India's seafood exports slump
The Indian seafood industry has become yet another victim of the terrible impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, but this does not mean that there are no viable solutions available. Come read our blog to learn more!
The COVID-19 pandemic has hurt India's ability to grow its international trade. Its damaging effects, in particular, have created new obstacles for Indian exporters, such as a slowdown in demand, additional shipping costs, delays due to border checks, and payment issues.
The country's seafood industry is no exception to such problems, as data reveal a dramatic drop in exports. However, there are still some solutions that may help both the country and the sector.
India's Seafood Exports Fall Drastically
India is a major exporter of seafood and related products thanks to its long coastline, and fishing activities are highly popular. Its fishing industry even employs millions of people who rely on such activities to make ends meet. It also recently announced plans to increase seafood exports in order to compete with competitors like China and Japan.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a drop in the country’s seafood exports, which fell by 10.88% compared to the previous year. In 2020-21, shrimp was India's most exported seafood item, followed by frozen fish; however, the overall drop indicates that the industry has faced major challenges.
According to K S Srinivas, the Chairman of Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), “the pandemic has drastically affected seafood exports during the first half of the year, but they revived well during the last quarter. The aquaculture sector performed better during this fiscal by contributing 67.99 percent of exported items in dollar terms and 46.45 percent in quantity.”
Reasons Behind the Decline
Within the production process, fish landings have also decreased due to fewer fishing days. Slow logistics movements and market changes have added fuel to the fire. Moreover, India's exports have been hampered by a lack of labor in fishing and processing plants, a scarcity of containers at seaports, high air freight charges, and poor flight availability.
The industry thus needs to figure out new solutions to better deal with the crisis, one of which is to partner with trading associations in Western countries like the US and the European Union (EU). Such partnerships can open up new avenues for Indian exporters and enable them to revive the industry. Another solution could be to improve marketing efforts and raise awareness on Indian seafood products.
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