Kodiak’s Tanner crab fleet has finally left the dock after two weeks. The island’s processors agreed to a price on Saturday by the Crabbers.
Each of the four Kodiak canneries offered slightly different deals. Alaska Pacific Seafoods was willing to pay $3.35 per pound plus retro payments. This can increase the fishermen’s final payout after the season. Pacific Seafoods also agreed to $3.35 a pound, with a retro payment to fishermen. OBI settled with crabbers at $3.25 plus profit sharing. Trident Seafoods was still at $3.25 per kilogram.
Kodiak crabbers weren’t happy with the deal and some boats from Kodiak might still transport their crab to west, where they are offered slightly more per pound. But, ultimately, 80% of those who attended Saturday’s meeting agreed that it was time for us to go fishing.
“We stuck together, but we’re going to roll this thing out together and we’re looking forward to it as a victory,” Kevin Abena, secretary and treasurer of the Kodiak Crab Alliance Cooperative which represents permit holders for the fishery, said.
Crabbers were originally offered $2.50 per kilogram in advance of the season which began Sunday, January 15. Nearly 200 vessels from the Aleutian Chain stated that they wouldn’t go fishing unless they were given a better deal.
After reaching an agreement with King Cove canneries, Crabbers from Chignik and South Peninsula began fishing last week. As of Friday, however, 130 vessels from Kodiak weren’t still fishing. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game confirmed that it had not received any landings or harvest reports in the time period.
Abena stated, “It is important for these processors that they know we can stick together to organize and get a better deal.”
Now that a deal has been reached, crabbers can now put their gear on Monday, January 30 at noon to begin Kodiak’s tanner season.
Kodiak’s Tanner crab fishery is fast. The fishery was closed in less than a week. The quota for this year is 5.8 million pounds, which is more than five times last year’s harvest. Abena stated that they expect a bottleneck in local canneries and that some vessels may be stuck waiting for their harvest to unload.
He says that the fleet is more than ready, despite all of this.
He said, “For a fisherman he worries about when he is going fishing and how much time he will be fishing.” We now have the first piece of the puzzle, we know when we are leaving. That’s huge.
Abena is also the skipper for the fishing boat Big Blue. Abena said that he will feel relief when he pulls into the harbor after two weeks.
