Sitka herring summary

This year's Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery tallied about 6,200 tons of herring, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said in this season summary.

The harvest fell far short of the preseason quota of 36,720 tons.

The two-week fishery closed for the season on April 4.

Togiak herring to remain dormant a third year

The herring sac roe fishery near the remote Southwest Alaska village of Togiak once was the state's biggest herring fishery.

But industry interest in Togiak's abundant herring has waned in recent years amid poor markets, and the fishery was inactive in 2023 and 2024.

Now it appears the Togiak fishery will remain idle again this year.

"Processors have indicated that they do not intend to harvest herring in Togiak in 2025, and it is unlikely that a commercial fishery will occur," the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said today in this advisory announcement.

Sitka herring gets going

The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery is now underway, with a four-hour opener yesterday and a nine-hour opener today.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is holding harvest estimates confidential.

"Vessel surveys conducted by the department beginning on March 18 indicated that there is a very large biomass of herring distributed throughout Sitka Sound," Fish and Game said today.

PWS herring fishery wraps with 440-ton take

Here's the announcement from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

Another strong Sitka herring forecast

The state today announced a 2025 Sitka Sound sac roe herring quota of 36,720 tons.

That's a big number, though not nearly as large as the record 81,246-ton quota set for the 2024 season. Industry ended up taking only a fraction of that quota, about 12,700 tons.

Togiak herring forecast

Once again, a huge volume of herring will be up for grabs this year at Togiak, with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game setting a harvest quota of 41,163 tons for the sac roe fishery.

It's unclear, however, whether the industry has any taste for Togiak herring. The fishery was dormant in 2023 and 2024, and processors, purse seiners and gillnetters may stay home this year as well.

A turning point for Prince William Sound herring?

The Prince William Sound herring food and bait fishery will open in November with a guideline harvest level of 500 tons, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced.

Several years of favorable spawning biomass estimates and signs of improving recruitment "support opening this small-scale fishery," the department said, adding: "This is the first time the food and bait fishery has been open since 1998."

A herring heads-up

A committee on Alaska herring industry revitalization is set to meet via web conference from 9 to 11 a.m. Oct. 31.

The committee is a joint effort of the state Board of Fisheries and the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

"The purpose of this meeting is to review economic and market research that occurred over the summer, review Western Alaska herring fisheries and stocks, hear an update on the Kodiak herring food and bait optimum numbers study, provide for open public testimony, and plan for future meetings," a public notice said.

Written public comments may be submitted through Oct. 29.

Click here for further details.

It's all over at Sitka

The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery will close for the season at 6 p.m. today.

The preliminary harvest estimate is 13,300 tons of herring, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said in this announcement.

That's far short of the preseason quota of 81,246 tons.

Sitka herring season nears its start

The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fleet will go on two-hour notice beginning at 8 a.m. Wednesday, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said in this announcement.

Can we revitalize our herring fisheries?

We're approaching new seasons for herring, a vast resource in Alaska with major concentrations at Sitka, Kodiak, Togiak, Goodnews Bay and Norton Sound.

For years, however, herring hasn't produced much of a payoff for Alaska's commercial fishing industry. The herring are valued mainly for their eggs, or roe, and demand for roe has been weak in the main Asian market.

A stupendous volume of herring will be up for grabs this year at Sitka Sound, but only a portion of the 81,246-ton quota is expected to be harvested, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game says.

A huge volume of herring also will be available at Togiak, historically the scene of Alaska's largest herring fishery. But for a second consecutive year, no commercial fishery is expected due to lack of industry interest.

Some industry players have long lamented Alaska's underutilized herring resource. They wonder, could the fish be used to feed hungry people around the world? Could herring roe markets be revived or expanded? Could more Alaska herring be taken for use as bait?

These and other questions could receive an airing soon with the formation of a "herring revitalization committee."

It's a joint effort of the state Board of Fisheries and the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

The committee would work to "better understand current and potential markets, and review potential regulatory change to facilitate those markets," according to this charge statement the Board of Fisheries recently approved.

Expect to hear more about this committee soon.

Togiak herring to stay dormant

The Togiak herring stock remains robust, but the industry again is showing no interest.

"Processors have indicated that they do not intend to harvest herring in Togiak in 2024 and it is unlikely that a commercial fishery will occur," the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced today.

Hope for herring

An updated Prince William Sound herring stock assessment shows an estimated spawning biomass of 29,253 short tons.

"It is the largest estimate since 2008 and is 119.9 percent above the 10-year average (2013-22) of 13,305 short tons," says this advisory announcement from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

A colossal Sitka herring quota

The guideline harvest level for next year's Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery is 81,246 tons, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced.

That's by far the largest preseason quota ever set for the fishery.

The previous record was 45,164 tons set for the 2022 season.

Here's the Togiak herring forecast, if anyone cares

Once again, a large volume of herring is forecasted at Togiak.

But we might see a repeat of last season, when the fishery never opened due to lack of industry interest.

Sitka herring fishery appears done

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game is signaling the Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery is over.

"As of today, the department will no longer be assessing Sitka Sound for commercial harvest opportunity for the remainder of the 2023 season," the department says in this announcement.

And they're off at Sitka!

The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery opened at 1:15 p.m. today, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

Togiak is toast

The long, slow decline of the Togiak herring fishery is now complete.

"Processors have indicated that they do not intend to harvest herring in Togiak in 2023 and there will be no commercial fishery," the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports. "The department does not expect this will change."

This despite a gargantuan volume of herring available for harvest this year at Togiak.

Evidently, no one wants it.

Sitka herring watch

The Sitka Sound herring sac roe fishery will go on two-hour notice effective at 8 a.m. Thursday, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced.

'Several very large schools'

Aerial surveys and test fishing have begun in preparation for the Sitka Sound sac roe herring fishery.

Here's the latest update from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.