Alaska Packers' Association

As the largest salmon packer in Alaska, the member canneries of APA were active in local affairs, and had considerable political influence.

In 1907, the APA canned over $3 million worth of salmon and thanks to credits for hatchery releases that totaled over $32,000, owed just 32 cents in taxes, a bill they paid for with stamps.

[3] Its cannery hospitals provided medical care for neighboring Native residents and when the worldwide Spanish flu pandemic ravaged western Alaska in the spring of 1919, the APA helped bury the hundreds of dead, and provided care for the ill and orphaned children, even when the federal government did little to render aid.

The company generally prospered through the 1930s as salmon production grew but many Alaska canneries were idled during World War II and never reopened.

[citation needed] Alaska salmon production remained generally poor throughout the 1950s, 60s, and early 70s, by which time the company sought out.

In 1982, when salmon runs showed signs of resurgence, most of the APA's assets were sold to ConAgra of Omaha, Nebraska for an undisclosed amount.

Alaska's notorious weather resulted in a number of accidents involving the sailing ships, most notably the sinking of the Star of Bengal on September 20, 1908.

The vessel was towed from Wrangell, Alaska with the full cannery crew and over 52,000 cases or 2.5 million 1-pound cans of salmon on board.

The 262 foot ship broke up on the rocks of Coronation Island and 111 people died, mostly Chinese and Japanese cannery workers.

[5] The Star of Russia now lies in 40 metres of water in Port Vila harbor, Vanuatu and is a popular dive site.

This trade association represents seven companies that own and operate 19 US flag catcher/processor vessels active in the Alaska pollock and West Coast Pacific whiting fisheries.