Circle Seafoods touts salmon prices for 2026

Here's the announcement.

Bristol Bay price mediation?

The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association says it has developed a petition to have the state of Alaska initiate price mediation between fishermen and processors.

'An all-time high'

Now here's a rarity — a press release from a processor publicly announcing its prices for salmon.

Better prices for Bristol Bay?

The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association has just published its preseason sockeye market outlook, and its sounds quite bullish for higher ex-vessel prices this year.

"Wholesale market conditions for Bristol Bay sockeye products appear very favorable heading into 2021, compared to the 2020 season," BBRSDA says.

The base ex-vessel price was a disappointing 70 cents per pound in 2020, a season plagued with pandemic uncertainty.

Details are now emerging, however, of certain price adjustments and bonuses for last year's harvest. Check out the Bristol Bay Fishermen's Association price chart.

Which would you buy?

Food City, a Virginia-based grocery chain, is offering the following in its weekly advertising circular:

• Fresh, farm-raised salmon fillets, $5.99 a pound

• Wild-caught sockeye fillets, previously frozen, $8.99 a pound

That's a tough choice for consumers, no?

50 cents for Bristol Bay fish

Deckboss hears reliably that a major Bristol Bay salmon processor, Alaska General Seafoods, is sending its fishermen home with a base price of 50 cents per pound for their sockeye catches.

That's a huge drop from last year's base price of $1.20 per pound.

How much would you pay for pollock?

On a recent family visit in Tennessee, I took a minute to check out some prices in a newspaper circular from Food Lion, a supermarket chain.

Pork tenderloin, $3.99 a pound
Semi-boneless lamb leg, $5.99 a pound
Pollock fillet, $5.99 a pound
Porterhouse or T-bone steak, $7.99 a pound
Sockeye salmon, $8.99 a pound

The ad didn't say if the pollock was fresh or frozen.

Regardless, Deckboss was surprised to see pollock commanding such a hefty price!