Several countries have gained access to send their wild-caught seafood products to China this year.
After Brazil and Honduras secured deals with the giant Asian market earlier this year, E.U. member nations Bulgaria, Denmark, Malta, and Estonia signed similar agreements.
According to Fan Xubing, the CEO of Beijing, China-based seafood consultancy firm Seabridge International, the deals do not necessarily mean China is seeking an influx of major volumes of seafood; instead, he said the deals were largely signed for political leverage.
“My observation is China is continuing to open its market access to foreign seafood,” Fan said. “In general, most of the important foreign seafood has been granted access to China, and the rest of the access agreements are not so important for China from a seafood supply point of view. Of course, from a political point of view, these new market access deals are meaningful because … China wants to keep good relations with the E.U. and its member states.”
Though the main benefit of the deals may be political leverage, the countries that have gained access to send their wild-caught seafood to China are still likely to reap some rewards.
Malta Minister for Fisheries Anton Refalo said the new access presented the island nation with an opportunity to diversify.
“This means not simply new opportunities for income and better prices but also international recognition for the quality and professionalism offered by our fishermen,” he said.
The latest agreements are the latest in a yearslong effort China has employed to broaden the sources of its imported seafood.
Last year, Chinese officials signed protocol agreements with a few representatives of African markets, including Uganda, Madagascar, and Sierra Leone.
Following that move, China aimed to mitigate the damage from looming trade disruptions by opening access to such markets as Australia.
