•Supply Chain
Farmer -> Middlemen (Distributor) -> Processor (either Whole-round/Fillet) -> Trading company
1. Most of the processors buy from fish farms through middlemen, so the role of middlemen is really important. Suppliers farm milkfish /barramundi/tilapia in the same pond. Milkfish accounts for 70-80% among the three fish species.
2. There are less than 10 processors in Taiwan that only process the whole-round fish, and 20-30 processors for fillet. Also, there are unregistered users that are not counted.
•Types of Processors
There are two types of processors: Whole-round product and fillet. Usually, processors specialize in either one because the facility and techniques are different. Whole round fish is more popular for export, and the domestic market prefers fillet.
•Supply Network
Coop is not a necessary process since the fishery industry is usually run by a family (very conservative) and only accepts Taiwanese currency to avoid exchange rate risk.