U.S. Commercial Fishermen Net Record $3.1-Billion Catch in 1987

U.S. commercial fishermen harvested a record amount of seafood in 1987, hauling in about 6.9 billion pounds of fish and shellfish with a value of $3.1 billion, federal officials said Monday.

The National Marine Fisheries Service reported last year’s seafood catch was 865 million pounds more than the 1986 harvest and broke the record of 6.5 billion pounds set in 1980.

The largest share of the hefty 1987 harvest came from 2.7 billion pounds of menhaden and 552 million pounds of Alaska pollock, fisheries experts said. The 1987 catch of Alaska pollock was three times that of the previous year and 10 times higher than the five-year average of 50.7 million pounds.

Shrimp Harvest Down

Increased landings of tuna, Pacific cod, crabs and scallops were also reported last year, but the shrimp harvest fell to 363 million pounds, down 37 million pounds from the previous catch.

The average price per pound of fish in 1987 was 45 cents, the fisheries service said.

“The pollock harvest is going up dramatically due to American fishermen’s growing interest in that species. Traditionally, pollock has been a big target of foreign fishermen. But in the past several years, Americans have realized they can make money catching pollock,” said spokesman Brian Gorman, noting that pollock is used to make surimi, a processed seafood item.

Menhaden, which accounts for about 35% to 40% of the annual U.S. catch, is used in livestock feed and to produce chemicals, including those used in paint and cosmetics, Gorman said.

Louisiana and Alaska were the leading states in terms of seafood volume in 1987, with harvests of 1.8 billion and 1.7 billion pounds respectively, the fisheries service said. The next highest: Virginia, 709.6 million pounds; California, 451.7 million pounds; Mississippi, 436.7 million pounds.

Alaska ranked first in fish value, $941.7 million, followed by Louisiana, $315.9 million; Massachusetts, $278.9 million; Texas, $199.7 million, and California, $173.2 million.

Harvests by U.S. fishermen who landed their catches at foreign ports or who sold their fish at sea accounted for another 4.1 billion pounds worth $454 million in 1987, also up from 1986.

The United States ranked sixth overall in worldwide commercial fishing in 1986, accounting for about 5% of the seafood harvest. Japan was the leader with 203.3 billion pounds, or 13% of the world catch.

The Soviet Union placed second with 12%, followed by China, 9%, and Peru and Chile, each with 6%, according to statistics from the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization.

“I think the U.S. fishing industry as a whole is generally healthy,” Gorman said. “Certainly, the share that U.S. fishermen are catching compared to the foreign share is increasing. We are harvesting an increasing percentage of fish found in our own waters.”