According to a new report from the Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), an Irish agency tasked with growing the nation's seafood sector, the total value of the Irish aquaculture industry rose 25 percent in 2024 compared to the year prior.
The agency’s “Business of Seafood 2024” report highlighted that Irish aquaculture production was worth EUR 211 million (USD 241.5 million) last year, driven largely by a 51 percent increase in salmon production year over year. The sector reached over 14,000 metric tons in output, which was the highest figure since 2017.
“Salmon remains the primary driver of profitability for Irish aquaculture and continues to shape the overall performance of the sector year over year,” the report said. “However, such dominance comes with risk. Fluctuations in salmon harvests can distort the overall view of aquaculture performance, obscuring underlying challenges in the sector. Those challenges were clear in other parts of the sector in 2024.”
Challenges were abundant for Irish oyster and rope mussel producers, who experienced a particularly challenging year due to what BIM described as high mortality rates and poor export demand.
As for the country’s fishing sector, the report highlighted that the industry’s output totaled just about EUR 461 million (USD 528 million). That figure was composed of EUR 324 million (USD 371 million) from Irish vessels, which represented a 4 percent year-over-year increase, and EUR 136 million (USD 156 million) from foreign-flagged vessels, which represented a 13 percent decrease from 2023...
