Unalaska, AK – Fishermen reached an agreement on opilio crab prices with another processor today. The members of the Inter-Cooperative Exchange agreed to $1.50 a pound from UniSea Inc., according to negotiator Greg White. That's slightly lower than the price reached with Westward Seafoods, but White says UniSea sweetened the deal by offering the same price for northern processing in the Pribilof Islands, which is more expensive for processors and accordingly can mean a lower price for fishermen.

Peter Pan and Trident Seafoods have yet to settle on prices with the cooperatives. Sinclair Wilt, the general manager at Alyeska Seafoods' Unalaska plant, says Alyeska's fleet is fishing pot cod until their quotas are filled, and probably won't deal with crab until next month.

The processing ships used for northern processing haven't arrived in the Pribilofs yet, so the opilio season won't begin in earnest anytime soon, although boats delivering to Westward and some catcher processors are already at work.