July 29, 2013 — Alaskan Leader Fisheries and Copper River Seafoods have formed a marketing alliance that will promote hook-and-line caught Alaskan cod to retail and food service operators.
"This partnership is a win for both companies," said Nick Delaney, managing director of Alaskan Leader Fisheries, as the partnership was announced July 29.
The agreement gives Copper River Seafoods access to high quality wild caught cod, while Alaskan Leader Fisheries will benefit from CRS's strong customer relationships and domestic marketing expertise, Delaney said.
"Both companies were formed by Alaskan fishermen who share many of the same core values, including the creation of more full-time jobs in Alaska," said Scott Blake, president and chief executive officer of CRS.
The partnership enables CRS to offer its customers the highest quality whitefish, along with world-famous salmon on a year-round basis in quantities that will support high-volume programs, he said.
Alaskan Leader Fisheries is one of the largest sources of sustainably harvested, frozen-at-sea, hook-and-line caught, wild Alaskan cod.
The announcement came less than a month after Alaskan Leader Fisheries received delivery of its newest commercial fishing vessel, the 184-foot Northern Leader, from J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp. in Tacoma, Wash. The Northern Leader, scheduled for christening in Seattle on July 31, is expected to be fishing in the Bering Sea in August.