World fishmeal production up by 40%, industry body reports

Fishmeal and fish oil supply increased significantly in the leading producer nations in the first half of this year, according to the marine ingredients organisation IFFO.

The IFFO survey for H1 2024 shows that fishmeal production was up by 40% and fish oil by 10%, compared with the same period last year.

This was thanks to the increased catches in the North-Centre of Peru, IFFO said, although operations there are now under a fishing ban. Only Peru’s southern fishing grounds are currently open to operations, with 15% of the quota landed so far.

In Chile, landings in the first six months of 2024 decreased, year on year, in the South, while they were up in the North of the country.

In Northern Europe, the volume of available raw materials is down, year on year, as expected due to the lower quotas granted in 2024 vs 2023.

As for the USA, menhaden catches continue to progress, although they remain below the levels reported in 2023. Menhaden are small forage fish of the genera Brevoortia and Ethmidium, and are a significant source of fishmeal.

A school of menhaden fish (forage fish)

The news is good for fish farmers, especially those who use a high proportion of marine ingredients in their feed.

The data are based on statistics shared by IFFO’s membership, which accounts for 55% of global marine ingredients production. Represented in the survey are Peru, Chile, Denmark / Norway, Iceland / North Atlantic, USA, a number of African countries and Spain.

While China’s fishing ban was lifted in mid-August, IFFO said, local producers of fishmeal and fish oil remain cautious about domestic potential production levels for 2024.

Official statistics from China suggest an annual decrease in the cumulative fishmeal and fish oil imports through June due to weak demand of aquafeed and high production costs. Overall, the bearish market conditions are likely to persist through the year 2024.

In contrast, the pig sector, which used to consume significant amounts of fishmeal, continues its recovery, with pig prices rising steadily over the past months.