A leading Chinese researcher covering the seafood sector is warning of the potential damage that a hike on import taxes on American soybeans could pose for China’s aquaculture sector.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on 19 March that he plans to impose tariffs worth as much as USD 60 billion (EUR 49 billion) on Chinese products.
Any move by China to place retaliatory duties on imports of U.S. soy in response to Trump’s tariffs could see costs for Chinese aquaculture rise, according to Mai Kang Sen at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, who was speaking at the East China Aquatic Animal Nutrition and Feed Forum on 18 March. The forum is a prestigious annual gathering of the country’s researchers and feed firms, organized by the China Academy of Fisheries in the eastern city of Ningbo.
Soy has become an important input into feed for Chinese aquaculture and the country has been keen to widen its sources for grain and oilseeds to protect food security and fight against food inflation. Mai, who has his doctorate from an Irish university, is an authority on aquafeed and researches replacement ingredients. He has been researching the potential for using seed or hulls from China’s huge cotton crop for aquaculture feedstuffs. The U.S. is a major supplier of soy to China but competes with suppliers from Brazil in particular.
