New study: Mackerel in the EU

The study analyses mackerels’ market in the EU, focusing on the price structure along the supply chain in Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands.

In 2021, the world production of mackerel was 4.42 million tonnes, primarily from wild caught fisheries. Major producers include China, Japan, and Indonesia, with over 370,000 tonnes of catches each. The EU-27 accounted for 6% of the world production. The EU-27 production peaked at 423,000 tonnes in 2017 and has decreased since then. The main producers in the EU-27 are Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Portugal, and Lithuania. The EU-27's apparent consumption was 272.741 tonnes live weight equivalent (lwe) in 2021, with a slightly negative trade balance (475.002 tonnes lwe of imports vs. 463.422 tonnes lwe of exports). The main EU markets for mackerel are Poland and France, followed by Spain, Romania, Lithuania, Italy, and the Netherlands. The report focuses on three Member States (Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands), where national consumption is mainly for processed products: canned mackerel in Spain and Portugal, and smoked mackerel in the Netherlands.

The study is available for download here.