Pagano's Seafood Archives - Saving Seafood

August 31, 2026 — A Connecticut favorite was on full display this week in Norwalk, as workers sliced through mounds of silvery salmon freshly arrived at Pagano’s Seafood on Water Street.

As for prices at Pagano’s retail counter and markets statewide that buy wholesale from the company? It is anyone’s guess whether any new round of tariffs will surface to push up prices — but either way, manager Ralph Pagano says many in Connecticut have stayed true to their seafood staples, despite diesel prices as high as he can remember with a downstream effect on retail.

Amid a new tariff standoff this week, Canada walked back a threat to slap retaliatory duties on seafood imports from the United States, on fears for any counter-tariffs by the Trump administration that could have an outsized impact on Canadian fisheries. For now, that has kept price hikes at bay for seafood imports from Canada, including salmon, crab and lobster.

Pagano’s buys primarily from dealers at New York City’s Fulton Fish Market, Boston Fish Pier and in Miami, moving thousands of pounds of seafood every day to 150 markets and restaurants throughout the region. While fuel costs have had a significant impact on pricing, a Pagano’s manager told CT Insider the tariff question is still open given the tit-for-tat threats between Ottawa and the White House.

“We’re going to find out,” said Ralph Pagano, manager of Pagano’s Seafood, in reference to the tariff debate and high diesel costs. “We used to pay 25 cents or 15 cents a pound to have [seafood] trucked to our building. Now it’s up to 50 cents a pound. That goes into the cost.”