MARKET REPORT | BUYING TIPS | HEALTH / NUTRITION
Market Report Updated May 2014
This year’s chum salmon harvest from Alaska is again expected to be about 20 million fish, which should add up to about 76,000 metric tons. Just over half that harvest will come from Southeast Alaska, where several large hatchery programs provide the bulk of the harvest. The next largest production area, Prince William Sound, which also relies largely on hatchery fish, should produce a harvest of about 4 million fish.
About three quarters of the U.S. chum harvest is exported, with China taking about half of the exports. Most of the chums exported to China are processed into boneless fillets and shipped back out to markets in North America, Japan and Europe. In recent years the U.S. has imported about 24,000 metric tons of frozen wild salmon fillets from China. Although this figure includes both pinks and chums, salmon importers estimate about 60% of these imports are chum salmon products.
In Japan, where chums are ranched, harvest levels continue to decline, due in large part to damage sustained by hatcheries in the 2011 tsunami. Last year’s landings were less than 100,000 metric tons, about half of what Japan’s hatchery programs used to produce. The outlook this year is for a harvest similar to last year.
Washington state salmon fishermen had their best chum harvest last fall since 2006. The total catch was just under 7,000 metric tons. The big chum harvest, along with Alaska’s record pink salmon haul, combined to push ex-vessel prices for Washington chums down to $.58/lb., the lowest price in almost 10 years.
Look for higher prices for chums this year. Last year, the pink deluge in Alaska drove chum ex-vessel prices in Alaska down to $.52/lb., their lowest level since 2007. That pushed the price of frozen H&G chums with good meat color (delivered China) down to an average of about $1.20/lb. and twice-frozen portion prices plummeted from the high $3s to just below $3/lb. Speculation this year is that the H&G price to Chinese processors will run about $1.50-$1.60/lb., which will push twice frozen portions back up into the high $3s.
Buyer’s Tip: They may not be the biggest chum runs, but they are the best eating chums you can buy. Native fishermen on the Yukon and in Kotzebue Sound, which is above the Arctic Circle, harvest chums that have meat that is bright red and loaded with oil. The best of the best is the fall chum run on the Yukon. Because they have a long swim ahead of them, these fish have a fat content of as much as 20%, higher than many king salmon. Look for these Arctic chums to be available fresh in July and early August.
Buying Tips
size-taste-texture
- Size is approximately 8 lbs.
- Mild in taste
- Medium firmness
seasonality
sourcing
Chum salmon can be the best value on the market when the skin is bright and the meat deep red, according to some buyers. Since most chum salmon spawns near river mouths, they have lower oil content than sockeye, Chinook, or coho. Chum salmon has a mild taste, is low in sodium, and is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, niacin, vitamin B12, and selenium. Chum is graded 2-4, 4-6, 6-9, and 9 up and is readily available fresh and frozen, both H&G and fillets, but may also be canned or smoked. Like other kinds of salmon, chum quality differs greatly depending on the run. Buyers recommend learning about specific runs and their characteristics in order to identify the best salmon.
The eggs are sold as ikura in Japan, where they have a high value.
Buyer Beware: Chum are some times sold as coho, a more expensive fish, because they are similar in size. Chum can be identified by a thinner caudal penduncle (the area just in front of the tail).
fresh & frozen products
- Fresh: June- October H&G
- Frozen: Year-round H&G
substitution options
Chum salmon may be used as a substitute for farmed Atlantic salmon.
Health & Nutrition

food safety:
There are no food safety or contaminant concerns with chum salmon.