Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists say the next commercial opening of the Copper River District for wild salmon harvests is anticipated to be on Monday, 27 May, with the time and area to be announced on Saturday, 25 May.

Meanwhile, the Copper River District is to open for subsistence fishing at 7 a.m. on Thursday 23 May, for a 12-hour period with waters within the Chinook salmon inside closure area to be closed during this subsistence period.

Source: The Cordoba Times

HA NOI - The US Department of Commerce (DoC) has decided to increase anti-dumping duties on tra fish imported from Viet Nam by an additional USD 0.52 to 1.29 per kilo, said the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Association secretary Truong Dinh Hoe said the tax hike was made after the US checked errors in the calculation of the previous tax, saying that the increase was consistent with the calculated data.

Source: VNS

Atlantic sturgeon, an ancient species that in the 19th century briefly made New Jersey a world capital of the caviar trade, are now on the endangered species list. But fishermen’s nets now won’t threaten the sturgeons’ survival, as they make a slow population recovery along the East Coast, according to a new analysis by government biologists.

Continuing use of gear like fixed gill nets for monkfish — a valuable commercial fishery to New Jersey — “could adversely affect, but is not likely to jeopordize” the survival of Atlantic sturgeon in the wild, according to the report issued this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Source: Kirk Moore / APP

The additional 84 600 tonnes horse mackerel quota which the Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Bernhard Esau, is expected to allocate soon, is only for existing right holders and not new companies, Esau told The Namibian on 22 May.Esau declined to say when he would issue the quota saying that he would inform the companies that qualify for the rights.

He said it appears that “there are forces using the media” to find out when the TAC will be allocated. “The quota has owners. Its not for new companies,” he said adding that the horse mackerel industry in the country was saturated at the moment.

Source: Camwe Kaira / The Namibian

TAIPEI - The number of bluefin tuna caught off Pingtung County has increased significantly as a result of the government's intensified efforts to protect Taiwanese fishermen following the fatal shooting of a local fisherman by Philippine marine patrol personnel 9 May, a fishermen's association said Wednesday 22 May.

Since the incident occurred, 102 bluefin tuna worth about TWD 50 million have been caught in waters off the southern county, said a fishermen's association in Donggang Township, Pingtung. A Philippine government vessel attacked a Pingtung registered fishing boat, the Kuang Ta Hsing No. 28, on 9 May, killing a 65-year-old Taiwanese fisherman, Hung Shih-cheng, in overlapping waters of the two countries' exclusive economic zones. Amid escalating tensions between the countries after the incident, Taiwan's Navy and Coast Guard Administration (CGA) held a joint exercise in the overlapping zone in the Bashi Channel on 16 May. Taking advantage of the opportunity, most bluefin tuna fishing vessels registered in Pingtung took to the seas, bringing in big catches.

Source: Taiwan News

The Namibian understands that the horse mackerel is popular in the DRC and Namibian fishing companies export large quantities of the fish to that country, prompting its government to request Namibia for fishing quotas.

Fisheries Minister Bernard Esau told The Namibian that no direct quota was given to a country, but to companies who export the fish to the DRC. He confirmed that talks took place, but ended at the idea stage.

Source: Tileni Mongudhi / The Namibian

The Karachi Fisheries Harbour Authority (KFHA) has notified to all concerned that in pursuance of the provision of Section 25 of the Sindh Fisheries Ordinance 1980, the Govt of Sindh has imposed the seasonal ban at Serial No.5 in the first schedule of the said Ordinance on catching shrimp with effect from 1st June to 31st July 2013. The KFHA all sets to implement the ban season in letter and spirit and will not allow landing of fish/ shrimp viz. shrimp i.e. Kalari, Jaira & Kiddi and fresh water Rahu, Mori, Thaila from 1st June till 31st July 2013 at the Karachi Fish Harbour.

Source: The Nation

A mussel ready-meal dish produced by the Scottish Shellfish Marketing Group (SSMG) has been selected as a finalist in this year’s SuperMeat & Fish Awards.

Scottish Mussels with a Lime, Chilli and Coriander Butter Sauce produced by SSMG for Tesco is on the short-list for a SuperMeat & Fish Award in the Best Fish or Seafood Product category. The organisers say these awards are the largest of their kind in the sector, with up to 500 industry professionals attending each year. The awards recognise both individual retail outlets, and assess, review and reward new and existing products in the sector.

Scottish Mussels with a Lime, Chilli and Coriander Butter Sauce features natural ‘store cupboard’ ingredients and is attractively presented in a 500g cardboard pack.

The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute (ASMI) is pleased to announce that four more Alaska seafood companies have met the requirements of the FAO-Based Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM) Chain of Custody Certification. Vital Choice Wild Seafoods and Organics, Pacific Harvest Seafood, Inc., Cascadia Seafoods LLC, and Deep Sea Fisheries, Inc. join the growing list of companies that recognize this ISO accredited RFM Certification is a credible, robust and cost-effective choice for their customers.

For more information on RFM Chain of Custody, click here

The Global Aquaculture Alliance is reminding the public that less than three weeks remain to submit comments on the draft of the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) standards for mussel farms. The deadline is 8 June.

The BAP mussel farm standards address social and environmental responsibility, food safety, animal welfare and traceability. They encompass various mussel species and all production systems for mussels.

For more information read here