The challenge of getting wild sockeye salmon from Bristol Bay, Alaska, onto consumers' plates in a competitive market has two key aspects: quality and consistency. Some companies and individual fishermen have tried innovations to improve quality. In 2025, Silver Bay started its A5 program—using the Japanese “A5” rating for highest quality Wagyu beef— to incentivize fishermen to deliver top-quality product to dedicated A5 tenders, and in 2026 Silver Bay also accepted A5 program deliveries at Northline Seafoods’ barge, the Hannah.

Other fishermen and tenders have experimented with PicoICE and nanoICE slurries that bring fish temperature down quickly, but these technologies require clean salt water, and Bristol Bay water close to shore can be muddy and brackish.

The Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association (BBRSDA), under the leadership of Lilani Dunn, seeks to meet the challenges of the market by boosting existing technology that can bring good prices and expanding markets to fishermen and processors.

“We think RSW [refrigerated seawater] and bleeding are the best we can do for quality,” says Dunn. “And we are doing our best to educate people, especially crew, on how to handle fish in order to maintain quality. We have a lot of information for crew, print and digital, on Best Quality Practices. We’re excited about our app, BB Live Run, which came out last year.”

The BBRSDA app provides fishermen with real-time information on the run, weather, and openers, as well as detailed guidelines on how to maintain quality under the headings: Quality is Cash, Handling Reminders, and Chilling Your Fish.

“I paid $24 for the app last year,” says Bristol Bay crewman Asher Molyneaux. “It’s handy because it takes a lot of the information available on the Alaska Department of Fish & Game website and makes it more user-friendly, plus the extras.” 

Dunn notes that the app is free in 2026 and has had over 2,000 downloads since its launch.

“Another thing we’re doing is funding and apprenticeship program for RSW technicians,” says Dunn. “We’ll pay the wages of someone who works with an experienced technician and learns the trade so that there are more people available to keep RSW systems working.”

The quality work on the supply side can be lost on the way to the consumer, and Dunn points out that the BBRSDA works all along the supply chain. “There can be so many stops along the way; we work on educating processors and retailers on Best Quality Practices like how to slack out the fish, lay it out, and refresh thawed fish,” she says. “And if someone sees a Bristol Bay sockeye for sale that shows gaping or other signs of mishandling, we encourage them to take a picture and send us the details. Often, we can trace the fish back and find the weak link in the chain of custody.”

Dunn notes that the Association also works to educate consumers, highlighting the nutritional benefits and natural qualities of wild fish. “We tell people that the bright red color of our fish comes from feeding in the wild,” she says. “Social media influencers are promoting the nutritional benefits, especially for protein-focused consumers on the GLP1 [Ozempic] diet.”

Overall, Dunn notes, the market for Bristol Bay sockeye has tripled in the last five years, and she is confident that buyers who have gotten hooked on wild fish will continue to ask for it.