U.K. public body Seafish, the work of which is sponsored by the nation’s Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra), has developed new resources that focus on boosting international seafood commerce.
Designed to support U.K. seafood companies with varying levels of exporting infrastructure, the newly published resources – the U.K. Seafood Trade Report 2024 and the East Asia Export Guides – offer key insights on global seafood trade, as well as practical guidance and advice on how to successfully export to various markets.
“We have created the new resources to build on the support we have given small seafood businesses exporting to these markets for the first time. They cover the gaps left by generic export guidance found online, and we hope they will make the export process less daunting and encourage small businesses to expand their markets,” Seafish Head of Regulatory Affairs Fiona Wright told SeafoodSource.
Wright clarified that Seafish cannot advise businesses on the trade risks of certain countries but still aims to support their ambitions to expand into new markets and help them remain agile and flexible, which can make them more resilient in the event of any trade disruptions.
Seafish’s U.K. Seafood Trade Report 2024 highlighted that in terms of trade, seafood performed better than U.K. goods generally last year, with export value increasing 13 percent year over year to GBP 2 billion (USD 2.7 billion, EUR 2.3 billion); the value of seafood imports climbed 1.6 percent to GBP 3.8 billion (USD 5.1 billion, EUR 4.4 billion). It also found that the country’s seafood consumption rates returned to growth in 2024, and the category enjoyed increased sales at both retail and foodservice establishments...
