The U.S. Department of Agriculture is looking to purchase more than 3.2 million pounds of Alaska pollock for its federal nutrition programs. In additon, the agency is asking for bids on walleye.
In a new notice, the USDA is asking suppliers to bid on supplying 3.21 million pounds of frozen domestic pollock fillets, sticks, and bulk (surimi). Offers are due by 12 May, 2022.
If the USDA purchases all of the pollock it has requested, it would make USDA’s fiscal year total 9,976,000 pounds, the Associaton of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers (GAPP) CEO Craig Morris told SeafoodSource.
“One thing is clear: USDA is now a sustained major buyer of wild Alaska pollock,” Morris said. “Year after year, these purchases hovered in the two to three million pounds-a-year range – certainly not an insignificant number. However, the last few years have seen a dramatic increase in both the volume and value of these purchases.”
The 2022 fiscal year has already been the fifth-highest ranking year in terms of USDA’s Alaska pollock purchases by volume. Morris said it could rise as high fourth in value, depending on prices offered by bidders.
The USDA is also asking for bids on 72,000 pounds of frozen walleye fillets by 12 May.
Photo courtesy of GK1982/Shutterstock
