Mark Godfrey

Contributing Editor

Mark Godfrey is an Irish journalist covering the agriculture and fisheries sectors in Asia, with a focus on China. Proficient in Mandarin, he has frequently traveled across China's fisheries and aquaculture regions and learned the inner workings of China's corporate world during a nearly three-year stint at the Financial Times' “China Confidential” publication. He has also reported widely across Southeast Asia and the former Soviet Union. He has educational certificates in agriculture and food science, as well as Mandarin.


Author Archive

Published on
March 1, 2024

A consumer protection focused Chinese social media star has warned about the potential danger of glazing additives he found on samples of shrimp imported from Ecuador.

The popular blogger, Wang Hai, said he found traces of sodium metabisulfite on shrimp he tested after buying it from e-commerce site Dongfang Zhen Xuan, owned by Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed East Buy Holding. The chemical is used by shrimp firms to give their products a fresher

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Published on
February 29, 2024

As World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations on fishing subsidies carry on at the WTO’s 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., delegates from India have stood firm in seeking to ban subsidies that grant Chinese and E.U. fleets access to foreign waters, including barring payments to third-party governments.

Daniel Skerritt, the senior analyst for ocean conservation nonprofit Oceana, told SeafoodSource that key sticking

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Published on
February 26, 2024

China, in defiance of global trends, recorded surging shrimp imports in 2023, purchasing over 1 million metric tons (MT) amid a global supply glut in which demand in other major markets has plummeted. 

However, the country’s gloomy economic prospects have experts wary of guaranteeing whether that demand will continue into 2024.

“It is hard to say whether 2024 will witness a further increase on vannamei imports to China,”

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Published on
February 23, 2024

A new report on the growth of China’s squid industry is predicting continued growth due to government support, investor appetite, and growing consumer demand.

The report, released by Guangzhou-based Heng Zhou Chengsi, also known as YH Research, notes government support through subsidies has led to investors backing several companies involved in tuna processing, including Ocean Family

The actions of municipal governments in several

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Published on
February 22, 2024

Entobel, a Singapore-based insect protein producer with operations in Vietnam, has signed a strategic partnership with Vietnamese pangasius producer and processor Vinh Hoan which entails the latter company buying a substantial volume of insect protein for use in aquafeed through its subsidiary Feed One.

Through the strategic partnership, Vinh Hoan will purchase at least 15,000 metric tons (MT) of insect protein – derived from black soldier

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Published on
February 16, 2024

Oversupply of shrimp from major Latin American producers – particularly Ecuador – is causing headaches for producers in Southeast Asia.

Benjamin Saw, the general manager of Malaysian shrimp producer Arus Nagamas Private Limited, based in the country’s Kota Kuala Mudah region, said his firm traditionally relied on strong Chinese demand to suck up supply and stabilize prices in the region. But, the influx of Latin American supply

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