Legislature(2003 - 2004)
02/05/2003 08:32 AM House FSH
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* first hearing in first committee of referral
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+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON FISHERIES
February 5, 2003
8:32 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Paul Seaton, Chair
Representative Peggy Wilson, Vice Chair
Representative Cheryll Heinze
Representative Ralph Samuels
Representative David Guttenberg
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Pete Kott
Representative Ethan Berkowitz
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
OVERVIEWS: ALASKA SALMON MARKETING INSTITUTE, SALMON MARKET
INFORMATION SERVICE
TAPES
03-3, SIDE(S) A & B
CHAIR PAUL SEATON convened the meeting of the House Special
Committee on Fisheries at 8:32 a.m. Present at the call to
order were Representatives Seaton, Heinze, Samuels, and
Guttenberg. Representative Wilson arrived as the meeting was in
progress.
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION
RAY RIUTTA, Executive Director, Alaska Seafood Marketing
Institute (ASMI,) introduced ASMI staff, Naresh Shrestha and
Laura Fleming. Mr. Riutta began his presentation by providing
background information, informing the committee that ASMI is a
cooperative partnership between the seafood industry and state
government. ASMI is Alaska's official seafood marketing agency,
and also conducts seafood quality education. Approximately 80
people from the commercial seafood industry, including a 25-
member, governor-appointed board of directors, are involved with
guiding ASMI's efforts, whose mission is to increase worldwide
consumption of Alaska seafood and to promote the quality and
superiority of Alaska seafood products. Mr. Riutta said that
the seafood industry is the largest private-sector employer in
the state, and the second largest state revenue contributor,
next to the petroleum industry. Mr. Ruitta highlighted some of
the trends currently pervading the Alaska seafood industry, such
as strong prices for Alaska cod and crab, and low prices for
Alaska salmon. He said Alaska's pollock fishery is the largest
in the world, bringing in about $800 million at the docks, and
that if Alaska were a country, it would rank among the top five
seafood-producing nations in the world.
MR. RIUTTA described ASMI's different programs, including
promotion, public relations, market development, and a technical
program that provides expertise on regulatory and scientific
issues and also conducts trainings on how to maintain seafood
quality from point of harvest to the plate. He said ASMI works
with chefs, wholesale seafood businesses, hotels, restaurant
chains, retail stores, and whole-foods stores to promote Alaskan
seafood and recipes. He mentioned that about 60 percent of the
seafood sold in the U.S. is sold through food service in
restaurants rather than in grocery stores, and that Alaskan
products are carried by familiar names such as Hilton Hotels,
Long John Silver's, Sizzler, and Hyatt Hotels. To further
differentiate Alaskan products, ASMI works with writers and
journalists to promote not only seafood but also the industry as
a whole, including individual fishermen and their lifestyle.
Mr. Riutta explained the funding trends of ASMI, noting that
they have suffered funding losses in conjunction with the
decline of the Alaska salmon industry. He mentioned that ASMI
receives federal grants through the U.S. Department of
Agriculture for overseas marketing programs. He referred to
ASMI's web site, www.alaskaseafood.org, for further information.
CHRIS McDOWELL, Editor, Salmon Market Information Service
(SMIS), gave a PowerPoint presentation outlining current trends
and market conditions in the Alaska salmon industry. He stated
that the decline in value of the industry is due to two factors:
the decreased harvests of the high-value sockeye species, and
the declining price due to increasing competition from global
farmed salmon imports. The harvest composition of the salmon
industry is also causing revenue decline as the industry has
increased its harvest of low-value salmon species and decreased
its harvest of high-value species. Mr. McDowell explained that
although today's salmon revenues are extremely low, the
exceptionally profitable years of the '80s and '90s were
extraordinarily high. He also stated that the growing domestic
market is focused on fresh and frozen fillets, mostly provided
by the salmon farming industry, but that Alaska salmon could
also benefit from this growing market if the industry focused on
increasing the overall quality of the product and improving
transportation to domestic markets. Mr. McDowell also mentioned
the importance of the canned salmon market, and the increasingly
diverse export destinations of Alaska salmon.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
There were no announcements.
COMMITTEE ACTION
The committee took no action.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Special Committee on Fisheries meeting was adjourned at 9:54
a.m.
NOTE: The meeting was recorded and handwritten log notes were
taken. A copy of the tape(s) and log notes may be obtained by
contacting the House Records Office at State Capitol, Room 3,
Juneau, Alaska 99801 (mailing address), (907) 465-2214, and
after adjournment of the second session of the Twenty-Third
Alaska State Legislature this information may be obtained by
contacting the Legislative Reference Library at (907) 465-3808.
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