February 26th, 2018 - In this week's episode we will talk about Pacific Northwest Salmon inventories. Chum Salmon is expected to have a bumper year in the Prince William Sound, with a commercial common property wild production harvest forecast of 391,000 Chum Salmon.

--- For Pink Salmon, there is little to nothing in the way of inventories on both fillets and H&G. 3-5oz IVP Pink Salmon portions are around $3.60/lb but the majority of offers right now are twice frozen products of China. The Southeast Alaska Salmon harvest forecast, released by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game last winter, calls for a 2018 harvest of 23 million Pink Salmon. That total is below the 10-year average of 38 million but on par with the even-year harvests we are used to seeing since the 60s.

--- Sockeye Salmon fillet inventories are decent, but much of the product is #2 quality so we encourage buyers to be dilligent about inspections. #1 quality headed and gutted Sockeye inventories are strong right now, in the low $4 range on 2-4lb and 4-6lb IQF Sockeye. 1-3lb Sockeye Salmon fillets are still around $7.40 per pound on the West coast and have been consistant at this level for months.

This year's potential Bristol Bay harvest is 39 million Sockeye Salmon as 51 million Sockeye are expected to return to the area. This is 18 percent above the 10-year average for Bristol Bay runs.

--- In Canada, rumours of a decent Fraser River Sockeye run this year contradict preliminary outlooks from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Below average returns are expected for the Fraser River Sockeye run in 2018, due to extended periods of low recruitment and reduced productivity of the species. More concrete in-season assessments of British Columbia Sockeye will be done in March, so for now all eyes will be on Alaska this year for Sockeye harvests.