EP 267 | AIRED 01/18/2016

What's Shaping the Future for the Canned Tuna Market

January 18, 2016 - Welcome to The Tradex Foods "3-Minute Market Insight This is Kyla Ganton and here is the seafood news for Monday January 18th, 2016.

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--- Today we take a look at how external influences have ultimately shaped the future of the Canned Tuna market in the United States. As Americans' relationship with food changes, so does the canned industry. Canned Tuna is still the most consumed of all canned seafood items, and for the inexperienced chef it is easy to prepare, incomparison to cod for example. However, heightened attention to conservation, the 100 mile diet, and organic food, has hit non-perishables hard. After nearly ten years of consistent per capita consumption decline, canned tuna production has become stagnent, with limited possibilities for growth. In the USA, canned tuna products are comprised of about 44 percent albacore tuna, the only species that can be marketed as "white meat tuna." Ahi Tuna is a popular item, but is marketed very differently from albacore, and is often CO-treated for a nice red colour in sushi applications. Since 2009, Canned tuna production has been sluggish in volume, but seems to have retained value, despite social issues surrounding the fishery. Following a lawsuit for underpacked cans against the food giant Sunkist, customers were offered compensation and coupons late last year. As Greenpeace continues to vocalize the unsuitable working conditions throughout the Albacore fishery, the public is rapidly becoming more adverse to tuna and tuna products. --- Changing consumer preferences has a ripple effect right down to the fishing docks too. We contacted a member of the Oregon Albacore Commission, who reported a 26 percent decrease in albacore harvests from 2013 to 2015. On top of this trend is a five-year consecutive decrease in value to the fishermen, dropping about 34 cents per year until reaching $1.23 / LB in 2015. Even though canned consumption is declining, Tuna remains among the top-3 seafood products in the USA. Buyers now have the opportunity to fill this gap with salmon, which fits the bill for health conscious consumers seeking omega 3s and sustainably sourced wild fish. ---Our TradexLIVE offer of the week is for 1-3lb IQF Halibut Fletches. These are #1 Quality, twice-frozen, wild caught in Russia, product of China, and are in Seattle for $12.45 /LB USD. Click or tap the icon above to view this offer. --- In October, buyers were holding out for any larger sized albacore that avoided canneries. The 15lb+ size are very rare, so we've typically seen offers circulating for the 9-15lb size. 9-15ls are $2.80 / LB Canadian in Vancouver right now. Late last year Seattle prices on this size were around the $2.40 US mark. It's anyone's guess how the fishery will pan out next year, but we anticipate smaller-sized tuna again as El Nino continues to shock the West Coast. ----Thank you for joining me for the Tradex Foods "3-Minute Market Insight" This is Kyla Ganton - “BUY SMART” and “EAT MORE SEAFOOD

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