Saving Seafood

Scallops poised to jump back on US casual restaurant menus

January 28, 2018 — MIAMI — Previously deemed to be saddled with prices too volatile to offer at casual restaurants in the US, look for scallops to come back on menus in 2018, predicts Sean Moriarty, vice president of sales for Blue Harvest Fisheries.

Good luck finding Atlantic sea scallops at the types of sit-down dining establishments Americans most often frequent, like Olive Garden, Applebee’s or Outback Steakhouse.

The price of the shellfish have proven too lofty and volatile for such major chains to take the risk. But that could change soon as the global supply of scallops promises to reach an epic high in 2018, pushing prices to a more affordable range.

“I think the domestic consumption should continue to increase,” said Moriarty Wednesday during a panel on bivalves at the National Fisheries Institute’s (NFI) Global Seafood Market Conference, in Miami, Florida. “I think, especially in 2018, you’ll see a push to get back on the menu, not just in appetizers but in the center of the plate.”

Moriarty’s vertically integrated New Bedford, Massachusetts-based employer — one of the US’ top five producers of Atlantic sea scallops with 15 vessels operating in New England — will be among those rooting for more restaurants to join the scallop party.

Along with few abrupt changes in recent times – including a sudden drop that followed a glut of landings in May 2017 — scallop prices have grown overall since 2011, according to Urner Barry figures shared by Moriarty at the event.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

Oysters remain king as growers race to meet consumer demand

January 23, 2017 — Demand for oysters continues to trend upward heading into 2017, with production capacity expanding to satiate consumer demand.

According to a panel of bivalve and oyster experts speaking at the National Fisheries Institute’s 2017 Global Seafood Market Conference in San Francisco, California, “the number of oyster growers [is] increasing just to keep up with demand.”

The rate of oyster consumption particularly at restaurants, remains strong, with the popular shellfish serving to elevate complementary species such as mussels, clams and scallops, noted the panel.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Price spread between U10, 20-30 US scallops likely to widen

January 19, 2017 — SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — More smaller-size scallops are set to be landed in the 2017/2018 US fishing year, which could widen the price gap between U10s-10/20s and 20/30s, according to one executive on the shellfish panel on Wednesday at the Global Seafood Market Conference (GSMC).

Although the US landings are forecasted to increase 15% to 46 million pounds in 2017/2018, the quantity of U10s is not expected to rise.

“We think it will be static on U10s. They [U10s] are unlikely to increase as a percentage of the fishery,” said Sean Moriarty, vice president of sales with Blue Harvest Fisheries, one of the largest US scallop catching companies, during the 2017 GSMC in San Francisco, California.

While some of the new open areas for the fishery are likely to yield more large scallops, the southern areas are producing less.

According to price data up to September last year presented by the panel, U10s are on the increase and have been over $20 per pound, but 20/30s have been sliding.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Tough times for tilapia persist due to oversupply, low prices

January 19, 2017 — Tilapia producers faced a tough year in 2016, with an oversupply of product and the lowest prices seen since 2011.

A panel of premium finfish experts speaking at this year’s National Fisheries Institute’s Global Seafood Market Conference in San Francisco, California, debated tilapia’s latest challenges, including a softening in demand related to a lack of species promotion. Such hurdles have prompted many fresh tilapia producers to gravitate toward frozen product offerings, and tilapia producers in Ecuador have started to veer in the direction of shrimp production, which has become more lucrative in the region recently.

“2016 has been a challenging year for anyone producing tilapia,” the panel surmised. “A little too much fish in the market.”

Despite these difficulties, the outlook for tilapia heading into 2017 and 2018 is positive, the panel said. Honduras continues to dominate tilapia production, even with a devastating El Nino drought to contend with, and is expected to maintain its reign in the sector. Meanwhile, Colombia will look to capitalize on its new free trade agreements and Brazil has growing potential to transform into a major tilapia exporter to the United States, the panel agreed. However, given the volatility of tilapia, it may still be a while yet before Brazil reaches its potential as a tilapia exporter, the panel concurred.

Read the full story at Seafood Source