Two leading trade groups have issued stinging criticism of trade rules that allow Russian pollock and other whitefish species processed in Chinaunfettered access to the US market, despite the Biden administration's sanctions on Russian imports in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine last year.

The At-Sea Processors Association and Pacific Seafood Processors Association, which represent US catcher-processor vessels harvesting Alaska pollock and shore-based seafood processors, are the most direct competitors with Russian whitefish imports. The groups argue that allowing China's products to flow into the US without additional penalties essentially gives Russia a back door to the market.