The export of pelagics puts the fishing sector afloat

Small pelagics, which were previously mostly used for the production of fishmeal and for local consumption, have become an important item in fishery exports. Last year, at least, it was the segment that had the greatest rebound and that managed to fuel the sales of these industries, which at the end of last year reached $1,394 million, 13% more.

Two fishermen go on their ship, they move through a fishing port in Ecuador.

The results of 2021 are attributed to several factors, but to explain this phenomenon, we must start with the low temperatures of the ocean, typical of the La Niña phenomenon, which attracted larger schools of species (such as mackerel, bottle, carita, sardines, anchoveta and others) and that allowed the country to strengthen its supply of frozen fish, reaching over $150 million, 63% more than the previous year . A growth that far exceeded that of tuna loins and canned tuna, which, although it continues to be the star export offer with $1,177 million, had an increase of 8%. For fish fillets, another $115 million entered the country, which meant 37% more, compared to the previous year.

“2021 was a good year, in addition to the availability of fishing, the prices were good,” says Carlos Cacao, from the Pesquera Polar company, which operates in this market. It was the African countries that had the greatest demand. “Mainly Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Ghana”, but there are also other equally attractive niches such as Spain and Peru.

The dynamics of African countries respond to a growing trend in their consumption, explains Jimmy Anastacio, economic advisor to the National Chamber of Fisheries (CNP). People are increasingly looking to imported products to meet their demand, and in the case of seafood, Africa imports up to 35% of the fish consumed on the continent “due to strong demand, including non-locally produced species in the face of a static or declining national fishery production,” he adds, citing FAO studies.

An opportunity that Ecuador, without a doubt, has begun to take advantage of, but that, emphasizes Bruno Leone, president of the guild, would not have been possible without the investment that the sector has been making in recent years. “Just as shrimp farmers continue to grow because they have invested in technology, the same happens in our industry.” For Leone, the good streak is the product of the investments made on land to expand the fish processing capacity, as well as in equipping the boats with modern cold systems. Only among his members (38 boats) has the investment risen, he said, to about $20 million.

It is not the only thing; it also mentions the important effort that the industry has been making on certification issues. After 4 years of work, he says, the tuna sector is about to achieve the MSC, and the pelagic sector is doing the same to obtain MarinTrust certification. “This is very important because it implies complex work, adopting new codes of conduct for ships, improvements in obtaining oceanographic information for decision-making for the conservation of species, it implies having information in real time, knowing the stock of species, A set of things”. A sign, he mentions, that the sector is doing things right and is on the way to ensuring its sustainability.