Anchovy quota suggests fishmeal price could fall further

IFFO, the worldwide marine ingredients organisation, also reports that the supply of fishmeal and fish oil produced during February 2025 is already significantly up on the same month last year.

The first fishing season for anchovies in the North-centre of Peru – probably the single most significant fishery internationally as far as fishmeal is concerned – will start on 22 April 2025, with a total quota of 3 million metric tonnes, the Peruvian authorities announced yesterday.

The quota was set following a thorough assessment of the anchovy biomass by Peru’s scientific institute IMARPE. Further analyses of the biomass will be carried out through a Eureka operation between 19-21 April.

Dr Enrico Bachis, IFFO’s Market Research Director, said: “This quota has been the highest since the ones from 2018 (3,319,700 tonnes) and 2011 (3,675,000 tonnes) and signals a healthy biomass.”

According to IFFO’s market intelligence reports, total cumulative fishmeal production in February 2025 increased by approximately 40% compared to the same period in 2024. This increase was primarily influenced, IFFO said, by a significant uptick in Peru, but Chile, the USA, Spain and the African countries also reported a positive performance compared to January-February 2024.

As for fish oil, total cumulative output for the year through February 2025 was 38% up year over year, again mainly driven by Peru. The other regions reported a positive trend in cumulative fish oil production compared to January-February 2025, with the only exception being the Northern European countries.