Alaska Trends

I

n common parlance, “top of the food chain” is the best place to be. Better to eat than be eaten, right? The top is precarious, though, dependent on every level below. Weakest link, et cetera, et cetera.

Alaska is at the top. Yay! But also… uh-oh. If constant resupply shipments ended suddenly, grocery store shelves would be emptied within a week, according to the Alaska Food Policy Council. The stuff of nightmares, yet closer to reality in the furthest reaches of the state.

Gretchen Wehmhoff’s article “Rural Retail” visits some of the remotest communities to discover how their local stores operate. Whether it’s the Alaska Commercial Company outlet in Togiak, Nome, or Point Hope, the ME merchant in Marshall, or the Diomede Native Store, these are the final links in the chain. They are mission-critical services for their customers’ survival, purveyors of fuel and spare parts for vehicles used in subsistence hunting and gathering, to say nothing of household sundries and foods.

This discussion of food is making us hungry. Hungry and curious. The final report of the Alaska Food Security Task Force, formed last year by Governor Mike Dunleavy, documents the links in Alaska’s supply chain. The shortest links are for local foods, the smallest fraction of most Alaskans’ diets. Small like a seed, and therefore with the most potential for growth.

This edition of Alaska Trends digests the task force report and additional data from the National Agricultural Statistics Service statewide census (e.g., 375 turkeys as of 2017) and annual bulletin for 2022. Anyone with the munchies for numbers should be sated by this buffet. Bon appétit!

SOURCE: (2023) Alaska Food Security and Independence Task Force 2022 Report. www.alaskafoodsystems.com
SOURCE: 2022 Alaska Annual Statistical Bulletin (June 2022) complied by the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service – Northwest Regional Office
Average Size
43% of growers produce on less than 10 acres.
Bar graph showing average farm acreages with vector drawing of farm and silo
Against the Grain
The number of farms in the state increased 30% between 2012 and 2017. There was a 3% decline nationwide between 2012 and 2017.
Positive and Negative
In the past 8 years, the number of farms in the state has increased by 240 farms but the average acreage per farm has decreased by 190 acres.
Bar graph showing number of farms and average size per year between 2014 and 2021
Vector drawing of potato seedlings in ground
A Future in Seed Potatoes
Alaska is well-positioned to become a distributor of seed potatoes. In addition to optimal growing environments, Alaska is unique in that producers do not spray pesticide or fungicide like other potato-producing states.
Animal Husbandry Quandary
A person can process up to 20,000 birds without USDA inspection, making it fairly easy to raise and sell commercially. All other meat falls under the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service for commercial sale.

To sell direct-to-consumer, producers must sell a whole or half animal. For smaller portions, packaged, and/or processed portions, the animal must be slaughtered in a USDA-certified slaughter facility. There are only 3 USDA-certified slaughterhouses in state – Palmer, North Pole, and Delta Junction. There are also USDA-certified mobile processing units in Kodiak (for cattle) and Nome (for reindeer).

Vector image of butcher in apron holding cleaver and meat next to 2 chickens
Dwindling Dairies
The pasteurization process is expensive, cumbersome, and prohibitive for small-scale dairy producers. As of August 2022, there are only 2 FDA certified dairies left in the state, and one is a goat dairy.
Vector image of cow and goat milk jugs
Alaska Grown
Alaska’s agriculture industry is valued at $40M including food and fiber.
Importing Food
95% of purchased foods are imported, sending $2B out of state each year.
Bar graph showing harvest acres per crop
Reaping and Sowing
The production of potatoes, oats, and barley declined between 2014 and 2017, while the production of hay increased.
Oyster Farms
The first farms were oyster farms established in the 1980s. Oysters accounted for more than 90% of Alaska aquatic farm sales in 2015.
Growing Interest in Mariculture
In 2020 and 2021, Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, Alaska Sea Grant, and other partners held several mariculture training webinars and workshops; 485 Alaskans applied, indicating that interest in new lease applications will continue.
First Cut Rule
Farmers are not required to purchase permits or certifications to sell raw, whole produce. This is commonly known as the “first cut rule” since the only cut to the plant is the harvest cut.
Species Sold in Alaska:
Pacific Oysters
Blue Mussels
Pacific Geoduck
Seaweed Sugar Kelp
Bull Kelp
Ribbon Kelp
Five-Ribbed Kelp
Bull Kelp
Red Ribbon-Dulse Kelp
Split Kelp
Sugar Kelp

Additional approved species:
Littleneck Clams
Scallops
Cockles
Sea Urchins
Sea Cucumbers
Three-Ribbed Kelp
Giant Kelp
Pyropia
Palmaria

Vector drawing of an oyster underwater next to seaweed
Dwindling Dairies
The pasteurization process is expensive, cumbersome, and prohibitive for small-scale dairy producers. As of August 2022, there are only 2 FDA certified dairies left in the state, and one is a goat dairy.
Vector image of cow and goat milk jugs
Alaska Grown
Alaska’s agriculture industry is valued at $40M including food and fiber.
Importing Food
95% of purchased foods are imported, sending $2B out of state each year.
Bar graph showing harvest acres per crop
Reaping and Sowing
The production of potatoes, oats, and barley declined between 2014 and 2017, while the production of hay increased.
Oyster Farms
The first farms were oyster farms established in the 1980s. Oysters accounted for more than 90% of Alaska aquatic farm sales in 2015.
Growing Interest in Mariculture
In 2020 and 2021, Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, Alaska Sea Grant, and other partners held several mariculture training webinars and workshops; 485 Alaskans applied, indicating that interest in new lease applications will continue.
First Cut Rule
Farmers are not required to purchase permits or certifications to sell raw, whole produce. This is commonly known as the “first cut rule” since the only cut to the plant is the harvest cut.
Species Sold in Alaska:
Pacific Oysters
Blue Mussels
Pacific Geoduck
Seaweed Sugar Kelp
Bull Kelp
Ribbon Kelp
Five-Ribbed Kelp
Bull Kelp
Red Ribbon-Dulse Kelp
Split Kelp
Sugar Kelp

Additional approved species:
Littleneck Clams
Scallops
Cockles
Sea Urchins
Sea Cucumbers
Three-Ribbed Kelp
Giant Kelp
Pyropia
Palmaria

Vector drawing of an oyster underwater next to seaweed
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