India appears to be filling the gap left by China’s departure from the U.S. shrimp market.
According to new figures from NOAA’s Office of Science and Technology, China imported more than 50 million fewer pounds of shrimp into the U.S. between January and October 2019, a drop of 4 percent year-on-year. Stepping into that hole has been India, as it imported nearly 60 million more pounds of shrimp into the U.S. over the same time period, up 4.8 percent from 2018.
In October, India exported just under 71 million pounds, or 32,197 metric tons (MT) of shrimp to the U.S., up from 61.4 million pounds (27,861 MT) a year prior, an increase of 5.8 percent. China’s total in October dropped from 8.3 million pounds (3,786 MT) to 2.9 million pounds (1,300 MT), a drop of 3.3 percent.
China was not the only country to see its shrimp exports to the U.S. drop in October. Vietnam’s total was down 1.9 percent from 18.9 million pounds (8,573 MT) to 15.8 million pounds (7,176 MT); Thailand experienced a drop of 1.3 percent, from 13.4 million pounds (6,088 MT) to 11.2 million pounds (5,089 MT); and Honduras’ total fell 0.6 percent from 1.7 million pounds (789 MT) to 712,000 pounds (323 MT).
Nor was India the only country to improve on its year-over-year performance. Mexico’s U.S. shrimp exports rose 0.7 percent to 11.7 million pounds (4,785 MT), up from 10.6 million pounds (5,316 MT) in October 2018. Argentina gained 0.3 percent over its October 2018 figure, moving from 2.3 million pounds (1,030 MT) to 2.8 million pounds (1,272 MT). And Indonesia saw a slight gain of 0.1 percent, or 212,000 pounds, reaching 27.9 million pounds (12,678 MT) in October 2019.
Bob Tanskey, president of Key Seafood Imports, a Perth Amboy, New Jersey, U.S.A. seafood importer, said he expects India to surpass its record-setting year in 2018, when it exported more than 500 million pounds of shrimp to the United States. However, he said despite India’s success, the overall shrimp market is in a precarious state.
“If it were not for India’s outstanding performance, I would say the annual tonnage would have trouble making a new record for 2019,” he said. “I feel the U.S. market is oversupplied, with many importers carrying high and overpriced inventories. A deadly combination. The supply-siders are in control with increased acreage and technology advances and no money left for industry marketing programs.”
Photo courtesy of Lensaz/Shutterstock
