Sales of tilapia fingerlings are expected to be down by five to 10 percent this spring in the key production region of Hainan, according to Lisa van Wageningen, program officer at Dutch-based sustainable trade consultancy IDH, which transfers knowledge, skill, and technology to help Chinese tilapia farmers improve margins and sustainability.
Given that early spring is not a busy season for stocking, any reduction “shall be caught up very soon in the second quarter,” provided the weather conditions are good, van Wageningen told SeafoodSource.
“It’s not clear how badly hurt processors will be by the delay of workers returning to the factory in terms of delivery of orders,” she said. “If this will result in a significant losses [remains] to be seen.”
China’s seafood imports may be flat compared to 2019, registering the first deceleration in growth for some time, according to an executive at a major Beijing-based importer and distributor.
“Canceled flights and higher costs are challenges for live and fresh seafood logistics,” the distributor, who requested anonymity, said. “The HORECA [hospitality catering] market was almost nothing in past weeks due to anti-epidemic measures. Flight logistics will be better along with the recovery of market.”
In a change, frozen seafood is becoming more acceptable in China, and is a priority for importers, the importer noted. Live and fresh seafood – typically sold in wet markets like the Wuhan marketplace believed to be the epicenter of the outbreak – has been stigmatized in the country, the importer said.
The removal of tariffs on U.S. seafood shipped into China will be a help in reviving depressed seafood sales, he said.
“The lower cost will encourage Chinese importers to purchase more seafood, especially shellfish such as lobster,” he said.
However, it could be a sluggish year for exporters in Ecuador and India, he added.
“China has a lot of stock of shrimp now,” he said. “We are not back to normal yet.”
Yet in the long-run, China will reduce seafood production at home and will import more, the trader said.
As for disruption to the IDH’s own project in Hainan’s tilapia farms, van Wageningen said she fears a heavy hit from the virus-related closedown could lead to farms taking a more conservative approach, putting at risk efficiency and sustainability gains.
“Field technicians will be delayed in collecting data and help testing technology; and we were planning a workshop in spring, but we think this will be postponed too," van Wageningen said. "In the long run, however, we are not sure whether potential economic consequences of the virus will result in our stakeholders taking different business decisions.”
Photo courtesy of Heng Lim/Shutterstock
