Clackamas, Oregon, U.S.A.-based Pacific Seafood has halted seafood processing at its plant in Eureka, California.
“Our Eureka facility has historically processed groundfish, crab, and oysters. However, an unfavorable regulatory environment in California has led to a decrease in the number of commercial fishing vessels in the state,” Pacific Seafood Director of Communications Lacy Ogan said in a statement.
That unfavorable regulatory environment has led to California fishing vessels facing more stringent restrictions on gear and bycatch, along with more expensive permits, according to Ogan.
Pacific executives first made the decision this spring to pause groundfish processing at the plant due to a reduced number of commercial fishing vessels and a weak groundfish market in the state.
Now, the company has decided to halt all processing, but the Eureka facility will continue to operate in a limited capacity, focusing on unloading oysters, crab, and groundfish, as well as icing vessels, Ogan said. The products unloaded will then be transported to the supplier’s other facilities farther north for processing.
According to the Humboldt Waterkeeper, the firm has laid off an undisclosed number of employees in the wake of the move. Any impacted team members were offered opportunities to continue working at one of Pacific’s other locations, Ogan said.
Further exacerbating its troubles in California, Pacific Seafood gave the Crescent City Harbor District in Crescent City, California, a six-month notice earlier this year that it would not renew its lease to operate the firm’s ice house there, “as it was no longer economically feasible given the reduced fleet size,” Ogan said.
Supporting the fleet’s access to ice remains a priority for Pacific, though, Ogan said.
“We have been able to supply [fishers] with ice in Brookings and have recently arranged a plan with the Crescent City Harbor District to transport ice from Brookings to Crescent City,” Ogan said.
While Pacific is reducing processing operations in California, it has made moves to increase business in other locations. Pacific recently bought Trident Seafoods’ processing plant in Kodiak, Alaska, U.S.A., which processes pollock, salmon, Pacific cod, halibut, flatfish, rockfish, crab, and herring.
In total, Pacific operates around 40 facilities across the U.S. and Canada, including distribution, processing, and aquaculture operations.
