How "krab" is made from Pacific Whiting | Oregon Field Guide

In the 1990s, a successful fishery developed around a once-undesirable fish, the Pacific whiting. Follow the production of “imitation crab” off the coast of Newport, Oregon, from the ocean to the grocery store.
This “Oregon Field Guide” story premiered on Feb. 1, 1996.
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#krab PacificWhiting #fishery #imitationcrab #oregonfieldguide #OPB #Oregon #PacificNorthWest

[@BreakfastCroissants]

I miss this kind of documentary.

[@NoahSpurrier]

I like imitation crab. I don’t think of it like crab. It isn’t crab. It’s really it’s own thing.

[@BruceAlarie]

theres crab in it

[@TestUser-cf4wj]

I agree. Not crab. Not even "imitation" crab. A unique and delicious seafood product.

[@BELCAN57]

"Krab"

[@jondoh3471]

Mmmm... I love crabs!!! Whoo!

[@OkieDokieSmokie]

@@BruceAlarieSometimes it doesnt! It’ll still have shrimp extracts but won’t have any crab at all.

[@jamiegallier2106]

This looks and feels like it was filmed in the 80’s, lol.

[@santoast24]

Early 90's, so ya basically

[@thePrisoner1000]

It said this show in the notes premiered in Feb, 1996

[@Realist-ist]

90s

[@raul0ca]

Leather Members Only jacket!

[@SgtJohnRemairez]

Yeah...United States looks beatiful back then without all the infrastructure. I doubt that shot of the Compost Farm still looks like that today...

[@yoholmes273]

Thank you very much for releasing on this on KZbin, Oregon Public Broadcasting. We need all the public broadcasting now more than ever.

[@markg1490]

Had no idea how those krab legs were made. I love eating them with cocktail sauce.

[@tyson9419]

Nasty

[@devinstef]

I had a buddy go to Alaska last winter on a commercial fishing boat. When he came home I asked him “anything I should avoid, that’s actually gross?” He said without hesitation “artificial crab.” Up until that point I loved it, I still eat it once in a while but it’s still in the back of my mind lol.

[@TestUser-cf4wj]

I love immitation crab. The taste and texture are totally different than genuine crab but it's still tasty.

[@outdoorloser4340]

Have you ever tried some Japanese brands? It's almost better than fresh dungeness, lol.

[@TestUser-cf4wj]

@@outdoorloser4340 Fresh dungeness is almost more about the experience than the taste. Going to the coast, putting the traps in the water, measuring each maybe keeper and then throwing them back, finding the one or two that are big enough, boiling them in seawater right on the beach, cleaning and rinsing them in seawater, getting all the meat out of the shell and into an empty beer can with the top cut off full of melted butter and having a great time with all of my friends. Of it wasn't for the experience of going crabbing, if I had to buy crab from the market, I probably would never eat crab again. Woe to the poor souls too far from the coast to enjoy a day crabbing! I'll see what my local Asian market has for imitation krab. Thanks for the tip!

[@NateJones-tk9fb]

Me too I dont care if it's imitation I love it.

[@takotako808]

@@NateJones-tk9fb mayo , Sriracha and imitation crab 😍. I also add green onions and fish cake

[@oregonpatriot1570]

@@outdoorloser4340 Better than Dungeness? I doubt that!

[@jesseyoung4295]

I graduated Highschool from Newport High in 95. Worked at a cafe across the street from where the boats brought the whiting in. I recognized the buildingb with it's mural of Keiko the whale.

[@PetraDarklander]

Are you talking about the building at 4:00 ? If so those look like local grey whales.

[@jesseyoung4295]

@@PetraDarklander tbh, I don't recall, I do see what you're saying... which reminds me, what did happen to Keiko?

[@PetraDarklander]

@@jesseyoung4295 There is a full video about him if you search a bit in youtube. But a lot of money and a lot of effort went into re-habilitating him so he could live on his own in the open ocean. He eventually died a few months after they released him. Look up that video it really is a good watch.

[@jstewlly4747]

That was awesome the mechanical monitor looking at seas floor was so cool and yes this was effective I see

[@bimmerpooch]

So imitation crab is the hotdog of the marine food market.

[@peterbird3932]

Mmmm...Made me hungry for some Khlav Kalash and Crab Juice.

[@JWBurghart]

@@peterbird3932 Better than Mountain Dew.

[@adg1017]

I genuinely miss fantastic short documentaries like this. I’d love to find out where the industry is now.

[@napalmholocaust9093]

Fish in compost isn't unique, natives have putting fish under corn for thousands of years.

[@aaroncapricorn5867]

bears do it all the time naturally with salmon. they eat most of the fish and the guts just sit there on the side feeding the trees, the side of the river, the river

[@BornIn1500]

@@aaroncapricorn5867 more like the bears just eat the guts and leave the rest of the fish. Bears literally only tear the belly out because it has the most nutrition and fat. The meat isn't as nutritious to them.

[@fastinradfordable]

Bears don’t extract 120,000 lbs per bear per day.

[@Superkuh2]

The dude explicitly said it was "new into a bag" and "no one has bagged this before".

[@NathanHarrison7]

Awesome documentary. Thank you so much for sharing.

[@johnnydough6244]

Had no idea my industry, seafood employee, helped to utilize all that fish waste by making something as wonderful as Living Soil! Had absolutely no idea my current industry had this much potential to also work hand in hand with the newly exploding cannabis market in the US! Was really neat to see how this product is made and how the byproducts & leftover waste are also used to serve a purpose instead of just being a complete and total waste.

[@buster_brownie3921]

i use fox farm ocean forest soil for my cannabis. absolute game changer. i imagine we are combined somewhere down the line.

[@jebes909090]

'twisted into never ending crab legs' is this heaven?!

[@johncordova8304]

Soilent green, will be made using similar techniques.

[@ROGER2095]

With this operation, 20% goes to soylent green, 80% goes to compost. So at best, I'll enter the next phase of my life as a vegetable - the same way I'm leaving the current phase!

[@kc8767]

What about Soilent orange??😮😮😮😮😮

[@beatpirate8]

yes compost! i put fish parts in my yard as well! its good for the soil

[@wanderlustspirit4607]

Wait a minute so they have so much waste they don’t know what to do with it, but they want them to increase the limit of how much they can catch. How’s that math mathing?

[@Dubngrub]

They don't care about anything but money that's what's up.

[@matttroy640]

The waste is the byproduct of the fish that is not useable. For example the entrails or other unwanted parts. Not the filets of the fish. Not all components of the fish are usable, and thus these scraps are discarded into waste.

[@lokidude100]

Another smoothbrain take accelerated to the top comments.

[@OffGridInvestor]

Probably a high percentage of what they catch is unusable and rejected. Kinda makes it all seem pointless but if there's a huge supply that's cheap, I suppose it works out economically

[@garettanderson6772]

@@lokidude100 Those smooth brains just elected Trump today.

[@intheshell35ify]

Mix it with cream cheese, a little dill, and fresh lemon juice and you got a good crab dip. Some people like a little horseradish in it as well.

[@uy7munir]

no, you have imitation garbage

[@nancychace8619]

The "imitation crab" is good. When I saw the vast amounts of waste, I thought compost to reforest areas damaged by wildfire - Thanks for sharing.

[@BornIn1500]

forests that have a fire go through are far from damaged. There is tons of carbon from burned material that makes great fertile ground for new growth. Fire is a very natural thing and even vital to some ecosystems.

[@PM_82]

@@BornIn1500 Correct, woodash is a very good fertilizer.

[@niuean3000]

Nature does not need human intervention

[@doktorventure9977]

Shoutout to the guy in the Atlanta Braves cap at 2:41!

[@rontakayama6379]

Thanks I will never eat immatation crab again! ☺️😁👍🤙

[@leifkemp]

Honestly, I knew it was mashed-up fish, & this video made me feel a whole lot better about it! It could also be a combination of my learning how good fish is in making great soil, & seeing what the fish actually is & how it's processed.

[@craigdutton6072]

Some old footage ,the sounder on that boat was old school 🎉❤

[@declanharrison7121]

Great watch! Well made and very good style.

[@alyssa0411]

I think it’s time for OPB to update their program. I’m sure a lot has changed in the last 25-30 years since this was filmed.

[@dldave1978]

I agree…we need an update…it’d be interesting to see what’s changed in the industry over the last 28 years and how it has evolved.

[@jasonsharpbucks]

most things peaked in the 90s, at least mechanical stuff, only better analytics for the most part since then

[@ForumVanity]

Over 100,000ib of fish “we aren’t taking that much”

[@BONECRUSHER41599]

That fishery is one of the reasons why salmon production in California Washington in Oregon is low thereby catch on salmon is ridiculous and when they’ve caught the quota for their limit of buy catch for salmon they just increase it so they can keep fishing it’s ridiculous

[@danielbartleson5746]

What?

[@manurocker1]

speak English lad

[@208flatheads3]

​@@danielbartleson5746 that net full of fish you seen in this video is probably only half full of the fish they're looking for the rest gets dumped back into the ocean dead

[@ZimBeckler]

theres something eldritch and terrifying about an endless crab leg

[@OO-qr1ks]

Imagine diving into a large bin of Krab and eating and eating and eating just butter everywhere

[@billyccall5774]

Good ol' fashioned fish legs

[@z71chev34]

didnt expect to see an Atlanta Braves ball cap when i started this video. hell yeah go braves!

[@PanikStudios]

Your Braves had just won their 3rd World Series title in October 1995, 3 months before this aired. 2:40 That fisherman must have been chuffed as well!

[@digbyskellington]

Fascinating. Horrifying, but fascinating.

[@yoholmes273]

All " processed food products " are. At least the imitation food is still food. Lots of fake food that isn't food out there.

[@jerseyjoe82364]

They are very good value and "popular" with my dog, she loves them!

[@User9681e]

They should use seaweed and make it cheaper

[@guyquinton2413]

Chemical shitstorm

[@TokenTombstone]

Don't forget your spoon!

[@kpnitrl38]

Great content. Though I wonder where Hake is today regarding it's demand.

[@OffGridInvestor]

That waste would be GREAT as tinned cat food or dog food. Can't see why that wasn't immediately logical. Or even frozen bait

[@permiebird937]

This looks and sounds like a report from the 90s.

[@matthewwelsh294]

This “Oregon Field Guide” story premiered on Feb. 1, 1996

[@cashnelson2306]

No shit, thanks for the observation

[@Movie_Games]

Exciting thing is that we're only 10 years away from all crab going straight to billionaires and poor people getting white fish ground up with roaches and crickets.

[@u.s.militia7682]

I used to help process surimi in Dutch Harbor Alaska. It’s an interesting and clean process from start to finish.

[@gcm747]

My favourite seafood has been a ruse all along!

[@stevegabbert9626]

Sauteing it in butter is fantastic.

[@beatpirate8]

wow i never knew i thought it was cuttlefish maybe

[@teddyhansen9178]

why are the waste not used for making biogas. In Denmark we use most waste in biogas facilities

[@madtownangler]

I remember working a slime line for salmon back in 1991. Every single fish had to be cleaned by hand then shipped to our main plant and cleaned even more by the people there. Looks much easier to clean these fish by machine.

[@fastinradfordable]

But someone’s now gotta clean the machine. Or not…

[@Charlie-nc3cp]

@@fastinradfordable Manufacturing line machinery usually has a self clean setting.

[@lancelotisupnext3623]

Where should one look for follow up information since this video came out in '96?

[@AerialEscape]

Cancer doctors...

[@AxoBnB]

From a 2023 article about Oregon fisheries called "Let Them Eat Hake" -- "...Commercial fishers landed about 287 million pounds of fish and shellfish in Oregon in 2022, roughly 68 pounds per Oregonian. Nearly 60% of this volume consisted of pacific whiting, also known as hake, which is mostly used to make surimi." So by volume, whiting has become the most-caught seafood product in Oregon. But dollar-wise, Dungeness crab was -- and still is -- the most valuable.

[@brianmcdowell7377]

"Know" is a strong word

[@drxym]

So gross fish becomes gross processed food. The fish equivalent of pink slime.

[@tyson9419]

Correct

[@johnyblandofoz952]

THATS A LOT OF FISH IN ONE SCOOP... WOW... AND PRECISE NETTING SKILLS... WELL DONE TEAM... PLEASE KEEPEM COMMIN... WE ARE ALL WITH YOU...

[@martinginsburg7222]

Great, until man adds in the chemical soup! Commonly adding sugar &/or artificial sweetener sorbitol, food coloring, vegetable oils, even MSG. It is nutritional deficient as compared to crab. Bottom line, it's highly processed. My Bottom Line: NO THANKS! But so appreciate OPB's informative videos!

[@ottoosmers9273]

Right on

[@ROGER2095]

I love processed food! "You are what you eat." That makes me well preserved.

[@ChadwickHorn]

Oh no... *not* MSG! 😲🙄

[@thePrisoner1000]

@@ChadwickHorn Many people are allergic to it.

[@fakename6658]

@@thePrisoner1000 if 1 in 10 000 is many, then yeah sure.

[@Lokvidar]

i am not eating it and i have another reason why not :D Thank you!

[@DM-wp9vq]

From February 1st in 96'. Two months after that wicked storm smacked right into us in Newport (December 95') and right around the time where we had some crazy heavy rainfall. A friend and I were riding our bikes at "Big Creek Park", down by the reservoir and most of it was flooded up to 2' and even deeper in the creek. Had to pull the bike and swim out of it if you went in. I passed out watching another video and woke up to the Yaquina ay Bridge on the screen.

[@jesseyoung4295]

Graduated from Newport High in 95

[@user-po7iv4ni3o]

Ahh the white slime.

[@Naturallystated]

mmmmm1 Tasty slime!

[@Playwithdeutschland]

Crazy how the technology is much better, that paper thing was so funny, reminds me of those up and down brain scans

[@dennettshane1929]

4:45 the horror. the total contempt of conscience. an unholy lovecraftian paste

[@dwaynekoblitz6032]

Really fantastic.

[@marbleman52]

Mr. Krab, from Sponge Bob, is gonna get mad that his secret ingredient for his Krabby Patties has been leaked...!!! I see a lawsuit coming..!!

[@Sigurther]

(fish being processed) "MY LEG!!! MY EYES!!!"

[@drmodestoesq]

I"ve only watched a few minutes of the show with my niece. How does that Sponge guy have a grill at the bottom of the ocean? Wouldn't the fire go out?

[@Charlie-nc3cp]

@@drmodestoesq Have some fun for once in your life man jesus christ it's a children's show for gods sake

[@zoltankaparthy9095]

Hake/Whiting/Pollock is a low nutrition trash fish. Is it made nutritious in surimi? Or is it still a low nutrition fish in the surimi state?

[@MrSpliffy2]

It's complete rubbish mate

[@gustavbloom7768]

I have asked several Subway employees about this what is artificial Krab , nice to get an answer.

[@alyssa0411]

Do you think some high schooler making minimum wage slapping turkey on bread knows what imitation crab is?

[@gustavbloom7768]

It’s not random, it’s on the menu. But no, and after seeing this video the answer would be longer then I expected.

[@fermiticus4034]

@@alyssa0411 I did...30+ years ago! (I was just out of HS then).

[@riproar11]

I remember trying imitation krab in the mid-1980s and liked it right away. 1980s krab had a lot of flavor and by the late 1990s I noticed that brands like TransOcean tasted really bland, but Louis Kemp still had decent flavor. Now they are all bland, so it appears they cut back on the real crab flavoring because it must be the costliest ingredient.

[@Andy-zj3dc]

wasn't fake crab made from Pollock?

[@FatHalibutz32]

Yes! It can be from a few ground fish. Haddock, pollock, hake, pacific cod... all "similiar" quality fish for mass produced fish sandwiches/fish sticks n what not

[@Dial8Transmition]

5:41 I swear I heard a heavy metal riff slowly fading in there...

[@davewebster5120]

Eyy, I used to live there. Be sure to check out Mo's on the waterfront (or their other locations) for great food!

[@TheSonshade]

I have easy access to crab andI still like it.

[@John-d7p]

We used to call hake Friskies Fish Dinner for cats.

[@basedocean5262]

These previously used methods are from when we were living the good old days days. Who knows how much waste or what substitutes have already been used

[@younggunz20]

Trawling needs to end.

[@raclark2730]

Why most nations have catch limits based on scientific study. If they don't do it people with no such care will step in. Its about standards not all fishing.

[@thelastjohnwayne]

Wow the Automatic Filleting machine

[@pep2001bg]

when was this filmed??

[@2prize]

love to see it

[@jackgreenhalgh7664]

This is everything wrong with how humanity sees and exploits nature

[@CC-uq4hu]

Raping the seas😢

[@ROGER2095]

There are over 8,000,000,000 humans on Earth today, and they're all hungry. What's the right way for humanity to see and exploit nature?

[@jackgreenhalgh7664]

sustainably@@ROGER2095

[@bailey1000100]

Surimi is another good protein to help feed the people. People complaining about exploiting nature. When you realize that just the Pacific Ocean alone is 64,000,000. square miles, that's (64 million) sq. miles, it makes you realize how big that area is for man to pull food out of .We do over fish some species of fish but only when they are closer to home. We are just a dot in the big picture.

[@aaroncapricorn5867]

boy if only internet was around during the fur trade years. you'd have something to say then wouldn't you? i'm talking 17th, 18th, 19th centuries

[@walterwhitaker1395]

How often do the fish spawn?

[@bailey1000100]

they live for 13 -15 years and are sexually mature at 3-4 years old.

[@craigdutton6072]

😂my gummie bears come from a fish 😂

[@stubromac2711]

Excellent. But…now….years later we have a lot of questions. Are there still fish out there? 2024

[@pamelanadel3787]

I would be afraid to eat anything out of Oregon or Washington. They have thrown standards down the toilet.

[@eduardocontreras7115]

They need to leave that fish alone already

[@davidb2206]

Any ocean fish today put into compost is going to have MERCURY in it.

[@MrSpliffy2]

A very good point

[@davidb2206]

@@MrSpliffy2 Same for the guano that is sold from the sea birds that feed on the ocean fish.

[@MrSpliffy2]

@davidb2206 yeah it was really good of them to dump all the mercury at sea. While simultaneously hiding the truth of the benefits mercury would have given.us. robbed we were 😀 and they're at it again. Shouting reset. You couldn't make it up

[@drzoidberg71]

never understood why people don't just eat the actual fish, instead of preferring a highly processed mystery product just because it looks like something else that's desirable.

[@hongo3870]

Love a krab salad sandwich with tomato and lettuce

[@jwalkerC21]

We need to duplicate the composting process so we can use it for our US gardens, eliminating wasting it in the dumps.

[@palletwizard]

More Krab please

[@jacobmyrick2961]

Heck yeah

[@toddburgess5056]

@ 6:30 No gloves when working with perishable food ? 🤔🤔🤔

[@annunacky4463]

I think it’s krap…course I live on Gulf Coast and we have fresh blue crab…

[@outdoorloser4340]

Fresh dungeness crab makes blue crab taste like crawfish! 😂

[@Zulwind]

its so good in stir fry

[@user-rh8fl8qz2z]

Next, show how CHICKEN NUGGETS are made from ALPO!

[@Trepanist]

Anyone remember Subway's seafood sandwich?

[@AerialEscape]

Mmm trailer park sushi

[@Bill-cv1xu]

No thanks 😅

[@A3Kr0n]

My cats won't touch it, which says something since tuna is their favorite food.

[@T.Watts89]

Well it's not tuna genius

[@nibornnyw3185]

They wash all the fat and flavor out.

[@im.charles]

What is this? "Seafood extender"? I thought that was crab meat. That looks like it would go well in a soup or hotpot dish 😅

[@coletanner5193]

Over 100K lbs in 1 day is not over-harvesting?

[@jackstone4291]

Not crab. It’s fish … with some crustacean added ….

[@MRMORGAN817]

What are the Whiting stocks like these days?

[@user-wj9wq7mk4h]

@MRMORGAN817 they were fished into near extinction, primaily by illegal fishing from the Chinese fleet

[@MRMORGAN817]

@@user-wj9wq7mk4h why does the world's greatest ever super power unable to protect its own border and resources?

[@user-wj9wq7mk4h]

@@MRMORGAN817 because the whiting stock has been depleted

[@1BigMistakee]

I just spent 8 hours on a party boat to catch a lousy 5 hake. I wonder why...

[@guysmithson1835]

Not long before the ocean will be like man make lake and will have to stock it

[@raclark2730]

Most countries have harvest limits based on scientific research in regards to each particular species. Only certain countries still engage in unsustainable practice. Take a guess on the main offender.

[@FusionDeveloper]

Black soldier fly larvae, I'm sure, would eat up the fish waste, then you would be left with just skin and bones and larvae waste and have live larvae as a sellable product. The only thing, it seems like feeding meat to the larvae causes their water to stink, but it might be because I kept it too wet, I'm not sure.

[@Naturallystated]

...and then use the soldier fly larvae to make the surimi! Sorry my little backyard hens no more bugs for you! That'll teach you for trying to steal my ice cream cone! True story.

[@maggs131]

4:48 I wonder what it smells like in that factory 🤔

[@jacobmyrick2961]

We wouldn’t be able to have crab Rangoon without fake crab.

[@TheFireMaker117]

Imitation crab is the spam of the sea. Its super procecced meat product and its super fake but man is it good