The Alaska salmon industry hasn't been an easy place to operate in recent years.

Overcapacity, brutal competition and rapidly changing consumer demands have made what has for decades been a relatively bankable sector increasingly challenging.

The salmon processing industry is a remarkably crowded one in today's consolidating seafood world, with majors such as Trident Seafoods, Cooke, Canfisco, Marubeni, Silver Bay Seafoods, Copper River Seafoods and the Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation (BBEDC) all operating facilities in the state. Multiple other smaller players process and sell as well.