhaps none is getting battered worse than halibut. Along with the big losses in the lucrative restaurant trade, Pacific halibut also is facing headwinds from increasing foreign imports.
The value of Alaska salmon permits is another casualty of the coronavirus, with prices dropping for all fisheries across the state. There are a lot of permits for sale — and the most offers ever to lease permits, especially at Bristol Bay.
Strict new rules are now in place for Alaska fishermen and their vessels to protect against and prevent the spread of COVID-19 during the 2020 salmon season.
Alaska’s total salmon catch for 2020 is projected to be down 36% from last year’s haul of 207 million fish, the eighth largest on record that was valued at nearly $658 million at the docks.
How can fishermen be sure their vessels are clean of coronavirus contamination? Where can they find out about relief funds that are newly available for fishermen?
The U.S. seafood industry received a $300 million assist from the $2 trillion COVID-19 relief package passed by Congress on March 27, and a wide coalition of industry stakeholders is hoping for more.
The Pacific halibut fishery opened on March 14 amid little fanfare and flattened markets.
Genetically tweaked salmon that grows three times faster than normal fish … fillets grown in labs from fish cells ... now plant-based seafoods such as “vegan shrimp,” or “Toona” are gaining footholds in the marketplace — and confusing customers.
Alaska shellfish farmers and divers fear they won’t be “open for business” much longer if they’re forced to pick up the tab for federally required lab tests as outlined in Governor Dunleavy’s budget.
Seafood coming from and going to China is piling up in freezer vans and cold storages indefinitely as the coronavirus continues to cause commerce chaos around the world.
Commented