SPECIES SUCH AS ALBACORE, BLUEFIN, 

 SKIPJACK, YELLOWFIN, BONITO, ETC. 



Ehiring the period 1929-1952, there was no definite trend toward 

 packing a particular species. Figure 6 shows the percentage of the 

 total pack that was packed from yellowfin, albacore, and skipjack. The 

 absence of most of the clipper fleet during the war years accounts for 

 the lower percentage of yellowfin and skipjack during that period. The 

 data for 1944 are not comparable with the other years, as all of the 

 flake and grated light-meat pack was listed as mixed tuna rather than 

 being credited to the various species. 



Table 8 includes revised data on the poundage of each species of 

 tuna canned from 1929-1952. These data were obtained by multiplying 

 the number of standard cases of solid pack by 21 and of flakes and grated 

 by 18. In this table the chunk-style pack has been included with flakes 

 and grated and converted to pounds by multiplying by 18, except in 1952 

 when the factor was changed to 19.5. As separatt data were not available 

 on this style of pack prior to 1952, it was not possible to use this 

 factor on the earlier data. 



For all practical purposes from the consumer point of view, there are 

 only two varieties of canned tuna — white meat (albacore) and light meat 

 (skipjack, yellowfin, bluefin, and little tuna). The dark meat of any 

 species is less salable than the white meat or light meat in American 

 markets. 



The white meat of canned albacore commands a pr«nium on most do- 

 mestic markets, particularly in cities such as New York and Boston. 

 Albacore also is popular with canners because of the high yield and the 

 uniformity of size vhich makes for easier handling in the plant. Thus, 

 even when the viiite meat market is saturated, canners can usually pack 

 albacore profitably as a li^t-meat product. The hi^er price of alba- 

 core as a raw material may be more than offset by the greater canning 

 yield. 



The more erratic supply causes a greater fluctuation in albacore 

 prices than in those for light-meat tunas. Table 9 and figure 7 show 

 the annual average prices paid to west coast fishermen for albacore, 

 yellowfin and yellowtail from 1929 through 1952 with early 1953 prices. 

 Prices of all species as shown in figure 7 tend to move together, with 

 albacore having wider movements. In 1951 large imports of albacore 



65 



