The Association of Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers (GAPP) recently issued a trade update analyzing pollock's U.S. performance through August 2024.
According to GAPP, through August, U.S. exports of frozen Alaska pollock fillets were up 19 percent from the previous year, totaling 77,492 metric tons (MT), compared to 65,339 MT the previous year. Simultaneously, pollock fillet prices dropped from USD 3,905 (EUR 3,592) per MT in the eight-month period of 2023 to USD 3,378 per MT in 2024.
U.S. Alaska pollock surimi exports, on the other hand, dropped slightly, from 125,673 MT in 2023 to 119,383 MT in 2024, marking a 5.1 percent dip. Prices also dropped from USD 2,766 (EUR 2,544) per MT in 2023 to USD 2,388 (EUR 2,197) per MT in 2024.
U.S. Alaska pollock roe exports through August were up significantly, jumping from 16,349 MT in 2023 to 19,691 MT in 2024. The price of the product also rose from USD 5,593 (EUR 5,145) per MT in 2023 to USD 5,952 (EUR 5,475) per MT in 2024.
The analysis also showed that U.S. imports of frozen pollock fillets and fillet blocks have trended downward over the last two decades, from a high of 60,000 MT imported in 2005. Last year's imports, totaling 14,000 MT, were the second-lowest recorded since 2004.
This year has the country on track to hit a new low. Imports of frozen pollock fillet blocks were down from 7,853 MT in 2023 through August to 3,766 MT during the same period in 2024, marking a 66 percent drop that GAPP attributed to U.S. bans on seafood imports from Russia.
