EP 302 | AIRED 10/17/2016

Remaining Halibut Quota Left on Table, Arrowtooth Flounder Inventories Sparse

October 17, 2016 - Welcome to The Tradex Foods "3-Minute Market Insight This is Robert Reierson and here is the seafood news for the week of October 17th, 2016.

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--- Boats in the Gulf of Alaska should begin targeting Arrowtooth Flounder towards the end of the month, following weeks of poor fishing of Pollock and Cod. 17,400 metric tonnes of Arrowtooth has been caught in the Gulf since October 8th, about 19 percent of the 80,000 metric tonne quota. Inventories on finished goods are sparse, with many vendors focusing on other species at the moment. In British Columbia, one vendor advised they will fish Arrowtooth next month once the Hake quota is full. Pre-commitments on Head Off, Gutted, and Tail Off Arrowtooth are booking at $2,150 per metric tonne CNF China. As a low priced species, boats often target more lucrative fish in the Gulf of Alaska. However, demand is strong in China for raw materials, especially since August. According to a leading producer in China, this year's catch has been poor compared to previous years, causing higher demand and $500 per metric tonne increase for raw materials right now. Arrowtooth is rarely produced for export to North America as once frozen products can be found domestically in the range of $1.45- $1.55 and twice frozen fillets can't hit these price points. Production space for Arrowtooth Flounder before Chinese New Year is reportedly fully booked - we will provide another update as fishing efforts strengthen in the coming months. --- Our TradexLIVE offer of the week is for 10-20lb H&G Pacific Halibut. These are #1 quality, IQF, trimmed, and longline caught in Alaska - we have 3,000 lbs available in Seattle for $8.10/lb. Click or tap the icon above to view this offer. --- On that note, let's go over to Kyla for a closer look at Halibut. --- With 3 weeks remaining in the Alaskan and Canadian Pacific Halibut Fishery, it looks like there will be some of the quota left on the table. As of last week, 83 percent of the quota had been captured, leading up to the November 7th closure when fresh sales will end as well. Prices on Fletches are hovering in the high $15 to mid-$16 range, and should continue this pattern until we reach a price ceiling of what the market can bear. For H&G, 10-20lb IQF Halibut in Seattle is hitting price points of $8.10 - $8.35/lb this month. Our recommendation to buyers is to keep a close eye on all halibut offers in the coming weeks, as there will be good opportunities! Back to you Rob. ----Thank you for joining us for the Tradex Foods "3-Minute Market Insight" This is Robert Reierson - “BUY SMART” and “EAT MORE SEAFOOD"

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