OECD/FAO: Seafood consumption, production, and trade growth likely to slow over the next decade

Global consumption of seafood will continue to grow over the next decade but at a slower rate, largely due to a projected softening of Asian demand, according to a new report.

“Agricultural Outlook 2023-2032,” a collaborative report between the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, aims to serve “as a reference for forward-looking policy analysis and planning,” focusing on a decade that the two organizations predict could raise serious global food security concerns.

The report projects fish and shellfish consumption to reach 21.2 kilograms per capita over the next decade, up from a 20.4-kilogram average between 2020 and 2022.

According to the research, seafood consumption will increase per capita across all continents except Africa, where it projects a decline from 9.8 kilograms – the rate of consumption between 2020 and 2022 – to 9.6 in 2032, with a larger decrease in Sub-Saharan Africa in particular.

However, the OECD and FAO said the decline in African consumption will be relatively small compared to the decline in growth the two organizations project for Asian consumption... 

Photo by Chris Chase/SeafoodSource