An Alaska seafood processor has sold a 12 percent stake to the parent company of StarKist Co., giving the South Korean tuna producer access to the salmon market.

The sale to Dongwon Industries by Sitka-based Silver Bay Seafoods has been public since November, but the Alaska processor outlined details this week to the Sitka Chamber of Commerce.

KCAW reports Silver Bay CEO Rich Riggs told the chamber Wednesday that since starting the fishermen-owned processor, it has purchased 130 million pounds of salmon.

The sale to Dongwon leaves Silver Bay with funds for expansion and access to the canned seafood market.

The StarKist brand was previously owned by Del Monte Foods before it was sold in 2008 to Dongwon, which set up a new StarKist headquarters in Pittsburgh.