Madagascar reported a decrease in its shrimp exports for 2024, following trends that other shrimp-producing countries experienced last year.
Malagasy Minister of Fisheries and the Blue Economy Paubert Mahatante said the island nation’s value of shrimp exports dropped from USD 26.6 million (EUR 23.4 million) in 2023 to USD 22.5 million (EUR 19.8 million) in 2024. In tandem with the drop in value, the country also reported a 17 percent dip in shrimp production in 2024.
The country’s Ministry of Fisheries and the Blue Economy did not attribute the contraction in shrimp production and export volumes to a specific reason, but it appears to match global shrimp dynamics that played out last year, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
FAO said for the first nine months of 2024, global imports of shrimp were estimated at 2.6 million metric tons, a 3.4 percent decline compared to the same period in 2023.
“In 2024, consumer demand for shrimp in China and the U.S., the top two largest markets, was flat or fell below the previous year’s level,” FAO said. “This, together with low shrimp prices in international trade throughout 2024, kept global production of farmed shrimp at around the 2023 level, according to preliminary production data.”
Leading export market destinations for Madagascar shrimp include the E.U. and China. Other markets such as South Africa, the U.K., India, Japan, Malaysia, Mauritius, Thailand, the U.S., and Vietnam are smaller buyers of Malagasy shrimp.
Among several species, Madagascar produces the giant tiger shrimp. One such company producing the species, Unima, has received the distinguished French Label Rouge quality label for its Organic Body-Peeled Madagascar Shrimp.
“We have to guarantee that our shrimp has a unique crispiness, juiciness, and that it’s the best in the industry,” Unima Chairman and CEO Amyne Ismail told SeafoodSource in 2023.
Some experts predict 2025 will bring mixed performances in shrimp-producing nations around the world, while others are more optimistic that the year will present the industry with a bounceback overall.
