By Atuna.com
Canned tuna exports from the Maldives to Europe declined sharply by almost 50% during the last 2 years, despite the huge demand for pole-and-line caught tuna by UK supermarkets. Surprisingly, more than half the products were shipped to Ireland in 2011, while the remainder was largely sent to the UK market.
In 2011, Maldives exported 134,398 cartons of canned tuna to Europe compared to 267,773 cartons in 2009. The drop in volume could be explained by the lack of supply from local fishermen that Maldivian canners faced last year. About a year ago, it was reported that a local factory had to scale back its production because there was not enough pole-and-line caught fish. The low catches were mainly due to increased effort from foreign purse seiners fishing in the area, and rises in ocean temperature that drove the tuna from the surface and out of reach of the traditional fishing method.
As well, the Maldivian industry, which has duty free access into the EU, faced competition from the Thai Union cannery in Thailand, which imported the Maldivian pole-and-line skipjack as frozen whole round material for processing before selling it canned to the UK. Even with the added transport costs and the 24% duty, Thai Union could afford to pay more for the raw fish given the scale of its operations, cheaper labor and lower overheads.
About 54% of Maldivian canned tuna exports to Europe went to Ireland last year, which is remarkable considering the country had been a minor importer in the previous two years. The immense growth here could be due to better logistics or financial considerations given Ireland’s close proximity to the UK, and its lower corporate taxes. Most likely all this canned tuna was re-directed from Ireland to UK supermarkets.
Overall, Maldives delivered less canned tuna to Europe, but it substantially increased its by air shipments of fresh whole round yellowfin tuna. In 2011, it exported 2597 tons which is an increase of 137% from 2009. The majority of this volume (74%) went to Rungis in France, where there is strong demand for fresh whole round yellowfin tuna from restaurants and catering wholesalers.
