"We help people trust what they buy," said Phil Werdal, chief executive officer of Trace Register. "We do this by helping to deliver throughout the supply chain what the product is, who it is from, who produced it and how it is produced. In the case of Alaska, it is a particularly strong and compelling story. The produce is caught in a pristine environment and managed in the most sustainable way. It's just a great product."

Kwik'Pak spokesman Jack Schultheis said the supply chain traceability "will help ensure that the Yup'ik fishermen who supply our company are getting a well-deserved premium for their efforts and their superior salmon.

Werdal, who owned a fishing company in Alaska for nearly three decades, said he was aware of the challenges that fishermen and marketers face in protecting their brand in the marketplace. He got his start in the seafood industry freezing pink salmon in Prince William Sound in 1970.

"We deliver the message throughout the supply chain; (but) Kwik'Pak itself creates the traceability network," he said. "Wherever they send their salmon, they can send their data along with it. We are just start out, but we are very optimistic, and we have extremely high hopes that we will be able to promote their product."

The firm's Trace Register system is a Web-based, on-demand application that can be used by producers, buyers, marketers and regulators. It functions as an independent, third-party registry into which product source and traceability information is entered, secured and shared among companies throughout the supply chain.

Werdal said the application is currently used by people in 16 countries, mainly for the Global Aquaculture Alliance's Best Aquaculture Practices program, and for Trident Seafoods' Russian Certifish pollock products. The firm also has offices in Japan and China, and the data is available in English, Spanish, Thai, Japanese and Chinese.

On the Web at www.traceregister.com.

Margaret Bauman can be reached at margie.bauman@alaska

journal.com.