ALASKA TRENDS

As Alaskans, the importance of Bristol Bay Salmon might be obvious. These slippery critters are some of the most soughtafter seafood in the world—and they charge a premium. But when was the last time you dived into the numbers that support this notion?

The Economic Benefits of Bristol Bay Salmon is McKinley Research’s latest report detailing just that. It’s packed with a plethora of information underlining just how crucial this industry truly is. If you’re going to take one number away from the report it should be this: $2 billion. $2 billion was the total economic value of Bristol Bay’s wild salmon resource in 2019.

Fish on.

Total Labor Income in 2019

COMMERCIAL FISHING $293.7M SEAFOOD PROCESSING $80.8M VISITOR INDUSTRY $67.9M

$990M

$800M

$300M

$2B

was the total economic value of Bristol Bay’s wild salmon resource in 2019 in the US. STATE OF ALASKA $990M P. NORTHWEST $800M OTHER $300M

32'

7 New Operators

The commercial operators purchasing salmon has grown over the last 20 years, with 33 operators reporting they purchased Bristol Bay sockeye in 2019, up from 26 in 2000.

32' Max.

The bulk of the Bristol Bay fleet is designed specifically for this fishery since regulations limit their size to 32 linear feet.

Sockeye Products

Headed/gutted processed salmon grew from 65% to 72% while canned salmon fell to 8% in 2019.

50M Salmon

return annually to Bristol Bay rivers.

6K Workers

produce 157M pounds of processed salmon during a typical season.

$9K per Household

Bristol Bay's subsistence fishery harvested 116,303 salmon in 2017. The replacement value of this harvest was $5M-$10M. This translates to about $4,500 to $9,000 per participating household.

Subsistence Salmon Harvested in 2017

SOCKEYE 89,704 CHINOOK 12,985 COHO 8,154 CHUM 4,907 PINK 553

Top 3 Commerical Permit Holders

in 2019 by borough are Dillingham (439), Anchorage (254), and the Kenai Peninsula (218).

218

KENAI PEN.

Global Contribution

Bristol Bay provides the majority of sockeye product worldwide. It has increased from 49% in 2015 to 57% in 2019.

254

ANCHORAGE

DILLINGHAM

$1.1B Economic Output

Employment and labor income from commercial fishing, seafood processing and the salmon-driven visitor industry totaled $442M in 2019, with 16,900 seasonal jobs. Total economic output was $1.1B.

$82M

is the total annual spending by visitors to the Bristol Bay region. The most common trips are overnight sportsfishing or to view bears feeding on salmon.