USA: Alaska sockeye salmon production declines, prices rise significantly

Published 2024년 8월 7일

Tridge summary

Alaska's Bristol Bay has seen a successful sockeye salmon catch of 31 million, despite a 23% drop from last year and lower than the forecasted numbers. The small average size of the fish, weighing between 3.5 and 5 pounds, poses challenges for processing plants and results in increased prices. This situation is further complicated by insufficient production capacity, inflation, rising freight rates, and labor costs. However, despite these challenges, sockeye salmon remains popular in the US market, with large companies focusing on domestic marketing opportunities. The decline in wild salmon production is expected to improve product quality. On the other hand, the European market may shift away from sockeye salmon due to rising prices, favoring more price-competitive species.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

As of July 30, Alaska caught 39.3 million sockeye salmon, of which nearly 31 million came from Bristol Bay. In terms of quantity, this year's Bristol Bay production is higher than the official forecast, but 23% lower than last year. In addition, the average catch size in Bristol Bay this year hit a record low, with most of the catch weighing between 3.5 and 5 pounds, far less than last year's average weight of 4 to 6 pounds. These small-sized fish are not suitable for mainstream processing plants, pushing raw material prices to new highs. Santa Monica Seafoods in California, the main wild salmon distributor on the West Coast, said Felipe Felipe Arevalo, the company's purchasing director, "The small size of sockeye salmon makes it more challenging for processing plants and marketing; retailers may have to develop new product lines or launch new small-portion packaging products to accommodate those too small fish. We will see changes in market innovation, which will be interesting." ...

Source: Foodmate