Shrimp exceeded the barrier of $ 5,000 million exported abroad

Ecuadorian shrimp exports grew 41 % in all of 2021 compared to the previous year. According to figures from the National Chamber of Aquaculture (CNA), in the twelve months of the year, Ecuador received $5,078 million for shellfish exports.

Shrimp is one of the main non-oil items exported by Ecuador.

In volume, the shrimp sector also remained on the growth path with the placement of 1,855 million pounds, 24% more than 2020 when 1,491 million pounds of shrimp were exported. The highest months of shipments were September, November and December.

The CNA also records that the average price of a pound of shrimp was $2.74.

The main factor that explains the growth in volume is the recovery of shipments to China and the recovery of shipments to the United States. The Asian giant, although it continues to be the leading destination, captured only 46% of domestic sales when in 2020 it was 53%; while the North American country reached a participation of 22%. Until the previous year, the United States concentrated 17% of Ecuador’s supply.

Annual exports to China grew at double and single digits in money and volume, respectively. On the other hand, the United States reached an increase of 87% in dollars, that is, it concentrated $1,187 million; while in volume it grew by 56%, with 406.3 million pounds sold.

The upward trend to these destinations, as previously indicated by the CNA, is due to a greater shipment of shrimp to the retail segment and the recovery of demand in hotels and restaurants. An additional factor driving this surge was the commitment of the business sector to invest. Private investments in ripeners, farms and processing plants also boosted the good performance.

After China, another important Asian market is South Korea, where 30 million pounds of the crustacean were exported. This destination had a growth of 34%. After that nation, they are followed by Vietnam, Thailand and Japan in volume of shipments.

The European block, which captures 23% of purchases, increased its demand until December. Spain demanded 17% more than in 2020 and countries like France and Italy also, between 28% and 18%, respectively. (I)