March 14, 2024 — Big changes are afoot in Alaska’s seafood processing sector.
In December 2023, Trident Seafoods announced it planned to sell its Alaskan assets in Kodiak, Ketchikan, Petersburg, and False Pass, as well as its South Naknek cannery and its support facilities in Chignik. Trident Seafoods CEO Joe Bundrant said the moves were being made to “position the company to fund the reinvestments necessary to continue to lead in the Alaska seafood industry.”
The announcement came just a few months after Trident – a vertically integrated seafood harvesting and processing company whose motto is “Anchored in Alaska” – announced it was delaying the development and construction of a processing plant in Unalaska, Alaska, that was supposed to replace an aging plant in Akutan, citing an overall collapse of the seafood market as the reason for the delay.
Bundrant said Trident’s strategy “reflects the realities facing U.S. seafood producers in global markets.”
“Across many species, the combination of declining demand, excess supply, and foreign competition has driven prices down, squeezed margins, and displaced U.S. producers from markets that they developed over decades,” he said. “In this global business environment, Trident is betting that it can remain competitive by attracting customers who value the sustainability, quality, and integrity of wild Alaska seafood while also aggressively reducing costs and improving productivity.”
Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute Food Aid Program and Development Director Bruce Schactler said Trident’s announcement heralded a crisis “years in the making.” He called Trident’s announcement “a wake-up call” for the state.