The wholesale price of salted Chilean silver salmon fillets at Tokyo’s Tsukiji wholesale market, at 683 yen per kilogram (kg) on 27 August, was up about 50 percent from the price of a year before, when it traded at JPY 441 (USD 4.51, EUR 3.29) per kg. The increase is affecting supermarket sales, where salted salmon slices are a main seafood item, usually prepared grilled for breakfast. The sales price at many supermarkets is now anywhere from JPY 88 (USD 0.90, EUR 0.66) to JPY 98 (USD 1, EUR 0.73) per slice, up from JPY 70 (USD 0.72, EUR 0.52) last year.
The volume of Chilean salmon imported to Japan increased after 2011. Chilean production recovered as infectious salmon anemia (ISA) was brought under control. Chilean product replaced Japanese domestic wild salmon following tsunami damage to Honshu Island fishing ports. The stronger Chilean supply finally resulted in a glut last fall, leading importers to unload excess stocks at cost.
Chile’s overall salmon exports and rainbow trout (marketed as “salmon-trout” in Japan) for 2012, including frozen, fresh, canned, smoked and salted products, rose 25.5 percent to 488,500 metric tons (MT), while the total value fell 4.4 percent to USD 2.9 billion (EUR 2.1 billion), reflecting the oversupply. Japan was the main destination for Chilean salmon and trout.
However, since the end of last year, depreciation of the yen has accelerated, raising costs for importers. The value of the yen has fallen from JPY 85 (USD 0.87, EUR 0.64) to the dollar on 1 January to about 100. Meanwhile, Chilean producers have raised their prices due to short supply and higher costs. As a result, Japan’s salmon imports in the second quarter of 2013 fell by 21.9 percent from the same period in 2012.
The higher costs are due to disease and sea lice problems. Along with some lingering ISA issues, Salmon Rickettsial Syndrome (SRS) is a problem, especially for trout. Monthly mortality rates were at 2.5 percent per month overall in the first quarter of this year, but higher in specific areas. Production costs for trout have been reported as up by nearly 30 percent, due to mortalities and vaccination costs.
Producers have also had to use chemical baths to rid salmon of sea lice and are being required to reduce stocking rates to fight heavy sea lice burdens.
Imports of the next coho salmon harvest in Chile will begin to come into Tsukiji next month, but lower volumes are expected. The Chilean newspaper La Tercera reported that newly implemented mandatory stocking rate restrictions will force production cuts from 2012 levels of 10 percent for Atlantic salmon, 38 percent for coho, and 36 percent for trout. Chile’s Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture estimated 2014’s combined salmon and trout production will be 24 percent off from this year.
