Shrimp prices are up 10 percent year-on-year at one of China’s bellwether seafood wholesale markets.
Management at the giant Weihai Aquatic Products Wholesale Market, located in the port city of Weihai on China’s east coast, told SeafoodSource that traders are getting an average CNY 240 to 260 (USD 34.88 to 37.79, EUR 32.61 to 35.33) per kilo of four to six heads of large shrimp, with average prices for smaller shrimp (8-10 head per kilo) fetching an average CNY 140 to 160 (USD 20.35 to 23.25, EUR 19.02 to 21.75) per kilo. Lower grade shrimp - 40 head per kilo – are fetching CNY 50 (USD 7.27, EUR 6.80) per kg.
Warmer weather leading to disease and a clamp-down on aquaculture ponds in polluted areas are putting pressure on Chinese supply, according to management official surnamed Zhou.
While shrimp is a staple of Chinese New Year dinners, prices for fresh croaker, pomfret and flounder jumped by up to 50 percent over the past two weeks due to strong demand, according to Zhou.
