Happy Mother’s Day! A big restaurant weekend to celebrate all the wonderful women in our lives. Spring has some of the best colors and smells of the year in Colorado. Vibrant green grass, wildflowers, migrating birds, rivers roaring with melted snow, and the ocean fishing is outstanding!
Wild Salmon Season is Here! We received our first Wild King Salmon of the year from the Columbia River this week!
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game recently announced that the Copper River will open on May 16th for a 12-hour period to fish for King (Chinook) and Sockeye Salmon. The Copper River is the first commercial opening for Alaskan salmon season and will be followed by a series of additional openings for Sockeye and King Salmon from Alaska. Here’s what to expect this summer for wild salmon openings:
- May – June
- Copper River Sockeye and King Salmon
- Troll King from CA, Oregon and SE Alaska
- Dip-Net Kings from Upper Columbia River
- June – July
- Copper River continues
- Troll and Net King fisheries continue
- Mid-June opens Kodiak, Prince William Sound, and False Pass on the Alaska Peninsula offering more sockeye on the market and driving prices lower
- Keta Salmon, also known as Chum, is the least expensive wild salmon and becomes available in the Prince William Sound late June
- July – August – September
- Cook Inlet sockeye opens and drives prices down as fish can be caught close to Anchorage, allowing easy access to major airliners
- Canadian sockeye opens and offers additional supply and longevity to sockeye season
- Coho Salmon Season in S.E. Alaska can produce fresh wild salmon into September and maybe October is winter comes late
Northeast Seafood will provide you with 4 varieties of wild salmon this season. Let’s look at these varieties to education our customers about the different species of salmon:
- King Salmon, or Chinook, are the largest species available and can range in market size from 7# – 25#. These large fish offer the highest fat content of wild salmon, making them THE premium wild salmon. King Salmon can also offer a unique rare catch of white meat, called IVORY KINGS, these fish are the ultimate delicacy of wild king salmon.
- Sockeye Salmon, also known as “Reds”, offer the brightest red color of wild salmon often making them the go-to wild fish for chefs and retailers alike.
- Coho Salmon, also known as Silver Salmon, are milder in flavor than sockeye or kings. The flesh color can vary but is often closer to a pink color than the red color of sockeye.
- Chum Salmon, with a market name of Keta Salmon, is gaining in popularity due to the affordable prices. Chum are often softer and lighter in color than the other varieties of salmon, but when harvested from the right locations, offer excellent quality at bargain prices.
Softshell Blue Crab Season is here! We are dedicated to supplying you with a consistent supply of fresh softshell crab this season! Dressed softshell Blue Crab are available from Chesapeake Bay in various sizes, starting at the smallest and going to the largest: Hotels, Primes, Jumbos, and Whales.
Picked pasteurized blue swimming crab meat prices are softening after long stretch of price increases.
King Crab markets are firm and the outlook for summer prices does not look good.
Snow Crab from Nova Scotia in zone 16 offers some of the sweetest tasting crab meat on the market. We have 5-8oz and 8+ oz crab clusters, smaller sizes offer a better value.
Cold Water Lobster tails and frozen packed CK / CKL meat remain firm. Lobster meat prices are expected to rise soon. Live lobster prices should come down for the summer harvest, but we don’t anticipate a big drop in pricing.
Scallop prices have been dropping and are a good value as new quotas were set in March. We are now starting to see the benefits of the new quota on all sizes and anticipate the smaller size scallops to have a better value as the season progresses.
Walleye seasons has been fantastic this spring!
Wild Black Cod, aka Sablefish, are becoming more readily available from our Pacific Northwest Fisherman. This is an excellent fish that develops consistent availability in the summer months.
Alaskan Halibut Season is in full swing, prices have come down recently.
California Halibut has been on/off – when available look to this fish for your “bargain” halibut.
California White Seabass season is approaching. As the weather warms, the fish offers an excellent value. The season normally starts getting hot around the beginning of June.
Bang Island Mussels have been consistent this year! Salt Spring Mussels will not be available in the summer, but we will have an alternative Mediterranean mussel rope harvested from Baja.
Mahi Mahi season was great this winter, there have been a lot of fish available but as the season warms the prices are running the roller-coaster ride. We recommend switching to California white seabass, or yellowtail jack as the water’s warm.
On the East Coast we are coming into Wild Striped Bass Season and will have intermittent supplies of specialty seasonal fish live Black Seabass 1-2# Head On, Fluke 2-3#, Live Scallops, and Live Uni.
The Seafood seasons are changing! Prices are down on many of our seafood options. We look forward to supplying you with a fantastic run of wild salmon this summer season! The weather is getting nice, the patios are open, and the schools are out for summer. It’s time to enjoy all of the wonderful seafood out oceans have to offer!
Chad Pettrone
Sustainability Director
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