Supply for Moscow's seafood market hampered by logistics bottleneck

In the second week of September 2009 Moscow's frozen seafood market has been showing mixed price trends such as certain strengthening of blue whiting prices against price fall for a number of species, analysts of www.fishnet-russia.com (www.fishnet.ru) concluded after analyzing the current situation on the market.

In particular, the prices have decreased for B. magister squid, giant squid fillets from Peru and Chile, Norwegian salmon and trout, Atlantic herring, mackerel and capelin.

Catch

As per 8 September 2009 the Russian fishermen harvested 2.46 million metric tons of finfish and other aquatic products. The figure was 202,000 tonnes up on the last year level. The take-up of the TAC amounted to 62%, 9% up on the corresponding result of last year.

According to the market participants, despite fruitful fisheries this year, the market seems to fail to adequately respond to the rising supply due to a number of factors such as absence of sufficient coldstorage capacities, proper logistics, high railway tariffs, etc. While the situation in the Russian Far East has not changed with the products' transportation by railway to the central Russia remaining a serious problem, in Murmansk (the nation's North Fisheries Basin) the situation has also been difficult, but the bottleneck has been somehow helped by the truck fleet bringing seafood to the main markets. According to a representative from a large Murmansk company, the coldstores in Murmansk have also been stuffed with seafood. Besides, one coldstore has developed a failure and until the end of September 2009 the facility will be under repair.

Vet update

Russia's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Rosselkhoznadzor has expelled plant No. LT 41-27 EB UAB Makvela from the list of approved Lithuanian seafood exporters. Besides, the Russian vets have lifted temporary restrictions for seafood export from the US plant No.3028288 and as of 5 September 2009 the restriction fro exportation from the Ecuadorian plant No.197 (Pescados Camarones Y Maricos S.A. DOCAPES has also been lifted.

Event

In the second week of September 2009 Vladivostok has been hosting the Fourth International Fishermen's Congress. More than 500 delegates, including 200 representatives from 18 foreign countries such as Germany, South Korea, China, USA, North Korea, Chile, Ukraine, Japan, Australia, Spain, Denmark, Latvia, Great Britain and Thailand.