Salmon notes

• A major Bristol Bay fish processor, Trident Seafoods, is paying a base price of 95 cents a pound for sockeye, Dillingham radio station KDLG reports. That compares to a Bristol Bay average of 89 cents in 2024.

• Bristol Bay's Nushagak District has netted a strong sockeye catch this season. "Harvest in the district is at 15.9 million, the fourth-largest harvest for the Nushagak District ever, but harvest has slowed and fishermen are pulling boats and ending their seasons," the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reported Friday.

• Fish and Game provided new details on a reported fuel spill at Chignik: "Leaking fuel in the Chignik Lagoon due to a capsized seiner caused the commercial opener on Sunday, July 13, to be prematurely closed in the Chignik Bay District. The fishery was able to reopen on Tuesday, July 15."

Bristol Bay prices take a tumble

Processors have begun posting their prices for Bristol Bay sockeye salmon.

One major company, Peter Pan, provided this statement:

The Peter Pan Seafood price for sockeye is set at $0.50 per pound plus up to $0.30 in quality incentives. Peter Pan is also offering a late season bonus for sockeye. Effective July 18, 2023, there will be a $0.20 per pound late season bonus.

The IntraFish news service reports Trident Seafoods is offering a base price of 50 cents per pound, and another company, North Pacific Seafoods, has matched the price.

A base price of 50 cents represents a tremendous tumble from last year, when Bristol Bay produced a record harvest of more than 60 million sockeye. The average price in 2022 was $1.15 per pound, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says.

All the salmon from last year would appear to have depressed prices this season.

This year's catch currently stands at 33.6 million sockeye.

Peter Pan again sets the pace

For the second consecutive season, a major Bristol Bay salmon processor is posting ex-vessel prices before the bulk of the harvest is in, not after.

Peter Pan Seafood, a few days ago, posted a base price of $1 per pound for sockeye. Today, we have word the company is sweetening its price to $1.15.

Here's a statement from Jon Hickman, vice president of operations:

The reason we make early starting price announcements is to intentionally put the fleet at ease with a starting point so that they know they will receive a fair price for the long hours and hard work they are about to endure participating in the world's largest sockeye fishery.

So once again, Peter Pan was the first out with a price in Bristol Bay for the 2022 season. After posting an initial starting price last week, we've already increased the starting price to $1.15 as a testimonial to our belief in a valued partnership with the Bristol Bay fishing fleet. We will continue to evaluate the fishery and the market with the hope that price can move up as this possible record Bristol Bay season progresses.

Bristol Bay's price discontent

After last season ended, Bristol Bay salmon fishermen grumbled over the 70 cents per pound the major processors paid for sockeye. It was a huge drop from the $1.35 paid the prior season.

The reason for the price drop would seem evident and understandable: COVID-19 and the anxiety it created in the markets.

Nevertheless, Bristol Bay fishermen remain angry over last year's fish price.

Many hope the processors will come through with supplemental payments for the 2020 catch.

This week, the Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association, which represents drift gillnetters, posted a white paper examining last year’s disappointing sockeye price and options for what the fleet could do about it. Here's a summary of the paper.

Bristol Bay bounty

Gillnetters have had a big year at Bristol Bay.

The sockeye catch stands at 35.9 million fish, with the season now grinding to its conclusion. That's well above the state's preseason harvest forecast of 29.5 million.

Even better, the major processors have posted a base price to fishermen of 75 cents a pound, up from last year's disappointing 50 cents.

The Naknek-Kvichak District has been the most productive of the bay's five fishing zones with a catch of more than 13 million sockeye.

Bristol Bay prices — a disappointment?

We now hear that one major Bristol Bay salmon processor, Alaska General Seafoods, is paying a base price of $1.20 per pound plus 15 cents for chilled fish.

Other major processors are apparently also paying $1.20.

That's the word from AIFMA, the Alaska Independent Fishermen's Marketing Association.

Most likely, this price will disappoint Bristol Bay fishermen. Coming into the season, many expected $2 per pound or more for sockeye.