The latest global seafood report from Mercasa, Madrid’s wholesale food organization, has been released, breaking down Spain’s household and foodservice purchase and consumption patterns during 2009.
Spaniards’ total seafood consumption increased to 1.6 million kilograms valued at EUR 11 million (USD 15.4 million) last year, representing more than 36 kilograms per person.
Household consumption dominated at 79.8 percent of the total, representing 1.3 million kilograms valued at EUR 8.8 million (USD 12.4 million). Commercial catering accounted for 15.9 percent of the total, followed by hospitals, schools and other institutional operators at 4.2 percent.
Per-capita household consumption reached 27.6 kilograms valued at EUR 192 (USD 270) per person. Spanish consumers ate 12.2 kilograms of fresh fish per person annually; 4.8 kilograms per capita of fresh seafood and shellfish; and 4 kilograms per capita of canned fish and seafood. Cooked frozen seafood represented 3.4 kilograms per person, while frozen fish accounted for 3.1 kilograms per capita.
Favorite species sold in fish markets were whiting, hake, anchovies and sardines, with mackerel increasingly cooked in the home.
Mercasa counted 13,000 vessels in the Spanish fishing fleet, the majority operating in domestic fisheries, with 500 boats operating outside national borders.
Spain is Europe’s leading canned-seafood producer at 336,000 metric tons annually worth EUR 1.3 million (USD 1.8 million), placing it third in the world behind China and Thailand.
According to Mercasa, global per-capita seafood consumption has increased from 11 kilograms in 1970 to 19 kilograms in 2006. Fish accounts for 25 percent of total protein intake in developing countries and 10 percent each in Europe and North America.
China leads the world in fishing production with 13 million metric tons annually, more than 60 percent of which is from aquaculture, while Russia and Japan produce around 9 million tons per year. Peru and Chile account for 6 million metric tons each, followed by the United States at 5 million, India at 4 million and Indonesia and Thailand at 3 million each.
Mercasa is a public corporation within the Spanish Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs, and contributes to the ministry’s Food Consumption Panel.
