Unalaska, AK – Russian king crab exporters are seeking environmentally friendly status for their Barents Sea red king crab, one of the most significant competitors of Alaskan red king crab.

The trade publication Seafood.com reported this week that two Russian companies that account for 80 percent of the Barents Sea fishery are seeking an assessment from the Marine Stewardship Council. The MSC is a London-based organization that monitors fisheries for environmental sustainability. The group issues a label of approval to seafood products that are harvested in a sustainable manner.

An MSC certification would discredit allegations by some members of the Alaskan crab industry that their Russian competitors are fishing illegally, an accusation that has grown more frequent as Russian crab has pinched the market for Alaskan crab.

In the past year, Russian quotas for the relatively new Barents Sea king crab fishery have doubled, and overall Russian crab imports grew by the same amount from 2004 to 2005. Seafood analysts and members of the Alaskan seafood industry say these developments have been the biggest contributors to the drop in Alaskan king crab prices, which have fallen by about a dollar in the past year.

In September, the Alaska Crab Coalition accused Russian fishermen of illegally taking nearly 30 million pounds of king crab from the Barents Sea. But John Sackton, a seafood analyst and the founder of Seafood.com, says he doubts that's the case. He recently completed an analysis of the numbers coming in from the Barents Sea fishery, and says that there isn't evidence of foul play.

No other king crab producer currently carries the MSC label. Darryl Pederson, who handles Barents Sea imports for Seattle-based Keyport Foods, says his company encouraged its Russian suppliers to apply for the certification because he's confident that the fishery will receive it.

The initial review process for MSC certification usually takes about six months.