Saving Seafood

IFFO reports fishmeal, fish oil output well behind last year

September 16, 2026 — FFO – The Marine Ingredients Organization’s latest snapshot of fishmeal and fish oil production has found outputs of both are well behind the pace set in 2025.

According to IFFO, fishmeal output in the first seven months of 2026 is down 49 percent compared to the same period of 2025, and fish oil output is down 30 percent. The majority of that drop is related to Peru and Chile, but softer catches in Africa and Northern Europe have compounded to cause a global drop in production.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

2026’s El Niño is shaping up to be a doozy – it’s already affecting global shipping, fish behavior and heat

September 14, 2026 — El Niño is here, and forecasters warn that it’s likely to be bigger and stronger in 2026-27 than any El Niño event recorded in at least 150 years.

During strong El Niños, global air and ocean temperatures spike, and precipitation patterns shift dramatically – flooding rains deluge places that are normally dry, and drought strikes some of the wettest locations on earth. With this El Niño arriving on top of already high global ocean and air temperatures, it carries the potential for extraordinary impacts to millions of lives throughout the world. Globally, August 2026 was the hottest month on record, according to data from Europe’s Copernicus climate service.

Those effects are already showing up in Central and South America.

Fishing crews in Ecuador are catching fewer tuna and traveling farther from shore to find them as fish migrate to cooler water. Coral reefs are under alert for severe risk of bleaching in many areas.

In Panama, where I live, seabirds common to Ecuador and Peru known as blue-footed boobies began showing up in large numbers in Panama earlier than usual as the sardines and anchovies they eat moved northward to escape the El Niño ocean heat.

Farmers in some regions of Panama have been unable to plant their crops. And many people here are worried about access to drinking water in the coming dry season, normally January to April but predicted to arrive at least a month earlier than usual.

The global economy is also beginning to see far-reaching effects. Worsening drought is reducing the amount of water needed to operate the Panama Canal, resulting in fewer ships with less cargo able to pass through in a day. That leads to higher transit costs for shippers of all kinds of products and slower deliveries.

I am a biologist who has been monitoring the weather in Panama and surrounding regions for the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute for almost 40 years. That includes major climatic events such as El Niño, and what I am seeing in Panama in 2026 in terms of heat and drought has already begun to exceed anything that we have measured here in over a century.

Read the full article at The Conservation

Global marine feed ingredient shortage looming on horizon, with few solutions available for shrimp industry

September 3, 2026 — The demand on marine ingredients for fishmeal and fish oil is continuing to grow, and signs already point to a looming tonnage gap that has few solutions available for the shrimp aquaculture industry.

Dsm-firmenich Head of Business Intelligence Adolfo Fontes, speaking during the Global Shrimp forum in Utrecht, the Netherlands, estimated that by 2028, there will be a gap of 400,000 metric tons (MT) between demand on marine ingredients and the supply available to feed producers. In 2026, that gap will start being felt as sources like the Peruvian anchovy fishery are impacted by the strong El Nino.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

IFFO reports weak fishmeal and fish oil output as El Niño impacts fisheries

August 20, 2026 — IFFO – the Marine Ingredients Organization is reporting continued weak output of fishmeal and fish oil as a coastal El Niño weather pattern impacts raw material availability.

Scientists warned in July that a “Super” El Niño was likely to develop in 2026, causing a wave of different impacts on multiple global fisheries. Fisheries were already anticipating the phenomenon before it started to gain strength but, ultimately, could do little but react to warming water.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Climate-driven disruption, constrained supply adding volatility to aquaculture markets in the back half of 2026

August 7, 2026 — Global aquaculture firms and the wider value chain entered the second half of 2026 facing a difficult combination of constrained supply, rising feed costs, climate uncertainty, and uneven consumer demand, according to Rabobank’s latest Global Aquaculture Update.

After weathering several major disruptions over the past decade, the industry has now entered a phase in which climate change, tightening feed ingredient supplies, and geopolitical uncertainty are reshaping global seafood markets, Rabobank Seafood Analyst Novel Sharma told SeafoodSource, explaining the industry should plan for continual uncertainty rather than treat each challenge as an isolated disruption.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

El Niño is here, and it’s already scrambling fisheries throughout the Pacific

July 8, 2026 — We’re not even one month into “super” El Niño, the natural Pacific weather pattern characterized by warmer than average sea surface temperatures, and fisheries around the world are already getting scrambled.

In Peru, government officials have effectively canceled the fishing season for anchovies, one of the country’s most important exports and a leading source of fish oil and animal feed globally. The Indian government is preparing for a season of smaller, less plentiful Indian mackerel. Meanwhile, in Southern California, recreational and commercial fishers have reported some of the most successful months of tuna fishing they’ve ever seen.

Read the full article at Grist

Cooke to purchase Copeinca, Peru’s largest anchoveta-fishing firm

November 8, 2024 — New Brunswick, Canada-based aquaculture firm Cooke Inc. has announced it will purchase Peruvian fishmeal and fish oil producer Corporación Pesquera Inca (Copeinca).

Under a binding share purchase agreement, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cooke will indirectly acquire all the outstanding shares of Copeinca, Peru’s largest fishing company and one of the world’s largest fishmeal and fish oil producers.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Cooke Enters Into Agreement for the Acquisition of Copeinca

November 7, 2024 — The following was released by Cooke Inc.:

Cooke Inc. (“Cooke”) and PF Cayman New Holdco Limited have executed a binding share purchase agreement under which a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cooke will indirectly acquire all the outstanding shares of Corporación Pesquera Inca S.A.C. (“Copeinca”) of Peru — one of the world’s largest fishmeal and fish oil producers and exporters.

Copeinca was established in 1994 and has grown to become Peru’s largest fishing company with 2,770 employees, 45 vessels and 8 processing plants that span the north and center coastline of Peru. Copeinca holds the largest anchoveta (Enaraulis ringens) quota in Peru at 15.9% and processes approximately 21% of the country’s total catch for annual production of approximately 200,000 MT of fishmeal and 23,000 MT of fish oil.

Upon completion of the acquisition, Cooke will strengthen its growing marine ingredients business and diversify its geographic and species portfolio.

“There is tremendous compatibility between Cooke and Copeinca, and we’re excited to welcome Copeinca’s dedicated employees to the Cooke family of companies,” said Glenn Cooke, CEO of Cooke. “High quality fishmeal and fish oil are essential animal and human nutritional ingredients. They ensure a safe and wholesome feed supply for the growth and care of animals in several farming groups, including aquaculture. We believe Copeinca will be a major contributor in furthering Cooke’s growth as a leader strengthening global food security.”

Copeinca holds numerous industry certifications that reflect its commitment to food security, health and safety, and environmental sustainability including MarinTrust, Friend of the Sea, ISO 14001, ABE, BASC, GMP+, and HACCP.

“Copeinca and Cooke share a people centric culture focused on building up working waterfronts in rural coastal communities through sustainable fish harvesting and responsible processing. Cooke’s strategic agility and vertically integrated operations will enable Copeinca to remain competitive in an evolving global export market,” said Jose Miguel Tirado, CEO of Copeinca. “Our Peruvian company is thrilled to join the Cooke family of companies. Peru and Canada have a very strong and growing trade and investment relationship thanks to active collaboration between governments under the Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement.

Cooke entered the marine ingredients sector in 2017 with its acquisition of US-based Omega Protein Corporation, a nutritional product company and a leading integrated provider of specialty oils and specialty protein products.

Peru is the second largest export market for Canada in Central and South America, and Canada is the fourth most important export market for Peru in the world.

The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in November.

Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. acted as lead financial advisor to Copeinca, together with Antarctica Advisors International Corp.

About the Cooke family of companies:
Cooke Aquaculture Inc. was established in 1985 by the Cooke family in New Brunswick, Canada. From humble beginnings of one farm site and 5,000 salmon, Cooke Inc. is the largest private family-owned seafood company in the world employing 13,000 people worldwide. The Cooke family of companies operate global aquaculture and wild fishery divisions in 14 countries providing a sustainable seafood source reaching tables all over the world. Cooke’s core purpose is to ‘cultivate the ocean with care, nourish the world, provide for our families, and build stronger communities.

US Coast Guard opens IUU Fisheries Center covering Indo-Pacific, ups patrols off Peru

November 13, 2023 — The U.S. Coast Guard is taking more aggressive action to police the Pacific Ocean in an effort to curb illegal fishing conducted by China’s distant-water fleet.

The USCG has opened the Illegal Unreported Unregulated Fisheries Center of Expertise (IUUF COE) in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A., to serve as the center for U.S. efforts to combat illegal fishing activity in the Indo-Pacific region. It also created a specialized environmental response unit, the Marine Environmental Response Regional Activities Center (MER RAC), to advise partner nations in preventing and countering illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in their home waters. And it recently completed an operation to counter IUU fishing off the coast of Peru.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Peru’s political turmoil has anchoveta industry on edge

December 16, 2022 — On Thursday, 15 December, Peru’s government instituted a national state of emergency, responding to outbursts of violence from protesters unhappy over the 7 December ousting of the country’s left-leaning president, Pedro Castillo, and the swearing in of then-vice president Dina Boluarte as Peru’s new head of state.

Castillo was facing allegations of corruption, with an estimated 50 separate cases pending with Peru’s Public Ministry. In an attempt to avoid impeachment over those allegations, Castillo illegally moved to dissolve congress and rule by decree, and was subsequently arrested and jailed. Peru’s Supreme Court of Preparatory Investigation is evaluating a federal prosecutor’s request for 18 months of preventive detention for Castillo and the former prime minister, Aníbal Torres. Castillo will remain jailed until that request is resolved, according to Reuters. Judge César San Martín said that if Castillo is found guilty of the crime of rebellion and conspiracy against the state, he would face a sentence of no less than 10 years.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource