Tag Archives: Silver Bay Seafoods
Silver Bay Seafoods acquires Peter Pan Seafoods facilities from Rodger May
Silver Bay Seafoods will acquire processing plants in Dillingham and Port Moller, along with fishery support sites in Dillingham and North Naknek. Silver Bay announced the acquisition from Rodger May, the former co-owner of Peter Pan Seafoods, in a press release Wednesday. The Dillingham and Port Moller plants are Silver Bay’s fourth and fifth plant acquisitions this year. It also took over Peter Pan’s plant in Valdez last spring, and Trident Seafoods plants in Ketchikan and False Pass. Silver Bay said for the latest deal, both parties agreed to immediately transfer control of the facilities while the actual transfer of ownership is finalized. Silver Bay says this will “ensure a seamless transition for fisherman, communities, and employees.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:55
Navigating Alaska’s stormy seas
Norwegian fishermen settled in Petersburg in the 1800s, drawn to its ideal location for pursuing salmon, crab and halibut. Today, hundreds of vessels dock there, selling their catch to the town’s two major processors. These processors head and gut the fish before canning or freezing them for the journey to dinner tables across the world. One of these plants, built over a century ago, is the town’s largest private employer. Few know the industry better than Glorianne Wollen, a fisherman’s daughter who operates a large crab boat and serves as harbourmaster. From her small office, she has witnessed significant change over the years. “In the good old days, the town was alive with discussion,” Wollen recalls. “Everybody had a stake, everybody knew what was going on, and things happened in real-time.” That energy faded as boats grew larger and more efficient, requiring fewer crew members and leading to a more detached industry. Last year, however, the industry faced a crisis that even seasoned veterans struggled to recall. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16;20
Bristol Bay Fishermen Cautiously Optimistic About 2024 Season Citing Higher Prices, New Processor
This season, the Bristol Bay 2024 sockeye salmon forecast estimates a total run of 39 million fish. That’s 35% smaller than the most recent 10-year average run size, and a drop from last season’s 54.5 million fish run. This weekend in Dillingham, the boatyard and harbor were noticeably quieter, with some discussion of crews holding off on big renovations and putting boats in the water later, to help cut costs and recover from last season’s low prices. But despite the lower forecast and market uncertainty, crews seem cautiously optimistic headed into the new season. Meghan Gervais, a long time captain of the F/V Maru takes a break from boat repairs to get out the grill. Gervais talks about her hopes for the coming season as she turns over a leg of lamb on the grill for family dinner, who is crewing with her this year. She’s been working on boats in Bristol Bay since 2006. “I feel cautiously optimistic,” Gervais said. Photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:33
Silver Bay Seafoods and Peter Pan Seafoods Announce Valdez Acquisition and 2024 Operational Plan
Silver Bay Seafoods and Peter Pan Seafoods announced today that the agreement for Silver Bay to acquire Peter Pan’s Valdez facility has been finalized and that Silver Bay plans to operate the Peter Pan facilities in Port Moller and Dillingham for the 2024 salmon season. Shifting operations of the two facilities to SBS is a component of a larger restructuring, still being finalized, in which Silver Bay would acquire Peter Pan’s processing facilities and support sites after the 2024 salmon season. Peter Pan will remain active in conducting the remaining activities needed to close out 2023 operations, including sales and accounting functions. Both companies are committed to a seamless transition and ensuring minimal disruption to fishermen, communities, and employees. more, >>click to read<< 10:21
Bristol Bay fleets call for greater price transparency
There’s a multi-decade precedent for Bristol Bay salmon processors to wait until the season is underway to announce what they’re willing to pay. Peter Pan shook up the industry in 2021 and 2022 by announcing a base price at the start of the season, but this year waited until mid-July, along with other processors in the region. Captain Konrad Schaad, of the Fishing Vessel Skua, says this model hurts fishers. “The producer gets paid what’s left over. We produce the fish and then it gets processed and sold and everything and everybody gets their cut, and then the morsels that are leftover, they give to us. There should be a fixed cost for what we produce here,” he said. In Bristol Bay, commercial fishing crews fish on what’s called an ‘open ticket. >click to read< 12:53
Alaska salmon fishermen fume over low prices, but processors say they’re hurting too
Aboard the F/V Five Star, his boat, Danielson and his deckhand put away as many pounds of fish as they could. They had no breakdowns. But his seafood processor is paying him 70 cents per pound for his salmon, half of last year’s price which means that instead of his usual six-figure haul for a summer of hard work, he might only break even, or go home to his family in Washington with $10,000, if he’s lucky. He added: “We’re up against something that’s out of our control, and that’s the processors killing us here.” In the past few weeks, thousands of fishermen across the state have found themselves in a similar predicament,,, Photos, >click to read< 08:52
Bristol Bay fishermen up in arms against lower salmon prices, will protest
Commercial fishermen in the Bristol Bay region are voicing their displeasure against recent prices of sockeye salmon. According to fisherman Cheyne Blough, the price of sockeye salmon hovered around $1.20-$1.50 per pound, but as of recently, the price dropped to 50 cents. “We all expected less than last year. But we had no clue it was gonna be basically kind of bankruptcy prices,” Blough said. Since then, Blough along with several other commercial fishermen have set up a protest that will happen on Thursday, where fishermen will line up their boats in front of the Naknek River, in protest of the lowered prices. Video, >click to read< 07:50
Silver Bay Seafoods agrees to pay fine for illegal dumping in the Naknek River
Sitka-based Silver Bay Seafoods earlier this month agreed to pay a fine of $467,469 for illegal dumping at its Naknek River facility in Bristol Bay. The company has also agreed to address violations of its state permit to discharge pollutants. The state Department of Environmental Conservation said in a press release that Silver Bay “repeatedly discharged significantly more fish waste into the Naknek River than permitted” in 2017 and 2020. State inspectors also found numerous violations at the facility during a scheduled inspection last year, like discharging bloody water. >click to read< 12:11
Monterey 8th-grader brings life rings to the wharves
After conducting a series of interviews with various maritime officials, and hearing them preach about the need for flotation devices, a Monterey eighth-grader began noticing that neither of the two Monterey wharves had the very safety equipment he was told was critical. But Ladislav Nozicka didn’t write it off as ironic. He acted.,,, when he walked both Fisherman’s Wharves and the commercial wharves where his dad works, he realized both piers lacked the flotation devices he had learned were so important. “He has a very keen eye,” Elizabeth Nozicka said. “He realized something no one else noticed.” Ladislav knew marine safety devices well. His father, Jiri Nozicka, is a commercial fisherman out of Monterey and captain of the San Giovanni. >click to read<16:48
Crescent City Harbor District – Harbor prepares for potential squid fishery
Though they’re most abundant between Baja, California and the Monterey Bay, the Crescent City Harbor District is preparing for the possibility that fishermen may bring market squid to its docks. Commissioners on Thursday voted 4-0-1 in favor of adding a quarter-cent poundage fee for squid to its fee schedule. Commissioner Carol White was absent. According to Crescent City Harbormaster Charlie Helms and Commissioner Rick Shepherd, a quarter-cent poundage fee is the going rate at other ports that see market squid come across their docks. >click to read<14:28
Tri Marine Group sells plant to Silver Bay Seafoods
US tuna supplier Tri Marine Group has struck a deal to sell a plant in California. Tri Marine said the sale of the pelagic-processing factory to Alaska-based salmon-to-squid supplier Silver Bay Seafoods was subject to approval of the facility’s ground lease by the Port of Los Angeles. ,,, Silver Bay said the acquisition of the plant, located in San Pedro, meant it has unloading and processing facilities in the north and south of California. >click to read<14:28
Silver Bay Seafoods making bold moves for 2018 rebound
The record-setting 2017 commercial sockeye season in Bristol Bay was tougher than usual for most companies in Bristol Bay. The run size, 56.5 million total, was a whopping 42 percent bigger than the state predicted, and the 37.7 million sockeye landed was 10 million more than anyone was planning for. Nearly every company “plugged” up and put their fleet on limits while they struggled to keep up. Added to that list in 2017 was Silver Bay Seafoods, whose processing plant in Naknek fell behind the massive harvest its highliner fleet was bringing in. This was never supposed to happen. click here to read the story 14:48
Hiring seafood workers in Bristol Bay has been tough for years. This summer, it’s worse.
Seafood processors in Alaska’s Bristol Bay this summer have had trouble finding enough workers to handle the fish that come through their plants. Those in the industry say a confluence of factors, including a lack of visas for bringing foreign workers to the industry, a hotter economy in the Lower 48, and a record-breaking salmon run in Bristol Bay, was to blame. “There was a significant lack of process workers for some companies in the bay, and it exacerbated the problems of having to deal with high levels of harvest,” said John Garner, president of Seattle-based North Pacific Seafoods, which has locations across Alaska. Some processors couldn’t keep up with the huge amount of fish coming in, which forced them to resort to whatever method was fastest to get the pounds through the plant. click here to read the story 10:03
Silver Bay Seafoods recruits in American Somoa for Alaska Fish Processing Jobs
The demand for jobs was evident Saturday when about 300 people responded to a company from Alaska’s call for workers. Silver Bay Seafoods is looking to hire 250 employees for the salmon season which runs from June to September. Two officials of the company including Shannon Grant, the Hiring Manager, explained the types of jobs that were on offer, the work schedule and the pay. Many of those who turned up Saturday said they wanted to give it a try and were attracted by the $10-$12 per hour wage, and working in Alaska. Hiring Manager Shannon Grant was quite pleased with the response. Link 16:01
Silver Bay Seafoods in American Samoa to recruit for their Summer Seafood Processing
About 200 job seekers turned up at the Tradewinds Saturday to learn about job opportunities offered by Silver Bay Seafoods in Alaska, an integrated processor of frozen salmon for domestic and export markets. Two company reps are in the territory to recruit for their Summer Seafood Processing. Most of those who turned up were young people, several of whom are currently working at the canneries. Silver Bay Seafoods is looking for manpower from anywhere it can and has extended job offers to non-US states and foreign countries using special immigration provisions. Link 11:19
Sitka processor sells ownership stake to Starkist
Sitka-based Silver Bay Seafoods has sold a twelve percent stake to Dongwon, the Korean owners of Starkist Tuna. The news of the sale has been public since November, but Silver Bay CEO Rich Riggs added details during a presentation to the Sitka Chamber of Commerce. The fisherman-owned processor is only 8 years old, but has grown rapidly in Alaska and on the West Coast. . Read the rest here 11:04
Silver Bay Seafoods expands into squid with deal to buy California plant
The Sitka-based company’s managing director Rob Zuanich told the newspaper the company has closed on a deal to buy a 4.6 acre lot in Ventura, California. The company paid $2 million for the lot and plans to spend $20m on the facility, said Zuanich. Read more here 19:47
