Trident Seafoods

Trident Seafoods is the largest seafood catching and processing company in the U.S. It has a fleet of fishing vessels and several processing plants. Commercial fishing jobs are dangerous and often lead to accidents that cause worker injuries and even deaths. If you have been injured working for a maritime seafood company, know that maritime laws are in place to help you get the compensation you need.

About Trident

Trident Seafoods is a Seattle-based fishing, processing, distribution, and product development company. Among its many products, Trident makes and sells smoked fish, canned fish, frozen fish, and ready-to-eat seafood.

The company has been around for over 40 years and began as a family operation. It claims to have some of the best seafood products available because it controls all parts of the operation, from the ocean to the store shelves, and it catches and processes the fish on its vessels to maintain freshness.

Most of the fishing that the company does is in Alaskan waters. Trident operates out of several top fishing ports in Alaska, including:

• Naknek
• Cordova
• Kodiak
• Akutan
• Sand Point
• Ketchikan
• Petersburg
• Wrangell
• St. Paul

The company also distributes its products outside the U.S., mainly to China and Japan. It claims to be committed to the environment and sustainable fishing.

Trident History

The history of Trident goes back to 1961. The beginnings were humble, with 19-year-old Chuck Bundrant and his old Ford truck. He left Tennessee for Seattle and Alaska in search of a fishing adventure.

Bundrant spent years working on fishing boats to learn the trade and eventually bought his own fishing vessel with two partners in the 1970s. Their small vessel was one of the first to include both catching and processing equipment on board.

Eventually, the friends and fishermen joined forces with San Juan Seafoods in Bellingham, Washington, and eventually, the company would become today’s Trident Seafoods.

Now, Trident is the largest seafood company in North America, but it is still a small company at heart, dedicated to fishing and maintaining healthy, sustainable fisheries.

The Trident Fleet

Trident Seafoods owns a large fleet of fishing and processing vessels, making it the largest fishing company on the continent.

• Three large trawlers also process the catch
• Two floating processors that follow the salmon and herring seasons throughout Alaska
• Fifteen dedicated trawlers used to catch Pacific cod and Alaskan pollock and as tender vessels, taking on catches from independent fishermen
• Six crab catchers and several tenders
• Two small freighters for shipping cargo and containers around Alaska

Trident and Corporate Responsibility

Trident claims to be a company that takes its responsibility for quality, safety, and the environment seriously. The company works in sustainable fisheries in Alaska and is devoted to producing products that are safe and of the highest quality.

Also of concern is the safety of the company’s workers. Commercial fishing is a hazardous industry; many people are hurt and even killed yearly. Trident claims to put its workers’ well-being above all else and to ensure they work as safely as possible.

Trident Accidents

Despite this commitment, workers do get hurt. Commercial fishermen face dangerous waters in Alaska as well as frigid weather. Fishing in these conditions is risky; accidents happen no matter how a maritime company’s employers strive to keep workers safe.

Crushing Fatality

A worker was killed after sustaining severe injuries in one terrible incident for Trident. The worker was in a freezer facility when a fish cart crushed him. Although he was transported to a hospital, he ended up dying from the injuries sustained.

Physical Assault

In another incident Trident faced, it wasn’t equipment that harmed a worker. He complained to managers at the processing plant where he worked that other employees were buying and selling alcohol, which was against company policy.

A few days later, those employees severely beat the worker, and he suffered brain damage. A judge in Alaska found that Trident was liable for his injuries because of lax security.

Environmental Accident

Sometimes, maritime accidents harm the environment more than workers. While Trident was ordered to pay more than $1 million to the injured worker in the above incident, it was also forced to pay more than $2 million for violating the Clean Water Act.

This came after Trident was found to have dumped waste from fish processing waste into the ocean, violating the Act. The company had been doing it for years, contrary to its claim of environmental responsibility.

Boat Fire

In 2023, a fishing trawler called the Kodiak Enterprise caught fire and burned for several days while docked at Trident Seafoods in Tacoma. The boat was a total loss, but the four crew members on board when the fire started were uninjured.

The boat had a fire notification system, but it did not alert the crew. A deckhand on another vessel nearby noticed the fire, and the crew were alerted and saved. An investigation found that the alert system was not set to notify the crew. It was supposed to notify shoreside contacts, but that notification failed.

The cause of the fire was never definitively identified, but it may have been an electrical issue in the dry store room.

Maritime Worker’s Rights

Maritime companies like Trident are responsible for protecting workers from harm and paying them compensation when things go wrong.

Whether the company is negligent or not, workers have certain rights to compensation under maritime law. The maritime industry is dangerous, which is why these laws are in place. They ensure that workers have a way to get the money they need to recover from illness or injury.

If you are a maritime worker, whether for a fishing company or some other type of company, you have rights under maritime law. Take the advice of a maritime lawyer who can help guide you through the process, represent you, and make sure you get what you are owed.