SEATTLE, May 17, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- More than
20,000 pounds of fresh Copper River salmon arrived in Seattle on a fish-filled Alaska Airlines plane
touching down at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport shortly after
6 a.m. this morning. Today officially
marks the beginning of the summer salmon grilling season that is
anticipated by seafood lovers throughout the Pacific Northwest and
beyond. In total, Alaska Air Cargo has three more flights scheduled
throughout the day to bring in up to 60,000 pounds of salmon.
Every year Alaska Air Cargo partners with the state of
Alaska's three largest seafood
processors, Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Trident Seafoods and Copper
River Seafoods, to bring the coveted fish to Seattle and Anchorage, Alaska, where it will then be
shipped to restaurants and grocery stores throughout the Pacific
Northwest, United States and
points beyond.
"Employees work round the clock to ensure Alaska Air Cargo can
deliver the first catch of the coveted wild Copper River salmon
from the state of Alaska to
Seattle and on to points across
the country within 24 hours of being caught," said Jason Berry, Alaska Air Cargo managing director.
"As the salmon season gets into full swing, our team is standing by
to transport fresh Alaska salmon
to restaurants and consumers throughout the US."
Alaska Airlines plays a significant role in supporting the
Alaska seafood industry, which is
recognized worldwide for its sustainable fishing practices. The
airline flew more than 20 million pounds of fresh Alaska seafood last year, including more than
1 million pounds of Copper River salmon.
Chefs compete in 7th annual Copper Chef Cook-off
The
season's first fish, a 40-pound king salmon donated by Copper River
Seafoods, will become the catch of the day for three top
Seattle chefs competing for the
best salmon recipe in Alaska Air Cargo's seventh annual "Copper
Chef Cook-off." Last year's Copper Chef winner and James Beard Award nominee Ethan Stowell, executive chef and owner of
Tavolata, Anchovies & Olive, will compete against executive
chef John Howie, owner of Seastar
Restaurant and Raw Bar & John Howie Steakhouse and Chef
Sam Burkhart of Etta's and Seatown
Seabar Restaurant. In an "Iron Chef" type competition, the three
culinary elites will have 30 minutes to prepare and serve the
freshly caught salmon to a panel of celebrity judges. Fish lover
judges include Seattle Seahawks wide-receiver Jermaine Kearse, Lauren
Bushnell, Alaska Airlines flight attendant and winner of
ABC's "The Bachelor," Seattle Mariners Hall of Famer Jay Buhner and Mike "Totality" Kentrianakis, the
astronomer and internet sensation who created a video in April of a
total solar eclipse aboard an Alaska Airlines flight from
Anchorage to Honolulu. The video went viral with more than
2 million views. Seattle culinary
icon Tom Douglas and local media
personality John Curley will
co-emcee the event.
The winning Copper River salmon recipe will be announced on the
airline's Twitter account @AlaskaAir. Salmon lovers are encouraged
to share their favorite ways to eat Copper River salmon with
@AlaskaAir using the hashtag #1stCopperRiver.
Fish fanatics who want to recreate the dishes can download the
chefs' recipes at
http://www.alaskasworld.com/newsroom/documents/recipes.pdf and
learn what makes the Copper River salmon some of the most desired
fish in the world on the Alaska Airlines blog
https://blog.alaskaair.com/.
Note to media: High-resolution photographs of the
season's first fish and Alaska Air Cargo's "Copper Chef Cook-off"
will be posted to Alaska Airlines' blog at
https://blog.alaskaair.com/ by 10 a.m.
Pacific time, May 17,
2016.
Alaska Airlines transports more than 170 million pounds of cargo
annually—including seafood, mail and freight —and operates the most
extensive air cargo operation on the U.S. West Coast of any
passenger airline.
Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK),
together with its partner regional airlines, serves more than 100
cities through an expansive network in the United States, Canada, Costa
Rica and Mexico. Alaska
Airlines ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional
Carriers in North America" in the
J.D. Power North American Airline Satisfaction Study for nine
consecutive years from 2008 to 2016. Alaska Airlines' Mileage Plan
also ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Airline Loyalty
Rewards Programs" in the J.D. Power Airline Loyalty/Rewards Program
Satisfaction Report for the last three consecutive years. For
reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and
information, visit the Alaska Airlines Newsroom at
www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.
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SOURCE Alaska Airlines