Bristol Bay's big haul

The Bristol Bay sockeye salmon catch now stands at more than 36.4 million fish, surpassing the state's preseason forecast. And we're still seeing large daily catches!

North Pacific Seafoods changes hands

North Pacific Seafoods, a major salmon processor in Alaska, has new ownership.

A June 23 filing with the Alaska Division of Corporations indicates the new owner is Kanaway Seafoods.

Kanaway does business as Alaska General Seafoods, which is part of the Canadian Fishing Co., better known as Canfisco. The parent company of Canfisco is the Jim Pattison Group, a diversified holding company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia.

The previous owner of North Pacific Seafoods was Japanese titan Marubeni.

Dave Hambleton remains as president of North Pacific Seafoods, the June 23 filing shows.

Norton Sound disaster declaration

Federal officials this week approved a disaster declaration for the 2019 Norton Sound red king crab fishery.

Bristol Bay sinking, death reported

From the Alaska State Troopers:

Location: Nushagak Bay
Type: Fishing vessel sinking, rescue

On July 1, 2021, at approximately 0554 hours, Alaska Wildlife Troopers heard a call that a commercial fishing vessel was taking on water on the south end of Nushagak Bay. Two Alaska wildlife troopers patrolling commercial fishing activities in the area immediately responded to the area aboard a patrol skiff. Prior to arriving on the scene, it was reported that all three individuals aboard the fishing vessel were in the water. The two troopers pulled one of the individuals to safety aboard their skiff, and the other two individuals were pulled aboard other fishing vessels that aided in the rescue. After extensive life-saving efforts, one of the individuals was declared deceased by U.S. Coast Guard personnel at approximately 0938 hours. The other two individuals declined further medical care. The Alaska Wildlife Troopers would like to thank the F/V Fortress and F/V Last Frontier for their assistance during the rescue operation. The identity of the deceased individual will be made once next of kin notifications are complete.

Big day for the Nush

The nearly 1.8 million sockeye taken yesterday was the largest single-day harvest ever in the Nushagak District, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game reports.

A boost for ASMI

Gov. Mike Dunleavy today announced $3 million for the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute.

"The grant is intended to mitigate unanticipated COVID-19 costs including response to the pandemic and meeting COVID-19 safety precautions," the governor's office said in a press release.

The amount is well short of ASMI's request for $20 million.

Rhode Island official named NMFS chief

Here's the press release.