STAG News Bites
The latest seafood news from China and other key global markets for Australian Exporters.
30th June, 2022
In this edition: 🌐 Fisheries subsidies deal; 🏈 USA illegal fishing policy; 💹 China consumer update
Some of these articles are in foreign languages and can be automatically translated on Google Chrome.
Note: These articles are a round-up of news media in key seafood markets. The information is provided as part of our market intelligence service to Australian seafood exporters. The views expressed in the media articles are not those of the STAG and are in no way endorsed by us.
Image: The Guardian
🌐 WTO: Fisheries subsidies deal concluded
Trade Ministers from around the world agreed to conclude negotiations on a fisheries subsidies agreement during the 12th Ministerial Conference of the WTO last week. Read more on The Guardian website here.
The agreement creates a global framework that limits subsidies for:
1) illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing,
2) fishing over-depleted populations, and
3) vessels fishing on the high seas.
The ban does not cover subsidies for capital costs, such as modernising fishing fleets and replacing engines, or running costs such as fuel. These exclusions will be reviewed under a ‘sunset clause’, meaning the agreement will automatically terminate if members fail to agree on “comprehensive disciplines” on the excluded subsidies within four years after entry into force.
According to the Trade Minister, Senator the Hon Don Farrell, it is not a ‘sunset’ clause, but a ‘treaty upgrade’ clause:
‘Australia and Fiji worked together closely in the talks to insist on a treaty upgrade within four years to tackle subsidies which lead to overcapacity and overfishing. This innovative new provision will reduce overfishing on the high seas by major fishing nations with long-distance fleets, the type of fishing that is most harmful to fish stocks in the Pacific region.’
Read the Minister’s press release here.
What does the agreement mean for major players? For the USA, read this fact sheet from the Congressional Research Service. In China, the Securities Times interviews Tang Yi, Dean of the School of Ocean Culture and Law at Shanghai Ocean University (Chinese).
🤝 EU - Australia Free Trade Agreement back on track
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is hopeful free trade negotiations with the European Union will be revived in the coming months.
Read more here.
Image: Japan Today
🏈 USA: New illegal fishing policy framework
The US Government has released its first ever National Security memo on IUU fishing. The memo directs US federal departments and agencies to better share information, coordinate enforcement actions such as sanctions and visa restrictions and promote best practices among international allies.
According to Japan Today: ‘the action plan also calls for expansion of the U.S. seafood import monitoring program, which requires importers to provide documentation from the point of catch to insure that illegally caught fish don't slip into the U.S. Currently, the program only covers about a dozen species.’ Read more here.
🦞 USA: Lobster exporters dissatisfied with Phase One trade deal
US Trade Representative, Katherine Tai, was questioned by Senators earlier this week about progress on the US-Chin Phase One trade agreement. China has not met its purchase commitments on US seafood, including Boston lobster:
‘For the third time in about 14 months, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine has pressed Tai for measures to hold China accountable for failing to commit to buying more lobster. "Before the tariffs, China was the world's second-largest importer of North American lobster," Collins noted. "U.S. exports of live lobster to China fell by 64% in the first few months of the new tariffs."’
Read more here (Chinese)
🐟 UK: Seafood sales drop
Seafoodsource.com reports UK overall chilled seafood sales dropped 11 percent in the first four and a half months of 2022. The poor result is put down to record-breaking inflation. Read more on Seafoodsource.com here.
🐚 China: Fujian province unveils abalone industrial park
Fujian province’s new Abalone Science and Technology Industrial Park project integrates abalone and other marine food processing, cold chain storage, product display, production, and a ‘sightseeing experience’.
The precinct is located within the “Xiuyu aquatic product breeding industry belt with a combination of abalone, sea cucumber, shrimp, kelp and other aquaculture species. The annual processing capacity of abalone in the region is more than 3,000 tons, with an output value of 300 million yuan.”
Read more on the Fujian Daily website here (Chinese).
😢 Hong Kong: Jumbo floating restaurant sinks at sea
Finally, a sad finale to a story reported in the last edition of STAG New Bites regarding the fate of the legendary Jumbo floating restaurant in Hong Kong. After the vessel was towed out of Hong Kong’s Aberdeen Harbour two weeks ago, it reportedly capsized and sank at sea.
Read more on the CNN website here.
The STAG is funded by partners:
The Seafood Trade Advisory Group (STAG) is jointly funded by the Australian government and the fishing industry. We receive funds from the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC).which is a statutory authority within the portfolio of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Water and the Environment.
Any information provided in this STAG publication is general in nature. Before acting on any information provided, you should consider its appropriateness to your individual circumstances and business objectives.
The STAG is managed by:
The STAG is supported by:
