This compares with a harvest of 40,3005,449 lbs. of subsistence foods and 7,072,046 of sport-caught fish and game. Of course, these proportions vary by area. In the areas with roads, the sport harvest is usually larger than the subsistence harvest. In the areas without roads, the subsistence harvest is larger than the sport harvest. But commercial fishing is the clear leader in overall volume.
Money is used to invest in the tools for hunting, fishing, and gathering.
It is a common misconception that there is no money in traditional subsistence economies. However, trade and commerce have always been part of subsistence systems. Goods have been traded for thousands of years in Alaska. The commercial fur trade with European markets began about 300 years ago, bringing European currencies and goods into Alaska. So commercial enterprise and money have been part of traditional subsistence economies for a long time.