Owen Olsson-O'Neill
Commercial Fisherman & Family Partner
Owen represents the next generation of Bristol Bay setnetters, carrying the family's permits and its low-impact way of fishing forward.
Owen holds a Bristol Bay set gillnet permit and is the youngest of the family on the water, learning the bay the same way the generation before him did: by hand, on the tide, one set at a time. Setnetting is selective and low-impact by design, and keeping it that way is the job he is growing into.
He is also the family's bridge to how people cook and eat now: quick weeknight methods, high-protein meals, the air fryer, the things a new generation of wild-salmon eaters actually wants. The tradition stays the same; the kitchen keeps moving.
This is not a marketing badge. Under Alaska law, a limited entry permit cannot be owned by a company — only by an individual. The permit holder must be physically on the fishing grounds while fishing, and only the permit holder can deliver and sell the catch. Every delivery is run through the permit card and recorded on a state fish ticket with the species, weight, area, date and permit holder.
It is the reason a venture-funded corporation literally cannot be what we are. Check it yourself: at cfec.state.ak.us/plook, enter Serial 60377 and Fishery S04T (zero, not the letter O), then click Find.
What Owen knows
- ▸Next-generation setnet fishing
- ▸Low-impact, selective harvest
- ▸Quick and modern ways to cook wild salmon
- ▸Carrying the family fishery forward
Meet the rest of the family
Popsie is one family with four permits. The whole story is on our About page.