EUMOFA Monthly Highlights No. 11/2023 is online

This month’s issue analyses first sales of Atlantic bluefin tuna in Cyprus, France and Italy and bigeye tuna in France, Portugal and Spain. The case studies of this month are: “The EU processing industry” and “Dogfish and ray in the EU market”.

FIRST SALES OF ATLANTIC BLUEFIN TUNA AND BIGEYE TUNA. Over the 36-month observation period (October 2020 to September 2023), the weighted average first-sales price of bigeye tuna in France was 5,74 EUR/kg, 112% higher than in Portugal (2,70 EUR/kg), and 148% more than in Spain (2,32 EUR/kg). During the same period, the weighted average first-sales price of Atlantic bluefin tuna in France was 11,43 EUR/kg, 43% higher than in Cyprus (8,09 EUR/kg) and 41% higher than in Italy (8,13 EUR/kg).

EXTRA-EU IMPORTS. Between weeks 43/2020 and 42/2023, 53% of the weekly prices of frozen fillets of tuna, skipjack and stripe-bellied bonito from the Republic of Korea were between 10 EUR/kg and 15 EUR/kg. In 2023, the price of fresh or chilled sole from Iceland showed a fluctuating increasing trend. Price ranged from 8,78 EUR/kg to 20,20 EUR/kg, and volume fluctuated strongly between 856 kg and 13 tonnes.

CONSUMPTION. This month the focus is on fresh mussel Mytilus spp. in Germany, Denmark, Italy and the Netherlands. Over the past three years, average household consumption of the mussel Mytilus spp. was 2.099 tonnes/month in Italy, 472 tonnes/month in Germany, 349 tonnes/month in the Netherlands and 23 tonnes/month in Denmark. German customers had to pay most for the mussel Mytilus spp., an average of 8,10 EUR/kg, while Dutch consumers paid 4,49 EUR/kg, Danes 4,46 EUR/kg and Italians 3,39 EUR/kg.

The most recent consumption data can be accessed here.

THE EU PROCESSING INDUSTRY. In 2022, the EU produced 4,3 million tonnes of processed fishery and aquaculture products at a value of EUR 22,1 billion. Spain accounted for 28% of total processed volume and value in 2022 and had the largest volume output of processed products in the EU. Tuna is one of the most valuable species processed in the EU. In 2022, the EU produced 416.100 tonnes of “prepared or preserved skipjack and Atlantic bonito tuna” at a value of EUR 2,9 billion.

DOGFISH AND RAY IN THE EU MARKET. In 2021, global production of dogfish species amounted to 31.142 tonnes. The main species were picked dogfish (32%), longnose velvet dogfish (26%), lesser spotted dogfish (20%) and dogfish sharks nei (12%). In 2022, the EU-27 trade deficit for ray products amounted to approx. EUR 8,1 million. ). In 2022, EU exports to third countries amounted to only 337 tonnes at a value of EUR 1,4 million. EU exports of ray products were dominated by frozen products (94% of the exports volume), while fresh products accounted for only 6% of the export volume the same year.

MACROECONOMIC CONTEXT. Average prices for marine fuel in November 2023 ranged between 0,70 and 0,83 EUR/litre in ports in France, Italy, Spain and the UK. Prices fell by an average of about 6,6% compared with the previous month and fell by an average of 24,4% compared with the same month in 2022.

Monthly Highlights no. 11/2023 is now available in English, and soon in French and Spanish.

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