Wild Alaska Salmon Harvest Tops 74 Million Fish

Commercial salmon harvests in Alaska rose by nearly 11 million fish over the past week, as deliveries to processors reached a total of 49 million sockeyes, 15 million humpies, 8.9 million chums, 957,000 silvers and 313,000 Chinooks.

Bristol Bay saw its catch rise from 33 million to 37.5 million fish, including 36.8 million sockeyes and harvesters learned that the base price would be 75 cents a pound, while on the Lower Yukon River, Kwik’Pak Fisheries has been busy processing a robust harvest of 597,000 chums and 127,000 pink salmon, and more coming now that the fall chum run is under way.

Jack Schultheis, general manager of Kwik’Pak, a subsidiary of Yukon Delta Fisheries Development Association, said there were some 420 permit holders out in their small boat fishery, and another 315 workers busy processing fish at Emmonak.

And the fall chum run, which got under way on July 18, is also producing very good quality fish, Schultheis said. It’s a record run, topping a harvest of a half million chums in 1984. To top it off, prices are up, demand is good, and Schultheis said he has folks he’s never done business with before asking for Yukon fish.

And the catch keeps rising in each region, with 11.9 million fish delivered in Prince William Sound, 2.8 million fish in Cook Inlet, 8.9 million fish in Southeast Alaska, 8.6 million fish in the Alaska Peninsula, 1.2 million fish in Chignik and 2.5 million fish for the Kodiak area.