Despite a down season, albacore from the central Oregon coast is one of state’s most valuable and popular fisheries

By ANGELA NEBEL/Lincoln Chronicle

A frustrating start to the albacore tuna season troubled commercial fishermen this summer, as a late arrival, smaller fish and higher fuel prices all dampened the initial enthusiasm for one of the central Oregon coast’s favorite summer fisheries.

By mid-August, the fish had grown bigger, but problems persisted, both on and off the water. Retaliatory tariffs announced by the Canadian government including a 25 percent tariff on fish and seafood from the United States will go into effect Sept. 8, adding another layer of economic uncertainty.

On the water, even the arrival of larger fish didn’t change a season described as “slow” and “difficult” by boat captains with decades of experience chasing albacore.

“It’s very slow,” said Brett Montague, owner/operator of the F/V Jo El. “Our volume is down about 80 percent compared to last year and 60 percent to the previous year. A really bad year right now.”

Earlier that day, the Jo El had just offloaded 5,934 pounds of blast-frozen albacore, caught over seven days, at a dock in Newport. “Typically, on a seven-day trip in the past, I would have had another 2,000 pounds on board.”

Jerry Biddinger was 60 miles offshore from Newport on the F/V Eclipse when he gave his assessment by phone.

“The season has been difficult to say the least,” he said. “We have not had real good conditions and there just hasn’t been a lot of fish showing up. It’s been a struggle this season.”

Joined by two crew members, Biddinger was on the fifth day of his second trip of the season. On the first, they pulled in 12,000 pounds over 14 days, which he described as “not real good fishing.” When full, his boat can accommodate 45,000 pounds.

Both captains point to warmer water conditions as the likely culprit for the disappointing season.

“I haven’t experienced an El Nino like we’re experiencing now,” Montague said. “There is warm water everywhere you go. Albacore look for edges where cold water and warm water meet. We don’t have much of that this year because of the El Nino, it seems. But that could change and we could have a giant body of fish tomorrow.”

Mark and Lisa Newell, owners of Newell Seafoods, are seafood wholesalers based in Newport. Mark has been a commercial fisherman since 1975 and knows that water temperature makes all the difference with albacore.

“Once you are out 35 or 40 miles, the water is blue and 62 degrees – just crystal clear and beautiful. They will hit closer to the edges where the cooler water starts,” Newell said, explaining that the tuna diet consists of foods like krill and anchovies that enjoy colder temperatures. “Those things want to be in the murky edge where it’s a little bit colder and albacore come in to find that food.”

The distance from shore where that edge is found varies from year to year. Montague’s fish were caught 70 miles offshore but in other years “I’ve been upwards of 200 miles out,” he noted.

That distance can take a toll on the bottom line.

“We go wherever. Fuel is definitely an issue this year for a lot of boats. I’m fortunate to have a fuel-efficient engine, but it is still twice as much as it was last year,” Montague said. “Going around and exploring is much less of an option this year.”

Big financial impact

Albacore is one of the more important fisheries on the Oregon coast. According to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, it typically ranks fourth or fifth for total annual revenue generated in Oregon marine fisheries. In 2025, albacore ranked fourth behind Dungeness crab, pink shrimp, and Pacific whiting for total annual revenue.

The Research Group, a Corvallis-based consulting firm that specializes in natural resource economics, said albacore’s 2025 economic contribution to Oregon harvesting and processing added $30.8 million to household income and $73.4 million in business activity. Money from businesses selling the locally-caught albacore directly to consumers would be in addition.

For fishermen like Montague and Biddinger, tuna plays a significant role in their business.

“Tuna is usually our highest grossing fishery,” explained Montague. “Salmon is another big part of our season but with the fluctuations in the past few years, albacore is something we rely on heavily.”

The investment necessary to fish tuna also plays a role in making it an important fishery.

“Tuna for me is more profitable because I usually have less crew, less insurance, no bait involved, not a lot of gear involved, so it’s just fuel and groceries,” Biddinger said, comparing it to the larger crew and equipment used on a crab boat.

A less complex fishery

Albacore caught off the U.S. west coast is a hook-and-line fishery. There are no nets. Instead, fishermen troll by pulling jigs, or lures, through the water from long outriggers. Tuna is a highly migratory species.

“North Pacific albacore, particularly juveniles (2 to 4 years old), typically begin their expansive migration in the spring and early summer in waters off Japan,” according to NOAA Fisheries. “They move into inshore waters off the Pacific coast by late summer, then spend late fall and winter in the western Pacific Ocean.”

NOAA said wild-caught Pacific albacore is sustainably managed and responsibly harvested under U.S. regulations.  The fishery is also certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council, which considers fish stocks, impact on the ocean environment, and fishery management in its certification process.

While some processors or canners will pay to put the stewardship logo on their product, many fishermen can and sell their own wild-caught tuna that doesn’t carry the branding.

Oregon Albacore Commission Executive Director Ericka Carlson said consumers can see if they are buying from a sustainable fishery with just a quick glance at the product labeling.

“Look to see if it says caught and canned in Oregon,” she suggests. “If it says caught and canned in Oregon, then you know you are getting a product that is MSC certified and has all of the associated health and environmental benefits.”

Carlson’s organization represents more than 300 vessels that make up the Oregon albacore fleet. For more than 13 years, she has been an outspoken advocate for the health benefits of albacore tuna – first as a commissioner and now as the group’s executive director.

“Albacore is an important commodity in Oregon because it is delicious and one of the best ways you can get good, healthy omega-3s. Albacore is the tuna with the highest omega 3s,” she explained. Omega-3 fatty acids are recommended for heart and brain health.

Popular with consumers, canners

Gauging consumer interest in the product can happen in different ways. For Angee Doerr, Oregon Sea Grant marine fisheries specialist, the annual Shop the Dock program is an indicator of public interest in albacore.

Over a series of weeks, locals and visitors tour Newport’s commercial docks to learn about the fisheries and the best way to buy directly from the fishermen. Albacore, Doerr said, “is always the one people are very curious about because they have heard they can buy direct.”

Tour participants end up learning how the fish are caught, how they are cooled and stored while at sea, and how best to use them once you get a fish home.

“This is my eighth summer running Shop at the Dock and it is consistently popular every year,” Doerr said. “People have questions about sustainability and management, wanting to make sure they are buying something that is healthy for the ocean and healthy for them.”

At Newell Seafoods, Lisa Newell knows well about the local demand for Oregon tuna. With their wholesale business, they move more than 75,000 pounds of tuna each year. Some of that is processed and sold directly to consumers from the company’s processing facility in South Beach. One day in mid-August in the span of three hours, her crew of seven people filleted 2,000 pounds of tuna. Orders continued to pour in, including one home canner seeking 200 pounds of fish.

“People plan canning parties. Some travel from out of state to join family and friends and they are always looking for tuna,” she said.

Stormi Dykes, a community food systems specialist with Oregon State University Extension Office in Newport, interacts with consumers at a different point in the process. OSU Extension offers a number of food preservation classes throughout the year, including three focused specifically on tuna.

“Albacore tuna is our most popular class,” Dykes noted. “We are teaching monthly classes now and pressure canning tuna is the topic of at least three classes we teach each year. It’s popular because we are on a working port with beautiful fish being sold right from the docks and we try to capitalize on that,” she added.

Extension fosters the home canning process in other ways, too. People are invited to bring their pressure canner lid to the office so the pressure dial can be measured for accuracy. For those without a pressure canner, the office has two available for loan. Although there is a fee for the canning classes, dial testing and canner loans are both free services.

Out on the sea, Biddinger worries that not enough people are interested in canning tuna or cooking fish at home. With nothing but time to contemplate the future of the fishery, he hopes more people will think about the foods they consume.

“We need to educate people on the value of our resource and the value it is to yourself to eat a good product,” Biddinger said. “There is just a huge separation between the producer and the ultimate consumer.”

Despite the frustrations of a slow season, Biddinger still expresses a love for fishing and for feeding people.

Montague was getting ready to go out again on the Jo El when he reflected on what he loves about Albacore season.

“It’s high seas. You’re moving fast and there’s a lot of life. When it’s good, there’s not much like it.”

• Angela Nebel is a Newport freelancer writer and Lincoln Chronicle contributor who can be reached at [email protected]