Laine Welch
Laine Welch has covered the Alaska fish beat for print and radio since 1988. She also has worked “behind the counter” at retail and wholesale seafood companies in Kodiak and on Cape Cod. She retired in April 2022 from her Fish Factor reports, but now produces a blog at alaskafish.news.
Skill building is key to Young Fishermen’s Summit
The biggest year classes of Alaska fishermen are phasing out of the business and fewer young cohorts are recruiting in. The Alaska Young Fishermen’s...
Fish Factor: Flatulence on an epic scale is revealing
Got gas? “Not since the campfire scene in Mel Brooks’s film Blazing Saddles has the world been exposed to flatulence on such an epic scale.”So...
Fish Factor: Five Alaska fisheries ports rank in nation’s top 10
Seafood Super PowerAlaska is the nation’s super power with five Alaska ports ranking in the top 10 for seafood landings and values.“Dutch Harbor keeps...
Fish Factor: Cautious optimism abounds for permit prices
It’s steady as she goes for the values of Alaska salmon fishing permits, with upticks in the wind at several fishing regions.“There’s a lot...
Fish Factor: Alaska’s fishing industry workforce is nearly 60,000 strong
Alaska’s fishing fleet of 9,400 vessels would span nearly 71 miles if lined up from bow to stern.And Alaska’s fishing industry catches and processes...
Fish Factor: Kelp could be potential source of biofuel
Editor’s note: The first item in this column is simply a long-term research project looking at the feasibility of producing biofuels in Alaska waters at...
Fish Factor: GOA cod shows recruitment failure
Fishing outlooks for some of Alaska’s largest catches are running the gamut from celebratory (salmon) to relief (Bering Sea crab) to catastrophic (cod).
First the...
Fish Factor: Chum salmon had record catches in 2017
Chum salmon returned home to Alaska this year in numbers never seen before from Southeast to Kotzebue, and set catch records statewide and in...
Fish Factor: October is National Seafood Month
October is National Seafood Month, a distinction bestowed by Congress 30 years ago to recognize one of America’s oldest industries.Alaska merits special recognition because...
Fish Factor: The new blue economy
A growing cluster of entrepreneurs is seeding prospects for Alaska’s new “blue economy” and it is attracting interest from around the world. Marine technology...
