January 05, 2020

At Pride of Bristol Bay, we are proud to offer a nourishing product in every sense of the word. The healthiness of wild salmon for humans seeking a delicious, sustainable protein, is undeniable. But what about for the fish? As Captain Steve Kurian points out, environmental conservation is economic, as well as passion driven. We are proud that our business has grown in such a way that we can now give back and that our business model is healthy for the fish...because we are Wildly Devoted. 

Our Wildly Devoted program means that 1% of our total sales directly support the salmon. Our partnership with Trout Unlimited is a relationship built on trust and a shared devotion to the wild. We have the utmost confidence in the impact of our contribution: 1% of every purchase you, our customer, makes at Pride of Bristol Bay — because Trout Unlimited’s mission is “to conserve, protect and restore North America's coldwater fisheries and their watersheds.” Thankfully, they’re pretty good at it. 

At Pride of Bristol Bay, we are thankful to be good at catching fish and sharing the quality, final product with our customers, but we also recognize that we couldn’t do that without clean water and healthy fish habitat. Thus we feel it is our duty to support the experts taking on these conservation efforts, and we invite you to do the same with a purchase from our small, family business. 

Bristol Bay is not accessible by car; no roads from the lower 48 or even Anchorage will get you to the harbors of the Naknek, Nushagak or any other river. To get to the home of the fleet each summer, we have to fly. This literal birds-eye view of Bristol Bay provides an immensely important perspective for our business. From the small bush plane, the pristine habitat is obvious. The river’s tributaries swerve, unaffected, in tight coils towards the lakes. Their color is dark but clear; it looks fresh. Approaching the bay, where the bigger boats like ours spend their season, the water spills out into the brackish, tidal bay. Depending on the route, we sometimes see the clearer ocean water meet this more brackish water - feeding it nutrients, delivering salmon. This approximately one hour flight to Bristol Bay is just one of our many seasonal reminders that conserving and protecting our coldwater fisheries is paramount. 

Wild salmon are famous ecosystem-builders. As Ray Troll makes obvious in his art, wild salmon feed the land as they come to rest in their spawning grounds. Before that, though, they feed the bears, seals, some seabirds, and us — just to name a few. In the ocean, they are playing their role in a significant food chain. 

We appreciate this model of the salmon lifecycle. As we head upstream, distributing frozen fillets and portions along the way, we are also committed to supporting the ecosystems that makes this all possible by feeding the trees and keeping the water clean. 

Thanks to the expertise of Trout Unlimited and support from our 1% for the Planet certification, we are Wildly Devoted and hope you are as well. 

We’d be honored if you chose to treat yourself and loved ones to the gift of Salmon from Pride of Bristol Bay this season.  Each purchase of wild salmon protects wild salmon. We are Wildly Devoted.