April 24, 2018 — Russia’s overall catch has been on a consistent rise. In 2010, Russia’s total catch reached 4.2 million metric tons (MT). In 2012, that figure had increased to 4.33 million MT. By 2016, total fisheries were 4.6 million MT, and last year was record-breaking, with totals cresting 4.9 million MT, according to the Russia’s Federal Agency for Fisheries.
Yet paradoxically, the average consumption rate of fish by Russians within the same period has drastically decreased, by more than 50 percent. The decline is linked to sharp increases in prices, which have made seafood unaffordable for many people. The high prices themselves have been caused by a wide range of problems that must be tackled if Russia hopes to see its domestic seafood consumption increase.
Total catch breaks records
Russia’s higher catch totals over the past several years can be attributed to the integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation in March 2014, as well as by Russia’s subsequent ban on imports from U. S., Australia, Iceland, Norway, and the European Union in August 2014. As a result, the country’s import volume decreased from 1 million MT in 2014 to 450,000 MT in 2016, and Russian fisheries’ production went from a 50 percent share in the domestic market in 2014 to more than 80 percent in 2017.
Read the full story at Seafood Source