Our Story
In 1931 at the age of 16, Albert Ball arrived in Bristol Bay as a 16-year-old chasing opportunity in the darkest days of the great depression. His aunt wrote to Albert shortly after his father died, urging him to come to Alaska, "The land of milk and honey."
Albert found his paradise on the shores, rivers, mountains, and forests of Western Alaska. For the next 82 years, Albert fished the legendary Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon--a feat for which Albert earned entry into the United Fishermen of Alaska Hall of Fame.
In 1955 Albert pioneered the setnet fishery in Ekuk, one of the most beautiful and productive areas of Bristol Bay. Albert shared his love for fishing with his growing family and a robust network of friends and neighbors on this beach. Over time the family enterprise grew to include fish processing and marketing. Whereas billion-dollar corporations have long since swallowed most family seafood businesses, the Ball Family has proudly held onto and fostered Albert's legacy. Today, three generations of the Ball Family carry on the tradition of Alaska's Best Seafood. One of only a literal handful, Alaskan-owned, fisher-owned seafood businesses left. In 2019 Jason Ball moved his family to Arizona. He quickly realized the need for high-quality seafood in this state he now calls home. Jason put the wheels in motion and is proud to have brought Alaska's Best Seafood to Arizona.
Albert passed on in 2014. The values he taught--faith, hard work, innovation, uncompromising resource stewardship, generosity, humility, integrity, and a focus on quality and service, live on in the extraordinary people of Ekuk Beach and the extraordinary product produced by Alaska's Best.
Ekuk Beach setnet fish have the unique distinction of being harvested and processed on the same small beach--fish are processed within a few short hours of harvest. As a result, production is large enough to supply customer needs but small enough to ensure flawless grading and tracking on individual fishers' catch. Alaska's Best processing crew is also unique--many of the crew are locals who have worked with the Ball Family for generations. All this combined produces the finest Bristol Bay salmon on the market, bar none.
Alaska's Best Seafood represents a unique partnership of passion-driven fisherfolk, exceptional processing, and service, all animated by a century-long family legacy. Albert, and his family, wouldn't have it any other way.
OUR VISION
Alaska's Best Seafood, LLC (ABS) is a unique, passion-driven business. As told below, ABS represents a century-long family legacy and a remarkable partnership-driven ethic. ABS owns and operates two plants in Bristol Bay and is the only Bristol Bay-owned company in the salmon business. This grounding in the community and proximity to the resource gives us an incredible advantage regarding quality and commitment from our extended family of fishers.
The ABS model is simple--we cultivate full partnerships with people and businesses who share our passion for community, sustainability, and quality. This approach is the same whether working with the Puget Sound tribal skiff fishing fleet or with some of the largest food companies in the nation. Simply put, our relationships and partnerships are our pride and our focus--Quality, Pride, Partnership, Service. That's the ABS way.
We are happy to offer you our commodity items, fresh in season, or to build a "bespoke" program around your customer's needs. We look forward to adding you and your customers to the ABS family.
ABS is fully licensed and certified. Our partners and we meet or exceed all applicable industry and regulatory requirements. Alaska salmon is MSC certified, one plant in Ekuk is Fair Trade certified and has us as the only Fair Trade Certified salmon processing plant in the world.