Rabobank predicts that China and the United States will be key driving markets for seafood trade

Rabobank expects global seafood trade to continue to rebound for the rest of the year, with markets such as the US and Europe having fully recovered from the pandemic, while China is slowly returning to pre-pandemic import levels.

In its latest report, "Global Seafood Trade: The Growing Influence of a decade's Winners," Rabobank writes: The Decade's winner In Influence) highlighted that seafood is the most traded animal protein, and its trade has grown to five times the size of the pork trade and more than 3.5 times the size of the beef trade.

Novel D. Sharma, analyst at RaboResearch, and Gorjan Nikolik, senior global specialist, noted thatU.S. consumer eating habits are shifting toward seafood, which Rabobank attributes to millennials focusing on healthier protein options, as well as aging baby boomers, They are seeking to improve their dietary choices.

To meet the growing demand, the United States is increasingly relying on imported seafood, especially high-quality varieties, such as shrimp, salmon, lobster, and crab are listed as "beneficiaries" of the increased demand for seafood in the United States.

The United States ranks second in global seafood imports, with imports of $28 billion in 2021, up $10 billion from 2013, according to Rabobank. While current imports have slipped from their 2021 peak, they will recover over the next two to three years.

The report also focused on China, where economic growth has enabled more middle-class consumers to buy quality seafood, and where the current supply gap and all consumption growth needs to be met through imports, the report said.

The long-term compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of China's imports from 2013 to 2021 was 17.9%(excluding reprocessed fish and fish meal/oil), indicating China's increasing reliance on imports to meet growing domestic demand.

The report notes that more uncertainty is expected with a possible macroeconomic downturn. The winners in seafood, namely salmon and shrimp, will continue to grow in the coming years.

After a decade in which global import demand was driven by China, the US is a potentially equally important seafood demand driver, and the two regions have great potential to continue to shape global seafood trade flows and will be key drivers in the short to medium term.