A call for product is out for the 2023 Alaska Symphony of Seafood competition, with judging in November in Seattle and the winners to be announced in February during an open house in Juneau, where invited guests include members of the Alaska Legislature.
The deadline for entries is Oct. 21. Details and entry forms are the website of the event organizer, the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation (AFDF), at https://www.afdf.org/wp-content/uploads/2023ASOS_CallForProducts.pdf.
Judging is in Seattle on Nov. 16, prior to the Seattle Open House, co-hosted by Northwest Fisheries Association at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center, with invited guests from the seafood industry, plus sponsors and news media. The next event is the awards ceremony in Juneau on Feb. 23, co-hosted by United Fishermen of Alaska.
Six separate special awards this year include the grand prize, salmon whitefish, Seattle People’s Choice Juneau People’s Choice and the Bristol Bay Choice, plus the competition for best retail, food service and beyond the plate entries, the latter being other products made from Alaska seafood.
First place winners from each category, plus the Bristol Bay Choice, are to receive booth space at the Seafood Expo North America in Boston this coming spring, plus entry into their national new product competition, the Seafood Excellence Awards, and round-trip airfare to the Boston show courtesy of Alaska Air Cargo.
Symphony events are entirely funded by the seafood industry and its supporters. Major sponsors of the 2021 event, which had 18 entries, included Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association, Lineage Logistics, Trident Seafoods, Marine Stewardship Council, Northwest Fisheries Association, Alaska Air Cargo, At-Sea Processors Association and United Fishermen of Alaska.
For more information about the Symphony, including sponsorship opportunities, check the AFDF website at https://www.afdf.org/projects/current-projects/symphony-of-seafood/.