The Russian Federal Agency for Fisheries is reviewing how seafood prices have changed over the last five years, with the goal of developing recommendations for wholesale trade and retail, as well as producers, for a possible decrease.
Russian Federal Agency for Fisheries Head Ilya Shestakov said during a meeting with heads of trade associations and some fishing company representatives that the agency has been keeping tabs of fluctuations in seafood prices. Though price increases in 2020 have been within the margins of inflation, they still remain an important issue for fishery authorities. In the past, Russians have avoided seafood due to high prices, with a resulting drop in national consumption rates.
Shestakov said his agency is planning to conduct an analysis of price dynamics over the last five years to better understand the market and to develop recommendations for the supply chain in order to make domestically-caught seafood less expensive.
However, there is not much room for the agency to intervene, as all the country's seafood supply chain elements, from ship to shelf, are private.
The move by the agency may be in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent public criticism of the Ministry for Economic Development’s handling of the economic situation in Russia. In early December, Putin complained to the ministry's head, Maxim Oreshkin, that prices for some essential food – first of all, oil and sugar – have skyrocketed.
“Are you aware of this? What's on your mind?" Putin said on a broadcast on all TV channels, including state-owned outlets, reproaching the minister's work.
The issue is sensitive for authorities amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which is causing unemployment and a loss of income for Russians. As a follow-up to Putin’s criticism, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin ordered all government bodies to submit proposals on food price regulation.
Shestakov has been vocal about the repercussions of high seafood prices since he took office a few years ago. Shestakov has said that it is his belief that fishing companies are selling their products at reasonable prices, but that transportation costs and retail upcharges are to blame.
In recent years, Shestakov has floated the idea of organizing special seafood markets across the country selling more affordable fish, but this idea has not still been implemented widely.
Photo courtesy of Nadya So/Shutterstock
