Alaska is fish country. For thousands of years, Alaska fish have supported human use, from fisheries used by Alaska’s indigenous native peoples since prehistoric time, to today’s modern seafood industry. Alaska is home to abundant stocks of many species of fish and effective state and federal institutions manage fisheries that are productive and sustainable, clean and healthy.

Alaska is one of the last great wildernesses on earth and urban development has only encroached on around 250 square miles of Alaska’s total 586,400 square miles and Alaska’s waters remain exceptionally clean. With over 34,000 miles of coastline, 3 million lakes, and 3,00 rivers Alaska is the greatest fishing region in the world.

The five species of Alaska salmon are members of a large family of fish known as salmonidae which are abundant throughout the temperate zones of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Salmon and their salmonidae relatives, which include Atlantic salmon, are active and aggressive predators who demand the high levels of oxygen most commonly found in cold, rushing streams, estuaries, and the upper levels of the ocean.
Pacific salmon occur from California north along the Pacific coast throughout the Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean waters adjacent to Alaska. Alaska’s wild salmon resource is the greatest in the world. Click here to read online.

The Alaska Seafood Suppliers Directory provides information on suppliers of all types of Alaska seafood products. Click here to access the directory online

The cold clean waters off the coast of Alaska support huge stocks of whitefish, many of which are in high demand in seafood markets worldwide. The term “whitefish” is synonymous with “groundfish” or “bottomfish, and refers to several species of white-fleshed fishes that live on or near the bottom of the ocean. The scientific term” for this lifestyle is “demersal”, which distinguishes them from the fishes that swim throughout the water column, called “pelagic”. This guide focuses on the nine species of whitefish of greatest interest to the seafood trade. Click here to read online.

Alaska is thousands of miles away from large sources of pollution that can contaminate the human food supply in other parts of the world. These distances, combined with the earth’s patterns of circulation of water and air, help to ensure that Alaska’s own waters are among the cleanest in the world. Many studies conducted by both government and university scientists over the course of decades have repeatedly demonstrated that Alaska seafood is pure and clean, with little or no traces of contaminants. Click here to read online.

Contaminant levels that constitute a public health concern, as determined by the U.S Food & Drug Administration (FDA), have never been approached and Alaska seafood is routinely purer than products from other parts of the world.

Alaska and the Alaska fisheries are located in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Click on the thumbnail pictures below to access images of Alaska seafood, scenic images and Alaska fishing boats. Downloads are free but these image may only be used in the promotion of Alaska seafood products.

Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute
http://www.alaskaseafood.org

Alaska Department of Fish and Game
http://www.adfg.state.ak.us

The State of Alaska
http://www.state.ak.us