Tag Archives: Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation
Icicle Seafoods, Ocean Beauty Seafoods merge salmon processing operations operations
Two of Alaska’s largest seafood companies are merging their salmon processing businesses. Icicle Seafoods and Ocean Beauty Seafoods will be combining forces to create OBI Seafoods. Talks of a potential merger have been circulating for months. There’s been speculation in the seafood industry press that the two Seattle-based companies are seeking to remain competitive against the other major industry players in Alaska. The two companies have very different ownership. Half of Ocean Beauty is owned by the Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation. The other is a small group of Outside investors. Icicle on the other hand was bought by privately-held Canadian giant Cooke Seafoods in 2016. “The majority of — I don’t want to say majority — but a big chunk of the Alaska salmon processing sector is now partly owned or partly controlled by a major salmon farming company,” >click to read< 09:35
Coronavirus: Bristol Bay community leaders lay out minimum protocol needed to allow salmon season
Leaders of several major community organizations in Bristol Bay have issued a list of minimum protocols they expect to be in place before the commercial salmon fishery can take place this summer. Among other the protocol listed, fishermen and other seasonal workers would undergo a physical exam including a COVID-19 test with a negative result no more than 48 hours before traveling to the region. After arriving in Bristol Bay, the individuals would be transported to a quarantine location and remain in quarantine until a follow-up negative COVID-19 test is confirmed. The leaders listed out other expectations, including weekly health screenings, for the seafood industry to establish as minimum protocol for the 2020 season. >click to read< 11:12
Sen. Murkowski is right: The Army Corps needs to bring science back to Pebble permitting
“If a mine cannot stand on its own without negative impact to the fisheries resource, then that mine should not be permitted.” – Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Sept. 18, 2019. That statement, delivered during Bristol Bay Native Corporation’s annual salmon celebration in Washington, D.C., quickly travelled from the U.S. Capitol all the way back to Bristol Bay, where many of our organizations have been working to expose the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers inadequate environmental review process for Pebble. >click to read< 10:40
EPA officials visit Dillingham to gather opinions on Pebble Mine
Representatives from the Environmental Protection Agency arrived in Dillingham Thursday morning, meeting with fishers and community leaders to gather opinions on the proposed development of Pebble Mine. “It’s important to hear people’s views on all sides of the issue,” said Matt Leopold, the EPA’s general counsel. “And here in Dillingham I can tell right away that people are opposed to the project.” >click to read<11:33
Here’s why ice was a hot commodity in the Nushagak this summer
Bristol Bay’s Nushagak fishing district pulled in more than a million sockeye on eight separate days earlier this month. Before this summer, it had only done that twice in Bristol Bay’s history.
Keeping all those fish cool proved problematic for fishermen who still rely on slush ice. Capt. Nick Sotiropoulos of the fishing vessel Flyin’ Tiger said he’d like at least 1,000 pounds of ice for every opener to keep his catch cold and earn that chilled quality bonus from his processor.,, Just over 10 percent of Bristol Bay’s fleet relies on ice to chill their fish. Another 27 percent turn over unchilled fish to processors, and the final 63 percent are drift boats with refrigerated sea water systems. >click to read<14:43
Bristol Bay commercial halibut fishery opens Sunday
Halibut management throughout Alaska relies on a mix of state, federal and international rules, and Bristol Bay is no different, with sport, subsistence and commercial fisheries here. The Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation oversees the local small boat halibut fishery, which opens May 1 this year. More than two dozen fishermen are eligible to participate, and they’ll have access to 115,000 pounds of halibut. That’s a significant increase from last year’s 74,000 pounds. Audio report, Read the rest here 09:31
Chairman of the Board for Ocean Beauty Seafood’s Talks Sockeye in Dillingham By Mike Mason
This year’s sockeye fishery in Bristol Bay was a major topic of discussion Saturday during the first “Business of Fish” workshop of the season. kdlg Listen, and Read more here 15:20
