The halibut price per pound 2020 sits around $20-$30/lb. Statewide Alaskan prices indicate how its price trends closer to the source. Halibut is divided into three pricing categories based on weight: recently, it has gone for $6.45 a pound for 10 to 20 pounders; $6.75 for 20 to 40’s and $7.00 a pound for “40 ups.”
Halibut is a rich, delicious fish whose quality, and scarcity, reflects its higher price. Halibut has also decreased in size throughout time. Off the Canadian and Alaskan Pacific coasts, fewer and fewer young halibut are available. Both of these factors, as well as increased demand, have played into a higher price per pound for halibut.
Alaskan Halibut Fillets and Portions
| Company | Min. Order | Price/lb | Reviews | Rating | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global Seafoods | 10 lbs | $28.50 | 1,130 | 4.6 | |
| Wulf’s Fish | 1 lb | $29.00 | 764 | 4.9 | |
| Sizzlefish | 3.5lbs | $39.70 | 341 | 4.9 | |
| Lummi Island Wild | .5 lbs | $41.00 | 21 | 4.8 | |
| Fulton Fish Market | .5 lb | $47.20 | 604 | 4.4 | |
| Seabear Smokehouse | 1.5 lb | $53.00 | 273 | 5.0 | |
| Vital Choice | 1.5 lbs | $54.66 | 23,132 | 4.8 |
What Affected the Halibut Price Per Pound 2020
Most recently, the crisis of a global pandemic has impacted the halibut price per pound 2020. Air traffic, as well as barge and ferry traffic, is stalled due to the global Covid-19 pandemic. Seafood is now being stored in global freezers rather than making it to its final destination. Specifically in Alaska, higher prices are designated for halibut price per pound in areas with functioning air freight services. This backlogging has created stagnancy in fishing itself as well, with some fishermen opting to not fish at all.
Additionally, the closure and decreased hours of operation of restaurants have curbed seafood prices globally, as dine-in demand significantly decreases. Meanwhile, retail prices for packaged and frozen fish have experienced mixed success as people plan to make meals at home. Ultimately, State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture reports that the global seafood production will be down 1.7% and the trade value of seafood will decrease by nearly $6 billion.
Alaskan fishermen are currently working under a 25% tariff on fish exported to China, and many prices per pound have lowered since that tariff was implemented. Luckily, halibut price per pound has not been affected by the trade war with China. Halibut is typically a domestic market and so international trade trends do not reflect as heavily. Moving forward, this distinction could bode well for the halibut market.
A Changing Climate and Fish Availability
Warming waters due to climate change have thrown the global fishing industry into turmoil. Species are dying off in higher temperatures and migrating to more northern climates. It is likely that climate change has influenced halibut price per pound and will continue to do so as warming waters drive some species to extinction and others beyond their usual habitats.
One of the few fish to actually fare well in warming waters is the Greenland halibut. It is possible that other species of halibut could adapt as well, thus impacting halibut price per pound 2020 and in the future.
The Bottom Line for Halibut Price Per Pound 2020
Halibut prices, although typically a bit higher than other fish, like salmon, seem to be performing reasonably well within the confines of a global pandemic, climate change, and the trade war with China. That being said, it is difficult to predict how the pandemic will ultimately influence the global economy, fishing industry included, so the way that halibut’s price per pound is trending today might not be indicative of what is to come.
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