Despite Predictions, Russian Fisherman Do Not Expect Pollock Decline Over Next 5 Years

Russian leading fishermen do not expect the decline of domestic pollock production during the next five years, despite recent predictions by some analysts. Some researchers have noted the potential exhaustion of pollock reserves, according to recent statements by the president of the Russian Pollock Association, Herman Zverev.

At the end of last year, Ilya Shestakov, head of the Russian Federal Agency for Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo), said a possible reduction in the stocks and catch volumes of pollock may be observed during the next 4 to 5 years...

Data on Alaska Fish Catches, Prices, Processor Sales by AK Region

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch.

One click will take you to a site that can tell you all you need to know about prices and landings for nearly every Alaska fish species by region, how much was processed and into what products, and what processors sold it for.

It’s called the Commercial Fisheries Statistics and Data page on the Department of Fish and Game website and it extends back to the early 1980s.

For salmon, charts and graphs show...

Del Taco Adds Beer Battered Alaska Pollock Taco to Their New Mix2 Menu

Make your next lunch break at Del Taco. The Mexican quick service restaurant just introduced their new Mix2 Menu, which allows guests to mix and match two items for $4 - $5, and the new menu features wild-caught Alaska pollock.

Del Taco diners can now get a Beer Battered Fish Taco, which features a wild-caught Alaska pollock fillet in a crispy beer batter, wrapped in two warm corn tortillas. The taco is topped with crunchy shredded cabbage, Del Taco’s “secret sauce”, and...

Russia Initiates Plans for Pollock, Crab Harvests in Arctic Seas This Year

Russia plans to start more active production of pollock and crab in its Arctic seas during the next several years, according to recent statements of some leading Russian fish producers and officials from Rosrybolovstvo, the Russian fisheries agency.

Plans include increasing production of pollock and crab the Chukchi Sea - a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, bounded on the west by Long Strait, off Wrangel Island, and on the east by Point Barrow, Alaska. Implementation of these plans is already scheduled for the current...

Russia Plans to Compete with Alaska for Brazilian Pollock Market

Russia plans to start more active promotion of domestic fish in foreign markets in the future. Government and industry said that will take place through the conduction of large-scale marketing campaigns promoting Russian fish and seafood, according to recent statements of representatives of some Russian leading fish producers and senior officials of the Russian Federal Agency of Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo).

Part of these plans include expanding into markets that, so far, have been traditionally closed to Russian fishermen, or where their presence has been insignificant ...

Alaska is U.S. Seafood Superpower 

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch -- Alaska is the nation’s super power when it comes to seafood.

Last year, American fishermen landed just shy of 10 billion pounds of fish and shellfish, valued at $5.4 billion, both up slightly. Alaska accounted for 61 percent of total landings (6 billion pounds) and 33 percent of the value ($1.8 billion).   

That’s according to the 2017 Fisheries of the US report revealed yesterday by NOAA Fisheries.  Ned Cyr is Science and Technology director.

“The Alaska port of Dutch Harbor led the nation with...

Russia Says Six Pollock Factories Will Aim to Push Chinese Pollock from EU in 2020

Russian pollock producers plan to increase their share of the European Union market and to push Chinese competitors out during the next several years, they say. The plan will take place through a significant increase of the quality of exported products, according to recent statements of some Rosrybolovstvo senior officials and local producers.

According to Petr Savchuk, the deputy head of Rosrybolovstvo, the quality of Russian pollock products will be significantly higher than those offered by Chinese competitors...

Tax Dispute Over Vessel Repair Threatens Russian Pollock Season; 200,000 Tons of Fish Could be Lost

Russian fish producers are preparing to protest due to a proposed state initiative to ban fish harvests from trawlers that were repaired at foreign shipyards, leading Russian fish companies say.

The proposal was revealed just as the Russian pollock season is about to begin on Jan. 1.

In accordance with the latest initiative of the Russian Ministry of Agriculture, all the fish trawlers serviced and repaired at shipyards outside Russia must undergo customs declarations -- otherwise, their further activities within the Russian territorial waters will be banned.

In the meantime, the new initiative has already caused sharp criticism ...

Trident’s Protein Noodles Top Winner at Alaska Seafood Contest

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch –

Trident’s Protein Noodles took top honors at the Symphony of Seafood, winning first place in the retail category and the Seattle’s People’s Choice. The top winners were announced Monday at Pacific Marine Expo.

The refrigerated noodles are pollock-based and touted as a high protein, gluten free alternative to wheat-based pastas that contain loads of carbs and sugars.  Just heat them up and add sauce! The protein noodles will debut at Costco stores early next year ...

Russian Taxes of 4.8 percent Proposed Across the Board for the Domestic Seafood Industry

Increased taxes on fish and seafood products appear to be on the horizon for the Russian seafood industry.

The Russian government is designing a new legislative system for the domestic fish industry that will be based on new taxation rules and standards, according to recent statements of some leading Russian fish producers and local analysts in the field of fish business.

According to Peter Savchuk, deputy head of the Russian Federal Agency of Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo), the current situation in the Russian fish industry remains stable; however, its current growth rates do not meet the expectations of the national government.

He added that the government is unhappy...

Halibut’s a Wrap But There’s Lots of Fishing Going on Across Alaska

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Fish Radio with Laine Welch] - November 9, 2018

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – Halibut’s a wrap but there’s lots of fishing going on across Alaska.

As some Alaska fisheries wind down for the year, others are still going strong.

In Southeast, a fishery opened on November 8 for seven different kinds of rockfish.

About 170 divers are still going down for more than 1.7 million pounds of sea cucumbers, and more than 700,000 pounds of giant geoduck clams ...

Russian Pollock Catch to Decline By as Much 20% Over Next 5 Years

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 26, 2018

Russia will face a significant decline of its pollock total allowable catch, starting in 2020, according to recent statements of scientists of the Russian Pacific Fisheries Research Center (TINRO), one of leading research institutions in the field of fishing in the country.

According to TINRO scientists' forecasts, the decline of pollock harvest in Russia after 2020 will be equivalent to -5 percent. This will result in the decline of the overall catch by about 20 percent by 2023, compared to 2018.

Commenting this data during the ...

Russia to Start Export Fish Sales Through Auctions in Coming Months

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 16, 2018

The Russian Federal Agency for Fishery, Rosrybolovstvo, plans to establish special trading areas in the Primorye region for the export sales of domestic fish and seafood, according to recent statements by Ilya Shestakov.

The introduction of auction platforms, according to Shestakov, will make the existing sales mechanism more transparent and will allow the sales of Russian fish at fair market prices.

All the trading platforms will be equipped with modern refrigeration facilities and have special inspection compartments ...

Pollock Industry Commits $10 Million to Marketing Campaign as GAPP is Reorganized

SEAFOODNEWS.COM  [SeafoodNews] by John Sackton – October 5, 2018

The U.S. Alaska pollock industry is reorganizing and strengthening GAPP, and putting money into a massive marketing campaign.

GAPP, the Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers, announced three major changes today:

-Expansion of GAPP membership to include all those involved in the fishing and primary processing of Alaska pollock.

-Commitment of a CEO level Board of Directors who will make rapid decisions,

-A minimum commitment of $10 million from participating companies for a new marketing program.

“GAPP now has a clear and focused mission: to ensure the world’s chefs and consumers understand how sustainable...

10% Tariffs on $200 Billion Chinese Exports Take Effect; Some Pollock and Cod Products May be Exempt

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by John Sackton - September 18, 2018

The Trump administration, over tremendous industry opposition, went ahead with a new round of punitive tariffs on Chinese products sent to America.

The new tariffs were set at 10% initially, and will rise to 25% on Jan 1, 2019.

Despite over 6000 comments opposing the tariffs, few changes were made in the list to accommodate individual companies or industries.  The exception was Apple, which secured exemptions for its watch, airpods, and ...

Russian Pollock Fishery in Sea of Okhotsk Recertified by MSC, with All Conditions Met

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] - August 31, 2018

The MSC has recertified the Russian Sea of Okhotsk Pollock Fishery following their 5 year review. 

Every five years MSC certified fisheries have to go through the full assessment process again to ensure they are continuing to meet the MSC Fisheries Standard. The assessment was carried out by third-party conformity assessment body Acoura Marine.

The Russian Pollock Catchers Association (PCA) first obtained MSC certification in 2013. The fishery was given 8 conditions ...

Alaska Fishing Updates For January 2019

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch –

Lots of winter fishing is going on and gearing up across Alaska. Boats have been out in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea since January 1 targeting cod.  Openers for pollock, flounders and various other whitefish kick off on January 20. For pollock, Bering Sea trawlers will harvest over three billion pounds of pollock this year, with more coming from Gulf fisheries.

The snow crab fishery gets going in earnest around this time of year in the Bering Sea...

Alaska Fisheries Report Few Problems So Far From Gov’t Shutdown 

This is Alaska Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch –

Alaska’s cod and crab fisheries are underway in the Bering Sea ang Gulf with few problems reported so far from the government shutdown that’s heading into a third week.  

“I have not heard of any problems, but that’s not to say that there aren’t any.”  

Forrest Bowers is acting director of the Alaska’s commercial fisheries division. The shutdown has furloughed about 800,000 workers nationwide, most with no pay, including fishery oversight and research jobs...

Alaska Fishing Gears Up for 2019

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch…. January marks the start of Alaska’s largest fisheries - and that means more jobs than any other Alaska industry!

Salmon will always be the heart of Alaska’s fisheries. That’s why many people think of summer as the fishing season.

But that’s not the case.  The heart of winter is when most of Alaska’s largest fisheries get underway each year.

On January first, hundreds of boats with hook and line gear or huge pots begin plying the waters of...

Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers Appoints Craig Morris As New CEO 

Craig Morris, Ph.D., has been appointed the new CEO of the Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers, effective January 14, 2019.

“On behalf of the entire GAPP Board of Directors, we are thrilled to welcome Craig to the help,” GAPP Chair Mikel Durham said in a press release. “Craig’s passion for protein, his creativity and his experience understanding the marketing of protein products in the U.S. and abroad were the perfect match for our goal of raising the profile of Wild Alaska Pollock...

Russian Fishery Company Starts Construction of Russia’s Largest Pollock Processing Plant

The Russian Fishery Company (RRPK), one of Russia’s largest fish producers and processors, has officially started the construction of a new fish processing plant in the Primorye – expected to be the largest of its kind in the Far East and all of Russia. 
The new plant will be known as Russian Mintai and will be located within the territory of the Nadezhdinskaya special economic zone.

As planned, the first phase of the plant, with a capacity of more than 100 tons of finished products per day, will be put into operation in 2021.

The new facility will ...

North Pacific Council to Reveal Catch Allocations This Week; Pollock to Increase, Cod is Uncertain

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – Alaskans will know this week how much cod, pollock and other whitefish they’ll be able to catch next year.

The bulk of Alaska’s fish catches come from waters from three to 200 miles offshore with oversight by federal fishery managers.

Their advisory arm for Alaska is the North Pacific Fishery Management Council who reviews stock assessments for groundfish each fall and sets catches for the coming year in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea ...

Russia Expects Record Fish Harvests This Year; Salmon Growth Almost Doubles

Russia expects a record fish catch this year since the beginning of 1980s, according to recent statements of an official spokesman of the Federal Agency of Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo).

According to deputy head of Rosrybolovstvo, Vasily Sokolov, the volume of catch this year will be more than 5 million tons – a record in the post-Soviet period and in the history of modern Russia.

Sokolov added that salmon has accounted for the biggest growth. According to data of Rosrybolovstvo, more than 677,000 tonnes of salmon were ...

Kuril Islands Resolution with Japan Could Mean Huge Losses for Russian Seafood Industry

Russian leading fishery companies may bear multi-million dollar losses due to the possible transfer of the Kuril Islands to Japan, which is currently being discussed between the governments of Russia and Japan.

According to some Russian experts, both countries have never been so close to a solution of the issue of Kuril Islands since the end of World War II. The potential transfer were part of recent talks between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, which were conducted in Singapore.

For Russian fishermen, the transfer ...

Symphony of Seafood Debuts 10 New Products

This is Fish Radio. I’m Laine Welch – From spring rolls to seafood noodles – Alaska’s Symphony of Seafood unveils new products.

The 26^th Alaska Symphony of Seafood attracted 10 entries in its annual competition. They were judged privately last night (Wednesday) in Seattle in three categories: retail, food service and Beyond the Plate. As always, the innovation is off the charts.

“I have not seen a spring roll product entered before. Alaska sockeye salmon spring roll by Tai Foong. And Fishpeople Seafoods entered a salmon jerky ...

Russia Introduces New Strategy to Double Fish Export Revenue by 2024

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 29, 2018

Russia plans to double its revenue from the exports of fish products by 2024 - up to U.S. $8 billion, according to recent statements of the head of the Russian Fishery Agency (Rosrybolovstvo), Ilya Shestakov.

The increase will be primarily achieved through increased development of processing.

According to Shestakov, thanks to stable production, Rosrybolovstvo plans to focus on changing the structure of its exports by increasing the supply of value-added products ...

Sea of Okhotsk Pollock Catch Will be More Than 1 million Tons with Improved Fall Fishing

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 22, 2018

Russia has officially started a new autumn-winter fishing season for pollock and herring in the Far East, according to the Russian Federal Agency of Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo).

As part of these plans, particular attention will be paid to the catch in the Sea of Okhotsk, particularly the North-Okhotsk sea subzone, where all the quotas, allocated for the current year, should be used.

By the end of the year total quotas for ...

Russian Fishing Company to Build 9 Trawlers at Domestic Shipyards

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 9, 2018

Russian leading fish producer and processor Russian Fishing Company (RRPK) is preparing for a significant increase of production in years to come. The company plans to place additional orders for the building of large trawler-processors at domestic shipyards.

As part of these plans, the company intends to build nine fishing trawlers at the capacities of St. Petersburg shipyards, at the cost of U.S. $100 million per ship.

Last year, the company already signed an agreement for ...

Russian Leading Fish Producer Norebo Subjected to State Searches, Seizures

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - October 1, 2018

Russian leading fish producer Norebo (Karat) Group of Companies may experience serious difficulties doing further business in the Russian domestic market, due to the recently conducted massive searches and documents seizures at the Murmansk office of the company, as well at homes of senior employees of Norebo.

This has been confirmed by Norebo company official spokesman Sergey Sennikov, who said the seizure of company servers and computers of the endangers payment of wages to employees ...

Russia Doubles Exports of Pollock Fillets, Surimi, This Year as European Market Improves

SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SeafoodNews] by Eugene Gerden - September 10, 2018

Russia has doubled its exports of processed pollock this year, according to recent statements of senior officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and leading local producers. 

According to industry officials, the biggest growth in exports has been observed in pollock fillets, minced meat and surimi. 

This is confirmed by the official statistics, according to which, in the first half of the current year, fillets’ exports grew by almost three times, compared to the same period of 2017, while the ...