Thousands of seafood buyers and suppliers from around the world are convening in Hong Kong Tuesday for Seafood Expo Asia.
The show, now in its fifth edition, caters to the valuable and growing Asian seafood markets, with more than 2,000 square meters hosting more than 180 exhibitors from 32 countries.
Visitors include buyers from major supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, airlines, cruise lines and contract caterers, as well as international seafood wholesalers, distributors, importers and exporters.
Terri Tsang, show director for event producer Diversified Communications, the parent company of SeafoodSource, said seafood represents one of the fastest growing food sectors in the world, growing more than 5 percent in 2013 over 2012 alone.
“The driving force behind the surge in global and regional seafood consumption can be attributed to a combination of population growth, rising incomes and urbanization coupled with strong expansion in fishery production and improved distribution channels,” she said.
Meanwhile, Tsang said, China is expected to increasingly influence the global fish and seafood sector.
“This is reflected in a 2014 FAO study on the state of world fisheries and aquaculture which quotes that China has not only been the largest exporter of fish and fishery products since 2002, but its imports are also rapidly growing,” Tsang said.
According to the FAO, China’s trade of seafood products reached a new record in 2013, with exports valued at USD 19.6 billion (EUR 14.8 billion) and imports at USD 8.0 billion (EUR 6.07 billion).
“To a degree, China has turned from a net exporter of seafood to a net importer as with an emerging middle class, incomes have risen creating a more pronounced demand for premium products such as fresh and smoked salmon, lobster, sea urchin, sea cucumber and abalone,” said Tsang. “Our reason for hosting Seafood Expo Asia in Hong Kong is both because the territory is an important gateway for trade between mainland China and the rest of the world, plus it serves as a critical distribution hub through which seafood products are shipped to other key markets in Asia.”
