Larger sizes of fresh dry-pack scallops continue to be tight. Many of the larger scallop boats will reserve their days at sea for nicer weather. We should see some relief in the spring once the new season begins and American scallop boats are allowed back into closed areas where larger scallops will be targeted.

 

Hard-shell clams, mussels, and oysters have been limited lately due to bad weather. Now that we have had a little string of nicer weather, we should see availability open up. However, demand is still increasing, so we may not see much relief on pricing.

 

Live Maine lobsters are still a bargain. Pricing has come down a bit since the holidays. Act quickly though as Valentine’s Day is right around the corner, and prices will undoubtedly spike again.

Cod and haddock supply is looking good for the year, weather dependent, of course! Norway’s quota is open-ended this year due to very minimal fishing in recent months and abundant supply.

 

Groundfish pricing is leveling off and getting back to normal after a string of bad weather. We have some very nice gillnet monkfish that came in yesterday! Along with the monkfish, we have haddock, cod, lemon sole fillets, and wild striped bass.

WEST COAST 

The Alaskan cod season is in full swing and looks to be very promising. Larger fillets may be a little scarce however, as most of the landings have been producing smaller fish. Harvesters in Alaska’s Pacific cod fisheries are anxiously awaiting midmonth when they are expected to receive their Marine Stewardship Council certification. Having the MSC label verifies the fish came from a sustainable source. Look for good deals on frozen cod this year!

 

Petrale sole has been very scarce lately. Quotas have opened up now however, and we are starting to see supply come back.

 

Pacific cod, refreshed Alaskan halibut, petrale sole, dover sole, and fresh Dungeness meat are available this week. Look for black cod, corvina, and rockfish to be available for the weekend.

 

GREAT LAKES 

Supply out of the Great Lakes will be hit or miss over the next couple of months. We do have some walleye coming in midweek. Once the quotas for walleye are announced, which should be a month or so away, availability will open up. We should hopefully see some whitefish and perch come in around the same time.

SALMON 

Supply on farmed salmon from the U.S., Canada, and Norway looks good over the next couple of months. More supply should come online in late spring as well. This does not mean prices are immune however, as there is the ever-increasing demand.

 

We should start to see wild salmon off the W/C become available mid- to late March if all goes well. In the meantime, we do have MSC-certified wild king fillets available.

 

Limited offerings off the Hawaiian auction this week. A lot of the bycatch items such as ono, opah, and monchong are still not coming in. Tuna out of Hawaii right now is pricey, so most of our tuna will be Gulf, and imported yellowfin. Albacore, hiramasa, swordfish, mahi mahi, escolar, kingfish (dayboat), and Florida red grouper are all in house and available this week. Albacore and swordfish could be tight this week.