Why did the price of crab rise so much?
Yaslinskiy Stanislav
Published 2022년 3월 29일
The export of Russian crab is increasing in monetary terms due to the high demand from the main importing countries, and also due to the fact that in October the harvested products begin to enter the customs territory in large volumes from the fishing areas for paperwork, a representative of the Federal Agency for Fisheries said. A sharp rise in prices in October may be associated with the start of deliveries of the most valuable species - the king crab (due to its large size it is also called the king crab), interviewed experts believe.
The harvesting season for king crab begins in the Northern Basin on 15 August, and in the Far East - on 1 September, in October, products from fishing areas began to arrive for clearance at the customs territory and their delivery at a high price and could give such a noticeable increase, the president of the Association believes crab miners of the Far East Alexander Duplyakov. In 2021, the price of finished products, that is, boiled-frozen crab, also increased, so many companies that used to specialize in the supply of live crab this year intentionally made finished products that were in demand among buyers, in particular in the United States, and for which they gave a good price.
Customs statistics, however, did not record in October 2021 a year-on-year increase in the supply of frozen crab in physical terms. On the contrary, a decrease was recorded: almost 6.8K against 7.3K/mt in October 2020.
Growing demand in one of the main export markets, the United States, could have influenced export prices this year, Ilya Bereznyuk, managing partner of the Agro & Food Communications agency, agrees. He recalls that the American crab fishermen had a bad season and suppliers are "raising prices, taking advantage of the shortage."
Russia and Canada are the main suppliers of frozen crab to the US market, Alexey Buglak points out. According to him, according to the results of 2020, Russian products accounted for 49% of American imports of this product - USD 825 million, crabs from Canada provided 41%. According to the results of the three quarters of this year, the import of frozen crab by the United States from Russia increased by 28%, to USD 766M. Canada increased supplies more significantly - by 1.9 times, to USD 1.3B - and by the end of the year, it is likely to push Russia the first line.
U.S. crab demand and prices have risen since 2020 despite pandemic-related restaurant restrictions, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said. She pointed out that American consumers, who are accustomed to buying crabs in restaurants where final prices are much higher than retail prices, found king crab in stores at a price of USD 28/lb (about 0.45 kg) during the pandemic and considered it a bargain compared to a dish at USD 80/lb in restaurants.
Home consumption of crabs has become a steady trend in the US. However in 2021, California's Pacific coast crab fishing season was a setback: catches were at an all-time low, and fishermen had to stop the fishing season six weeks early at the request of the authorities because of the risk that whales and sea turtles could become entangled in the gear of a fishing crab fishery. flotilla. Prices were "understandably high," the FAO noted. According to her, in the first quarter of 2021, Russia was the largest supplier of crabs to the United States, with a share of about 45%.
For the ten months of 2021, the United States imported 26.6K/mt of crabs from Russia for USD 877.5 million, which is 34% more than in the same period of 2020 in monetary terms and only 3% in physical terms (USD 655.2 million, or 25.7K/mt), follows from the statistical base of the United Nations on trade in goods.
FAO also noted a recovery in demand in the traditional Russian crab market in China: according to its data, in the first quarter of 2021, supplies from Russia to China increased by almost 105% compared to 2020. Representatives of large companies engaged in the extraction and sale of crab, the North-West Fishing Consortium and Antey, declined to comment.
The harvesting season for king crab begins in the Northern Basin on 15 August, and in the Far East - on 1 September, in October, products from fishing areas began to arrive for clearance at the customs territory and their delivery at a high price and could give such a noticeable increase, the president of the Association believes crab miners of the Far East Alexander Duplyakov. In 2021, the price of finished products, that is, boiled-frozen crab, also increased, so many companies that used to specialize in the supply of live crab this year intentionally made finished products that were in demand among buyers, in particular in the United States, and for which they gave a good price.
Customs statistics, however, did not record in October 2021 a year-on-year increase in the supply of frozen crab in physical terms. On the contrary, a decrease was recorded: almost 6.8K against 7.3K/mt in October 2020.
Growing demand in one of the main export markets, the United States, could have influenced export prices this year, Ilya Bereznyuk, managing partner of the Agro & Food Communications agency, agrees. He recalls that the American crab fishermen had a bad season and suppliers are "raising prices, taking advantage of the shortage."
Russia and Canada are the main suppliers of frozen crab to the US market, Alexey Buglak points out. According to him, according to the results of 2020, Russian products accounted for 49% of American imports of this product - USD 825 million, crabs from Canada provided 41%. According to the results of the three quarters of this year, the import of frozen crab by the United States from Russia increased by 28%, to USD 766M. Canada increased supplies more significantly - by 1.9 times, to USD 1.3B - and by the end of the year, it is likely to push Russia the first line.
U.S. crab demand and prices have risen since 2020 despite pandemic-related restaurant restrictions, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said. She pointed out that American consumers, who are accustomed to buying crabs in restaurants where final prices are much higher than retail prices, found king crab in stores at a price of USD 28/lb (about 0.45 kg) during the pandemic and considered it a bargain compared to a dish at USD 80/lb in restaurants.
Home consumption of crabs has become a steady trend in the US. However in 2021, California's Pacific coast crab fishing season was a setback: catches were at an all-time low, and fishermen had to stop the fishing season six weeks early at the request of the authorities because of the risk that whales and sea turtles could become entangled in the gear of a fishing crab fishery. flotilla. Prices were "understandably high," the FAO noted. According to her, in the first quarter of 2021, Russia was the largest supplier of crabs to the United States, with a share of about 45%.
For the ten months of 2021, the United States imported 26.6K/mt of crabs from Russia for USD 877.5 million, which is 34% more than in the same period of 2020 in monetary terms and only 3% in physical terms (USD 655.2 million, or 25.7K/mt), follows from the statistical base of the United Nations on trade in goods.
FAO also noted a recovery in demand in the traditional Russian crab market in China: according to its data, in the first quarter of 2021, supplies from Russia to China increased by almost 105% compared to 2020. Representatives of large companies engaged in the extraction and sale of crab, the North-West Fishing Consortium and Antey, declined to comment.
Related market data
What to read next
Read more relevant content
By clicking “Accept Cookies,” I agree to provide cookies for statistical and personalized preference purposes. To learn more about our cookies, please read our Privacy Policy.