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April Seafood Imports Dip 9% to 237,400 Tons

June 3, 2013

The total volume of imported marine foods (fishmeal included) for the month of April summarized by the International Marine Foods Circulation Council was 237,449 tons, down 9.3 percent over the corresponding month a year ago. Cod roe, yellowfin tuna, octopus, fishmeal among others displayed marked declines. The average unit price increased 3 percent. The total value plunged 6.6 percent to 137.8 billion yen.

Cod roe significantly reduced by 34.6 percent to 8,894 tons, whereas 13,600 tons was imported last April. Other items such as yellowfin (39.3 percent), octopus (28.6 percent), and fishmeal (33.9 percent) also experienced notable declines.

Conversely, pollack surimi, bug-eye tuna, and albacore increased by 17.4 percent, 24.7 percent, and 38.3 percent respectively. Compared to the same month last year, live eel plummeted 20 percent in the unit price; however the amount gained 17.7 percentage points. Cooked BBQ eel also faced a 10 percent decrease in the unit price; nonetheless, the imported volume exhibited a slight increase by 20.3 percent.

The mainstay of salmon and trout nudged up by 2.7 percent to 39,673 tons with a 20 percent fall in the unit price. Shrimp came to 15,521 tons, up 9.5 percent. The unit price hiked 16 percent.

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