There are opportunities to be had in the farmed salmon market these days, as supplies from Canada, Chile and Europe remain plentiful.
“The market is depressed on the financial side and that benefits consumers and buyers,” said an East Coast distributor. “There is plenty of salmon and everyone is producing. That makes ours a pretty easy job. It’s a buyer’s market, so we just find the best fish.”
Prices have dropped over the past several months and the outlook is for a continued soft market. In mid-June 2014, European whole salmon was selling at a container price of USD 3.40 to 3.70 (EUR 3.17 to 3.45) a pound, depending on size. By mid-April, prices were starting at USD 2.80 (EUR 2.61). Chilean fillets also have seen prices drop from USD 4.55 to 4.85 (EUR 4.23 to 4.52) a pound last June to USD 3.60 to 3.90 (EUR 3.35 to 3.63) in April.
Despite the favorable market, a distributor from the Mountain region of the United States said demand has been low in some areas of the country, although not in his region. Good product is available from all suppliers, he said, including the Northwest, Chile, Norway and Scotland.
Supermarkets have been promoting salmon, he said, with Norway salmon featured one week, followed by Chile’s product the next. “When they saw the Norwegian ad, the Chilean guys reacted, so they lowered their prices to meet demand and now retailers are doing Chilean product.”
The East Coast distributor, who buys the bulk of his product from Canada and Norway, said the stronger U.S. dollar has helped in purchasing. The usual falloff in production after the holidays, as Europeans go on extended vacations, didn’t have much of an impact either, he said. And with China having “mixed feelings on Norwegian salmon,” more is available to the U.S. market.
“No one is sure how low it will go,” he said about prices. “Economically some parts of the United States are doing better than others,” he noted, which has impacted demand. Suppliers thought there would be higher demand based on an improving economy nationwide.
Additionally, he said, a disease-free stretch for salmon farmers has resulted in ample supply. Of course, he noted, that could change quickly. But for now, “everyone is enjoying sustained lower salmon prices.”
And with the wild salmon season just around the corner, farmed product may be edged out of the spotlight. Numbers — although just projections at this point — are expected to be up, said the Mountain region distributor. “Our retailers are very interested in wild,” he said, noting a strong demand for both Copper River salmon and sockeye.
Meanwhile, the head of one of the branded salmon providers said taste, rather than just price, is a determining factor for buyers of his product, with the salmon occupying “a middle ground being neither traditionally farmed nor wild.”
“There remains a lot of enthusiasm in the marketplace” for the brand, he said, particularly among chefs. Thus, he expected sales to remain steady throughout the summer.
