Saving Seafood

Economic Impact

Wells Fargo: Peter Pan in “Imminent Danger of Insolvency,” Asks Court to Put in Receivership

April 30, 2024 — Last Wednesday, Northwest lender Wells Fargo bank asked the King County Superior Court to move Peter Pan Seafoods into receivership to protect creditors. The news comes as more lawsuits are being filed by fishermen who claim the company has not paid them for deliveries last year.

Wells Fargo was the single biggest lender to the iconic but financially troubled seafood processor last year. Wednesday’s petition to the court names Peter Pan Seafood Company, Alaska Fish Holdings, and Raymond Machine Shop as owing more than $60 million, according to a report by SeafoodSource.

The petition was filed by Wells Fargo Managing Director Gary Harrigian and asks the court to appoint the Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.-based Stapleton Group — a specialist in maximizing the recovery of capital for creditors — as controller of Peter Pan’s assets.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com

Kroger, Albertsons divest more stores aiming to appease US Federal Trade Commission

April 28, 2024 — Soon after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued to block the USD 24.6 billion (EUR 23 billion) proposed merger between retailers Kroger and Albertsons, the two companies said that they plan to divest more stores than originally planned in an attempt to get the merger passed.

Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.A.-based The Kroger Co. and Boise, Idaho, U.S.A.-based Albertsons Companies have amended their divestiture agreement with C&S Wholesale Grocers to sell 166 additional stores to C&S.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Vineyard Wind fisheries compensation meetings

April 24, 2024 — Offshore wind developers Vineyard Wind will hold a series of open-house events where fishermen can apply for a program to compensate for losses from development of the 804-megawatt offshore wind turbine array off southern New England.

The Vineyard Wind Fisheries Compensatory Mitigation Program is open from March 4 to June 3. To qualify for the program, commercial fishing vessel owners/ operators are required to submit an online application during the eligibility period.

The ongoing eligibility period to June 3 is the only time that commercial fishing vessel owners/operators will be able to qualify for compensation from the program. Vineyard Wind is hosting events to help fishermen apply for the program, each day from 9 a.m to 12 p.m.:

April 23: Montauk Fish Dock, 478 W. Lake Dive, Montauk, N.Y.

Read the full article at the National Fisherman

Persisting inflation woes making 2024 seafood outlook hard to predict

April 23, 2024 — At the beginning of 2023, economists predicted the U.S. was either in – or would soon be in – a recession, while the E.U. faced similar predictions of slowed growth and high inflation.

During the Global Seafood Market Conference in early 2023, Wells Fargo Senior Economist Tim Quinlan said a recession was “penciled in” for the U.S., as signs pointed to dropoffs in consumer sentiment and the highest inflation in 40 years. In late 2022, the European Commission published its economic forecast, stating the E.U. economy was at “a turning point” and predicting contracting economic activity in the first quarter of 2023, with most member states expected to “experience a technical recession” in the winter of late 2022 and early 2023.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

The Best Fish Is Also the Most Local. Why Is It So Hard to Find?

April 23, 2024 — On a cold, windy February morning on Shinnecock Bay, on the South Fork of Long Island, N.Y., Ricky Sea Smoke fished for clams from the back of his 24-foot boat. The fisherman, whose real name is Rick Stevens, expertly sorted through haul after haul as they were dumped onto the sorting rack.

Among the usual littlenecks and cherrystones were delicacies that would make chefs swoon: sweet, plump razor clams; vermilion-fleshed blood clams; and dainty limpets (also known as slipper snails) with their inimitable saline, buttery flavor. Depending on the season, fishers like Mr. Stevens can bring in even more treasures, like scallops, squid, blue crabs, striped bass, mackerel and skate.

But almost none of them are available locally.

But late last year, Mr. Stevens found a workaround by sending his clams to Dock to Dish, one of a growing number of small businesses across the country — including restaurant suppliers, shops, farmers’ markets and community-supported fisheries — that are dedicated to helping fishing communities sell their catch directly to local markets.

For chefs and home cooks, this means that finding truly fresh, local wild seafood is getting a little easier — at least for anyone willing to wade past the deluge of imported farmed salmon to find it.

Dock to Dish is committed to buying whatever seafood fishing boats bring in, limpets and all, then selling it directly to nearby customers, often within 24 to 48 hours. Chefs at New York City restaurants, including ILIS, M. Wells and Houseman, get to offer local specialties like exceptionally fresh royal red shrimp and blood clams.

Read the full article at the The New York Times

Rising Costs Sink New York Ocean Wind Projects, Is New Jersey Next?

April 22, 2024 — This week, rising costs sunk three offshore wind farm projects in New York State. After a tumultuous year on the other side of the river, New Jersey lost two large projects being built by Danish wind energy giant 0rsted. 0rsted bailed on New Jersey, and costs are continuing to rise, making previous wind energy deals unaffordable.

Can New Jersey be the next in the line of turbine dominos to fall?

Read the full article at Shore News Network

Red Lobster exploring possible bankruptcy filing

April 17, 2024 — Less than a month after hiring a CEO that specializes in restructuring failing restaurant brands, struggling seafood restaurant chain Red Lobster is exploring bankruptcy.

Executives with Orlando, Florida, U.S.A.-based Red Lobster, which operates around 650 restaurants globally, have been seeking advice from the Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.-based King & Spalding law firm as they consider filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Bloomberg reported. The news service cited people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified.

The struggling restaurant chain is considering a Chapter 11 filing to “shed some long-term contracts and renegotiate a swath of leases,” according to the sources. The company’s cash flows have been weighed down by onerous leases and labor costs, among other issues.

The beleaguered restaurant chain has struggled in recent years, and incurred significant losses from Covid-19 restaurant closures. Amid the ongoing financial struggles, Thai Union announced it would pursue an exit from its strategic partnership and minority investment in Red Lobster Master Holdings. Thai Union first  invested in the restaurant chain in 2016 and increased that investment in 2020.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Seafood is getting cheaper but US consumers still aren’t biting

April 16, 2024 — Seafood prices continued to decline in March 2024, but the drop is not yet translating to higher sales.

Frozen seafood sales fell 6.4 percent by volume and 5.7 percent by value to USD 870 million (EUR 819 million), and fresh seafood sales dropped 3.2 percent by volume and 4.6 percent by value to USD 819 million (EUR 771 million), according to Circana data analyzed by Lakeland, Florida, U.S.A.-based 210 Analytics. Only shelf-stable seafood sales increased in March, and that was by 0.3 percent in value to USD 335 million (EUR 315 million), though sales by volume declined 2 percent.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

ANALYSIS: 2024 Scallop Season Expectations

April 11, 2024 — The 2024/2025 Atlantic sea scallop fishery season began on April 1, 2024. This fishery extends from the Mid-Atlantic region to the U.S.-Canadian border. The New England Fishery Management Council approved Framework Adjustment 38 in December, forecasting a catch of 27.4 million pounds of Atlantic sea scallops for the season. On March 22, 2024, NOAA issued the final rule in the Federal Register, effective from the season’s start. Per NOAA Fisheries, for the initial 60 days of the fishing year, vessels with limited access can utilize their remaining 2023 scallop allocation from the access area. These fishing trips must start by May 30, 2024. After this date, any unutilized 2023 access area allocations will become void.

Harvest projections of 27.4 million pounds marked a 2.4 million pound increase from the previous year. Contributing to the management actions of the first quota increase since 2019, the increase is a result, in part, of findings reported by the NEFMC that the scallop resource is not overfished and overfishing is not occurring, with most of the biomass currently concentrated on Georges Bank. Despite the increase, NEFMC also reported the Mid-Atlantic has experienced below average recruitment of incoming scallops since 2013.  Scientists have also expressed concern that warmer water temperatures and other environmental changes are contributing to scallop mortality, especially at the southern extent of the range near Virginia/North Carolina.

Read the full article at Seafoodnews.com