COVID-19 UPDATE

21 May 2020

Digital content for Festival of Australia needed

Source:  Austrade

Austrade is coordinating a Festival of Australia (FAO) 2020 in Greater China, including for the first time, in Taiwan which will involve a combination of online and offline campaigns to promote Australian products and capabilities. 

To test and prepare the China market and drive demand for Australia products and services in the lead-up to FOA, Austrade is keen to amplify industry digital content and marketing materials through this exercise. This will provide partners, stakeholders, and consumers with information on Australian capability and future opportunities. 

If you have some digital content that would be ideal to share for this purpose, please inform the STAG at admin@seafoodtradeadvisory.com who will coordinate the content back to Austrade.

For general enquiries about FAO, contact  FOA@austrade.gov.au.

Webcast with Senator the Hon. Simon Birmingham

Source: Austrade

You can join Senator the Hon Simon Birmingham, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment as he introduces a new 12-part series of free interactive webcasts targeted at Australian exporters and those businesses seeking to export. You will:

• Hear about the current state of play and the importance of operating in a free trade environment
• Learn about the financial support initiatives for exporters
• Understand the Australian Government's economic response to COVID-19 designed to protect the economy

The first webcast will occur on Tuesday 26th May from 11am – 12 noon AEST. 

Register now to secure your place. If you cannot attend, the webcast will be recorded.

IFAM Update

Several IFAM-supported flights are now operational. So far, IFAM has enabled the air freight transport of more than 17,000 tonnes of high-value Australian agriculture and seafood produce to international markets, and these tonnages are increasing every day.

Please visit the IFAM webpage for the latest flight information and schedules and click here to read more about the products flying to customers via this scheme.

Chinese National Food Safety Standards

Source:  SafeFish

The National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China has recently proposed amendments to the following existing standards:

• GB 2762-2017 - Maximum Levels of Contaminants in Foods
• GB 29921-2013 – Pathogenic Microorganism Limits in Food
• GB 7718-2011 - General Principles for the Labelling of Pre-packaged Foods
• GB XXXX-XXXX – Pathogen limits for ready-to-eat food in bulk (NEW STANDARD)

To download copies of the proposed standards (in Chinese) and a comparison of the maximum levels of contaminants in food and microorganism limits in pre-packaged foods (based on unofficial translations compiled by SafeFish) click here  

Please provide comments by 12 June 2020 to Natalie.Dowsett@sa.gov.au

Market Updates

Content below contains informal translation of foreign and Asian media.  Any information provided as part of this trade news service is general in nature. Before acting on any information provided, you should consider its appropriateness to your circumstances and business objectives.

Six percent of Hong Kong restaurants expected to close for good

Source:  Seafood Source, 19 May 2020

Six percent of Hong Kong’s restaurants will remain closed for good once coronavirus shutdowns end, according to the Hong Kong Catering Association, which estimates 1,000 of the city’s 15,000 eat-in restaurants will remain closed even as lockdown restrictions are lifted.

Hong Kong’s restaurant trade looks to be more impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak than mainland China.

Emotional cues taking hold in new China

 Source:  China Skinny, 13 May 2020

There have been a number of positive developments over the past couple of weeks reinforcing China as one of the most, if not the most, promising market this year. Whilst China’s lowering export orders (outside of COVID-related personal protective equipment) and rising unemployment hang over the country, the return to normalcy has picked up.

To read more click here

Labour Day holiday shows a recovery of tourism and the economy

Source: People’s Daily Online, 6th May 2020

Tourism and the economy recovered and increased sharply during the Labour Day Holiday in China.  

To read the full translated article, click here

Consumption is hot making up for the Spring Festival of 2020

Source:  JS News, May 2020

Consumption recovery in Wuxi during the Labour Day Holiday has resulted in serious consumer spending thanks to various promotion events in retail shops and government support.

To read the full translated article, click here

Consumption of seafood in Nanjing continues to increase

Source: Yangste, 8th May 2020

Nanjing Lukou International Airport Customs reported that 434.9 tonnes of seafood was imported by air from January to April, a year-on-year increase of 214.55%. 

Australian Lobster, Little Green Lobster from Vietnam, King Crab from Russia, Bread Crab from Anglo-American, Lobster from Canada and Salmon from Chile were abundantly supplied. This year's Labour Day holiday saw seafood sales increase by 40% compared with normal trading days.

To read the full translated article, click here

Shopping priorities recalibrated

Source:  Fisheries Research and Development Corporation

As feeding ourselves and our families become a much more considered activity in this era of physical distancing and travel restrictions, market research is already putting numbers to changing food shopping and consumption patterns across Asia and Australia. Research is also looking to identify changes in the longer-term ‘intentions’ of consumers, post-pandemic, which could reshape supply chains more permanently.

To read the full article, click here

STAG Bulletins are available at http://www.seafoodtradeadvisory.com

STAG COVID-19 UPDATES are a resource for Australian seafood exporters.The Seafood Trade Advisory Group receives funds from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.  The Fisheries Research and Development Corporation plans, invests in and manages fisheries research and development throughout Australia. It is a statutory authority within the portfolio of the federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, jointly funded by the Australian Government and the fishing industry.