Alaska Pacific Cod Season Underway with Lowered TAC

A Pacific cod. Photo: NOAA Fisheries.

Alaska’s Pacific cod A season got underway in January, with an overall total allowable catch set lower than for 2024. It’s a total decrease of just over 14,000 metric tons, or 31 million pounds.

Based on historical trends, the online market insight website Tradex on Jan. 20 estimated the total Alaskan harvest of Pacific cod would range between 133,000 and 150,000 metric tons.

At the lower end, this would represent a 10% decrease from the 2024 harvest, while the higher end would align closely with last year’s total.

The Russian Pacific cod 2024 harvest in metric tons, by comparison, was 105,200 metric tons, or 72% of their total allowable catch and 61% of Russia’s 2023 harvest of 107,900 metric tons.

For 2025, Tradex noted, Alaskan cod may be in for some further price pressure as the global Atlantic cod supply is forecast to decline.

The Groundfish Forum fishery trade association is forecasting 656,000 metric tons of Atlantic cod for 2025, down from 816,000 metric tons a year earlier.

Iceland’s Atlantic cod harvest last year totaled 221,886 metric tons, holding relatively steady with the 2023 harvest of 220,560 metric tons. Joint Norway/Russia Atlantic cod harvests for 2024 came to 202,948 metric tons in 2024, down from 294650 metric tons in 2023.

The Alaska pollock total allowable catch meanwhile rose from 1,495,720 metric tons for the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands and Gulf of Alaska in 2024 to a 2025 TAC of 1,533,748 metric tons. Tradex also forecast a potential Russian pollock TAC, which was 2,285,000 metric tons last year, may be in for an increase of 5% or a total of 2,460,000 tons for this year.

Tradex recommended that buyers make their commitments to purchase Pacific cod now. While pricing is expected to remain strong at a minimum, it also meets criteria for upward pressure and the price selling is likely to be determined by market tolerance, the site noted.