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3-Minute Market Insight

EP 650 | AIRED 07/24/2023

Midway Summer Salmon Update: Sockeye, Pink, Chum, Coho, King, Alaska/Russia

July 24th, 2023 - Alaska’s Sockeye Season looks to have peaked as the pace plateaued earlier than in recent years where about 85 to 90 percent of the statewide Sockeye forecast has already been harvested.

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The big news last week was the modern day record low base price for Sockeye offered by processors to fishermen of 50 cents per pound - something not seen since 2015, which caused a fury amongst fishermen.

Bristol Bay fisherman Tyone Raymond told KDLG Public Radio that in 1978 they were paid $1.05 per pound which would be equivalent to $5.30 per pound inflation adjusted in today’s money.

Some Fishermen are saying they are packing up and would rather finish the season in the red than fish for 50 cents per pound - all while there is only about 3 to 5 million Sockeye remaining of the forecast to be harvested.

We will have a clearer picture of market conditions in the coming weeks as we are getting a pulse that remaining 2022 inventory may not be as large anymore.

Midway Summer Salmon Update

Moving onto Pinks and the first major Pink Salmon harvests of the summer have come in.

Pinks seem to be slightly smaller than last year weighing-in around 3 pounds on average this year.

Odd number years are big Pink years and 122 million fish are forecasted in Alaska this year with half coming from Prince William Sound alone.

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Keta harvest continues to be well above recent-years and if the peak harvest week has in fact already passed, then the harvest should be steady all the way through to August.

Coho harvest has started its ascent in hopes of reaching the forecast of 2.9 million fish, however based on previous 5-year averages, this year’s harvest may land around 68 percent of the forecast.

Chinook harvests are down with the peak harvest week already passed and 100,000 remaining of the forecast to be harvested, however in the previous 5 years Chinook harvest have always surpassed Alaska’s forecast.

Midway Summer Salmon Update

In Russia, over 27 percent of the 512,000 metric tonne Salmon forecast has been harvested with Pink Salmon already reaching 120,000 metric tonnes (or 32 percent of the Pink forecast).

Our advice is to talk to your Tradex Foods representative before making your next purchase AND, subscribe to our 3MMI to find out what will happen next with the Salmon market.

--- If you are not already, be sure to subscribe to our Weekly Seafood News Update using the signup form below.

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