Seafoodnews.com Summary Monday, August 24

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News Summary August 24, 2026

Today's Top Story: Gulf of Mexico Shrimp Landings Up 30% Through April, but Monthly Momentum Is Fading

Kicking things off today, Gulf of Mexico shrimp landings through April totaled 15.48 million lbs, 30% above the same period in 2025 and 9% ahead of the five-year average, but the monthly trajectory tells a more cautious story, with gains decelerating from +50% year-over-year in January to essentially flat in April, when landings remained roughly 25% below the 10-year April average. Whether 2026 sustains a meaningful recovery from last year's decade-low baseline will depend on spring and summer performance...

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ANALYSIS: Gulf of Mexico Shrimp Landings Up 30% Through April, but Monthly Momentum Is Fading

Gulf of Mexico shrimp landings through April 2026 totaled 15.48 million pounds — 30% above the 11.91 million pounds recorded in the same period of 2025 and 9% ahead of the prior five-year average. The four-month cumulative figure is notable in context: 2025 was the weakest full year in the 10-year NMFS dataset, at 80.3 million pounds. The 2026 start suggested a recovery from that baseline. The monthly trajectory since January complicates that read...

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Oregon's Commodity Commissions Meet With Gov. Kotek on Chronic Processing Wastewater Issue

Wastewater treatment remains a persistent challenge for seafood processors, as state water quality agencies issue notices—and eventually fines—when new regulations are not met. In earlier eras, hoses cleaned off floors and decks and the tide took care of the rest. Today, wastewater must be treated to remove a long list of pollutants, some of which are already present in the municipal water supplied to the plant. Requiring processors to output water cleaner than the drinking water they receive creates serious problems...

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Court Closes NRDC Lawsuit That Forced MMPA Seafood Import Rules Into Effect

The federal lawsuit that compelled the US government to implement long-dormant Marine Mammal Protection Act import restrictions on seafood has been formally closed, with a judge ruling that nothing remains to adjudicate.

Judge Gary S. Katzmann of the US Court of International Trade dismissed the case on August 19, denying as moot a motion by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Center for Biological Diversity, and Animal Welfare Institute to enforce an earlier settlement agreement. All parties — including the government and the seafood industry intervenors led by the...

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Norway's Polar Quality and Fram Seafood to Merge, Creating $800M Northern Norwegian Export Player

Norwegian seafood exporters Polar Quality AS and Fram Seafood have announced plans to merge, creating a Bodø-based export company with combined annual revenues of approximately NOK 7.7 billion — roughly $800 million — and a strengthened position in international salmon markets.

"Our goal has always been to build a solid and future-oriented export company with a long-term perspective and a clear position in the world market," said Jarle Solemdal, Chairman of the Board of Polar Quality AS...

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US Sanctions 10 Ecuadorian Fishing Vessels for Alleged Role in Maritime Drug Network

The US Treasury Department has sanctioned 10 Ecuador-based fishing vessels and 15 individuals and entities as part of a crackdown on a maritime cocaine trafficking network operating out of Ecuador — a move with direct implications for the country's commercial fishing industry.

Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced the designations on August 20, identifying the vessels as blocked property for their alleged roles in covertly shipping thousands of kilograms of cocaine each month toward Mexico and ultimately...

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BioMar Norway Orders New Hybrid Feed Vessel, Boosting Logistics Along Norwegian Coast

BioMar Norway has signed a long-term agreement with Norwegian shipping company Egil Ulvan Rederi for the construction and operation of a new fish feed carrier set to enter service in the second quarter of 2029, the company announced this week.

The vessel, designated the NSD 75CC and designed by the Norwegian Ship Design Company (NSD), is approximately 70 meters in length with a deadweight capacity of around 4,000 tonnes. It will be built at Jiangsu Soho Marine Heavy Industry in China and owned and operated...

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Global Shrimp Council's First Consumer Pop-Up Draws 4,000+ at Venice Beach

The Global Shrimp Council wrapped up its first-ever direct-to-consumer event earlier this month, welcoming more than 4,000 guests to a four-day activation at Venice Beach, California, as the industry organization works to translate its "Shrimp More Often" campaign from digital messaging into real-world behavior change.

Held August 6–9, the pop-up centered on a branded food truck offering free shrimp dishes to beachgoers, with no purchase required. On-site chefs prepared a range of dishes including tacos, grilled skewers, power...

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Long John Silver’s Adds Fried Pickles, OLD BAY Ranch Starting Aug. 24

Long John Silver’s is tapping into the pickle craze with a new limited-time menu item. Starting today, the chain is adding fried pickles coated in its signature batter to its offerings.

"Pickles are having a moment, but we weren't interested in making just another Fried Pickle," said Meredith Smith, director of brand marketing at Long John Silver's®. "We batter fish for a living, so putting it on pickles felt like the obvious place to start. Then we paired them...

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NOAA Launches Fall Expeditions to Explore Deep Waters Around American Samoa

NOAA Ocean Exploration and its partners will embark on two expeditions this fall aboard the Okeanos Explorer. The missions will focus on the waters around American Samoa, mapping and characterizing the deep seafloor in a top-priority offshore critical-minerals region.

“The deep waters around American Samoa hold unknown secrets about our ocean, including unmapped habitats and potential mineral resources critical to our national prosperity and security,” said Captain William Mowitt, acting director of NOAA Ocean Exploration. “By exploring these areas in an open...

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ANALYSIS: June EU‑UK Shrimp Import Volumes Dip but Value Holds Steady

According to Eurostat, the EU and the UK together imported 58,378 MT of shrimp in June (wild and farmed, cold‑ and warm‑water species). That volume is 4.6% below last year but 5.7% above the five‑year average. Just under half (47%) of June shipments came from Ecuador, with India supplying 13% and Vietnam 10%.

Cold‑water shrimp from Greenland, Norway, Iceland and Canada made up 9% of June volumes, and 3% for Argentina’s wild red shrimp (Pleoticus muelleri)...

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Scott & Jon’s Goes Chainwide at Food Lion With Four Single-Serve Seafood Meals

Frozen seafood brand Scott & Jon’s has expanded its partnership with Food Lion chainwide, making four of its single-serve meals available in more than 1,000 stores across the grocer’s footprint.

The move comes as Scott & Jon’s continues to outpace the broader frozen meal category. The company cited SPINS data showing its dollar sales grew 15% in Total US MULO for the 52 weeks ending July 12, 2026, while single-serve frozen meal sales fell 1% over the same period...

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Expana's Weekly Top 10

This week’s Top 10 spotlights how supply constraints and regulatory decisions, not so much demand, are steering markets. Tyson is overhauling its beef footprint as cattle supplies tighten, ICCAT-driven rule changes have pushed up Atlantic bluefin quotas, and sugar and dairy moves are being driven more by policy, logistics and weather risk than by volume. Price actions experience volatility as capacity and trade rules set the tone. Read more about these hot topics this week and more, below. This list is in no particular order.

Find archived recaps here.

10. Tyson Foods...

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Suempol Breaks Ground on 50,000-Tonne Salmon Plant That Would More Than Double Capacity

Suempol, Poland's oldest and one of the world's largest producers of smoked salmon, has announced plans to build a new fish processing center in the Pełczyce municipality of West Pomeranian Voivodeship. The facility is expected to become operational in Q4 2027 and will employ approximately 300 people.

The company said the investment is part of its long-term growth strategy, with the new center set to significantly expand Suempol's production capacity. Trade reports indicate the plant could handle up to 50,000 tonnes of salmon annually, more...

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ANALYSIS: The Expana Shrimp Demand Index Returns to Steady Territory — What the Data Shows

When prices fall and more shrimp moves through the market, it can appear that demand is strengthening. The distinction matters: more consumption at a lower price is a price effect. Genuine demand growth requires either more consumption at the same price, or higher prices holding alongside higher volumes. Those are different mechanisms, and they resolve differently. The current environment reflects the former.

The Expana Shrimp Demand Index reached 95.95 in June–July, returning to the Steady band after an extended period in contraction territory...

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86-Year-Old New Brunswick Seafood Co-op Seeks Creditor Protection With Nearly CAD $25M in Debt

Island Fisherman's Co-operative Association Limited, one of the largest snow crab and lobster processors on New Brunswick's Acadian Peninsula, has filed for protection under Canada's Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA). The Lamèque-based co-operative — founded in 1940 — obtained a temporary protection order effective August 12, 2026, granted by a Saint John judge, shielding its assets from creditors for an initial ten-day period while it works to stabilize its finances, CBC News reported...

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Conservation Groups Sue NOAA Over California Longline Permits, Alleging Buried Data on Sea Turtles

Two conservation organizations have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's decision to grant longline fishing permits for California waters, alleging NOAA used a cherry-picked dataset that made the permits look far safer for endangered sea turtles and marine mammals than the agency's own data warranted.

The Center for Biological Diversity and the Turtle Island Restoration Network filed the complaint on August 14 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California (Case No. 3:26-cv-08429)...

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Multi X and BioMar Launch Chile's First Regenerative Agriculture Pilot for Salmon Feed Supply Chain

Chilean salmon producer Multi X and aquaculture feed company BioMar have signed a collaboration agreement to launch Chile's first regenerative agriculture pilot linked to the salmon value chain. The 24-month project, which began in August 2026, will assess regenerative farming practices in wheat and pea crops — two locally sourced raw materials with potential applications in salmon feed — across farms in the Los Ríos and Los Lagos regions...

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