Stronger exports of value added mussel products from Chile and Spain to Europe during 2006

Trade trends in European processed mussel (frozen and preserved) markets were broadly positive during 2006 with strong increases in Italian imports and moderate volume increases for Germany. French imports were stable in value terms although trade was slightly down in volume. This generally stable to positive trend in key markets was partly due to a strong recovery in Spanish mussel exports and to the continued upward trend in Chilean mussel sales. Chile is now the top volume supplier of processed mussels to the French and Italian markets.

Weaker Danish and Dutch supplies to the French market

A drop in French processed mussel imports from both Denmark and the Netherlands was partially balanced by an increase in Chilean and Spanish imports last year to give an overall decline of 2% to 14 500 tonnes. This decline marks a pause after several years of successive increases in processed mussel sales to France. Total imports for 2002 were at just 11 500 tonnes.

The medium term upward trend in imports is in line with a steady increase in imports from Chile which were at less than 500 tonnes in 2002 compared to 3 500 tonnes last year. The increase reflects the successful development of the Chilean rope mussel industry in recent years and has allowed Chile to capture an increasing share of the French import market, jumping from 4% processed mussel imports to almost a quarter over the 2002-2006 period. It is likely that the bulk of imports from Chile are in frozen meat form.

The 12% increase in imports from Chile last year was somewhat overshadowed by a 28% jump in processed imports (both frozen and canned) from Spain. The Spanish seafood processing industry has been increasingly linked with the Chilean industry and last year’s increase may reflect an increase in further processing of Chilean mussels in Spain although it is not possible to confirm this from trade statistics. Despite the increase, the Spanish share of French imports remains relatively low at less than 10%.

In contrast to the Chilean and Spanish increases, the negative trend in French imports from Denmark has continued with volumes down a quarter following a 4% decrease in 2005. There was also a drop in imports from the Netherlands, down a third, following increases during 2004 and 2005. There was also a slight decrease in frozen mussel sales from Ireland which is in second position behind Chile in terms of French volume imports.

Increased Turkish sales to Italy

Following stable import volumes in 2005, Italian imports of processed mussel products jumped by over 20% last year to a record 11 000 tonnes. The increase was due in large part to increases in sales from Chile, Spain and Turkey, up 17, 38 and 58% respectively. The value of Italian imports also increased strongly, +24% to €28.5 million. The largely similar increases in total volumes and values suggest that import prices remained relatively stable last year. Unit values increased by just 2% to €2.58/kg.

Chile remains the top supplier to Italy although its share of imports fell last year to 38% from 40% in 2005. This decrease was partly due to the strong growth in volumes from Spain which saw its share of imports rising from 18% in 2005 to 20% in 2006. The increase confirmed Spain’s position as number two supplier to Italy although it is followed closely by Turkey which saw its share jump from 13 to 17%. A recent news report (Intrafish) referring to investments in the Chilean mussel industry by Panapesca, a leading frozen seafood distributor in Italy, points, however, to a continuation of the upward trend in Italian imports from Chile.

German imports from Spain and New Zealand higher

German processed mussel imports have been relatively stable at between three and four thousand tonnes in recent years. Last year’s 6% volume increase, to 3 400 tonnes, balanced a 6% decline in 2005. The value of imports during 2006 was stable at just below €10 million.

The broad overall stability in imports contrasts, however, with significant variations in import shares for the leading supplying countries. A number of these changes are in line with developments described above for both France and Italy, in particular, an increase in supplies from Spain and a drop in sales from both Denmark and the Netherlands. A fivefold jump in Spanish supplies, to over 500 tonnes, lifted Spain’s share of total imports from less than 5% in 2005 to 15% last year. German imports from both Denmark and the Netherlands, on the other hand, fell by over 30% to around 700 tonnes each. The 700 tonne mark was also reached by New Zealand following a 17% increase over 2005.

Positive trend for Chilean supplies continue into 2007

Preliminary indications for 2007 suggest a continuation of some of the import trends for processed mussels noted for 2006. French volumes increased 5% during the January-February period compared with the same period last year with imports from Chile up over 40%. Traditional suppliers of value added mussel products to the French markets appear under pressure from Chilean supplies as imports from both Denmark and the Netherlands are down by around 30% this year. Pressure on prices, which was not particularly evident in trade figures last year, is likely to increase if current growth rates for Chilean supplies are maintained.

By Gerry O'Sullivan (GLOBEFISH)
© FAO GLOBEFISH 2007