“In this region we have some tremendous smoked salmon, great producers of it, but none of it is available retail”, said Jessica Farley, owner of Noxapaga Inn and Smokehouse and a recipient of a small business grant.

She said her business processing smoked seafood from the Bering Sea could begin next summer.

Farley, and two other grant recipients, will help boost economic opportunity in Western Alaska:

Rural Alaska Animal Resources LLC, or RAAR, led by Emily Stotts, aims to fill gaps in the region’s veterinary and animal care.

St. Lawrence Island Drumbeats, owned by John and Arlene Waghiyi, is a business meant to feature and promote indigenous artwork, like ivory carvings. John Waghiyi describes it as the first opportunity for a St. Lawrence islander who knows the subsistence way of life to be the middle man for local carvers and artists.

Image: Smoked salmon is a local Western Alaskan staple. Jessica Farley in Nome recently received a small business grant to start a commercial smokehouse.