With only 2 percent of its seafood exports destined for the U.S., Morocco's government is taking action to raise that number.
“American consumers import a lot of fishery products,” Nadia Rhaouti, sectorial manager for the Moroccan Center for Export Promotion, told SeafoodSource. “There’s a lot of opportunity for us.”
Currently, Europe is the top export market for Morocco seafood with 68 percent of exports headed there, followed by Africa with 13 percent and Asia with 8 percent.
The Moroccan government, eager to expand on the industry’s potential, has developed a series of initiatives to boost competitiveness. One such initiative is Plan Halieutis, launched in 2009. Its main objective is to preserve fish stocks and the marine ecosystem with the intent to consolidate Morocco’s position as a quality supplier to the world market.
Additionally, 16 structuring projects are planned for the seafood processing industry.
“The goal is to double the amount of [seafood exports] to the U.S. by 2020,” said Rhaouti.
The country’s pavilion has doubled in size compared to last year, with 13 companies represented, and has already booked double the amount of exhibit space at the 2015 Seafood Expo North America.
