Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.-based Trident Seafoods is in the middle of sale negotiations for its Kodiak, Alaska, plant but will operate it through Alaska’s second pollock season.
In December 2023, Trident announced it was divesting from its plants in Kodiak, Ketchikan, Petersburg, and False Pass, as well as the South Naknek Diamond NN cannery facility and its support facilities in Chignik, as part of a comprehensive, strategic restructuring initiative. It has since sold its Petersburg and Ketchikan plants and is close to sales of its Kodiak and False Pass plants, according to a March 2024 announcement.
“We’re currently in the middle of sale negotiations for Kodiak – a process covered by a non-disclosure agreement,” Trident Seafoods CEO Joe Bundrant said in a 30 May statement. “While we aren’t able to disclose more details at this time, we’re confident about the plant’s future, and we’re looking forward to sharing more details as soon as possible.”
Negotiations with prospective buyers for the company’s False Pass and Kodiak facilities remain ongoing, Bundrant said.
“As the largest and most complex plant, with year-round operations supporting multiple species, the complexity of the operations makes the sale of the Kodiak plant a lengthier due diligence process,” the company said. “The move is part of the company’s commitment to supporting fishermen and communities while executing its strategic restructuring and modernization initiative.”
Trident confirmed it will operate the Kodiak plant through the Alaska pollock B season, which begins in June and runs through October.
“Trident Seafoods is planning to operate its seafood-processing facility in Kodiak, Alaska, through the B season, ensuring local fishermen have a market for the season and surrounding businesses remain secure. The company will remain the facility's operator, while confidential sale negotiations continue,” it said.
Located on Kodiak Island’s northwest corner, Trident’s plant is equipped with a fully automated heading and gutting production line for Alaska pollock and salmon, with a daily capacity of 1.5 million pounds of pollock.
“We know how important the Kodiak plant is to the community and the surrounding fisheries,” Trident Seafoods Senior Vice President of Alaska Operations Jeff Welbourn said. “We appreciate that this is an uncertain time. The decision to continue operations through B season is tied directly to our commitment to ensuring the plant remains an important economic contributor to Kodiak and the surrounding community now and into the future.”
Trident has been upgrading its Kodiak facility in advance of a sale, replacing pilings and its bunkhouse, according to KMXT.
Before Trident’s announcement, the Kodiak City Council and Kodiak Island Borough Assembly debated were scheduled to meet on 30 May to discuss whether to petition the North Pacific Fishery Management Council to allow offshore processing if Trident Seafoods closes its Kodiak plant. The petition would call for the NPFMC to ask the U.S. Secretary of Commerce an emergency rule to allow mothership processors to process the catch of the 25 Kodiak-based trawlers operating in nearby waters, according to the Kodiak Daily Mirror.
