The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) discussed the potential impact of COVID-19 on the fishing industry in a Q&A platform. Some of these views organized from the perspectives of movement restrictions, stagnation of distribution, and the working environment are presented here.

● Impact of movement restrictions and stagnation on fisheries

The global market has cooled with the spread of COVID-19 infections, and the fishing industry, which relies heavily on international trade, has been significantly affected from an early stage. The seafood supply chain is facing a crisis as consumer demand declines due to the closure of hotels, restaurants, school lunches and employee cafeterias. In addition, many women have employment opportunities in industries related to the distribution and consumption of marine products, and COVID-19 has a considerable impact from the perspective of women's social advancement.

Restrictions on the movement of people due to lockdowns and the resulting stagnation in the transportation of goods make it difficult to trade seafood. In particular, the salmon industry has suffered greatly from increased air freight costs and cancellation of flights. In the tuna fishery, movement restrictions have also prevented repatriation and replacement of crew members or fisheries observers of fishing vessels. In addition, seeds, baits, and other materials related to aquaculture (such as vaccines for aquaculture) are becoming scarce in the entire aquaculture industry. In addition, a large amount of fish that cannot be shipped in cages, increasing the cost of these feeds and increasing the risk of increased mortality. In the fishing industry, the number of operations has decreased due to sluggish demand and prices, and the landing volume has decreased accordingly. Lower fishing pressures may have a positive impact on natural fish resources in the short term. However, before that, some companies may become financially inaccessible or give up on the fishing industry from the perspective of incentives.

Seafood and processed marine products are the most actively traded foods in the world, with approximately 38% being imported and exported. At the same time, in many communities that depend on seafood, in low-income countries and in developing countries such as island countries, fisheries and aquaculture are important sources of household income. Various measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 have led to a stagnation in the food industry and tourism, a reduction in the transportation industry, delays in cross-border procedures, and the like, causing confusion in domestic and overseas supply chains. Live fish, fresh fish, and chilled fish, which account for 45% of the marine products consumed, are extremely fragile, which makes logistics even more difficult. If the seafood is not delivered to the fish processing plant through the cold chain at the right time, it will cause a lot of food loss. In addition, fisheries processing plants suffer from lack of protective equipment and clothing for hygiene management.

● Impact on the working environment related to fisheries

Since COVID-19 does not infect aquatic organisms, it does not infect humans via aquatic products. There are no known cases of infection via food packaging. However, it was announced that one employee was the source of infection at a fishery factory in Ghana, and another 533 employees had a mass outbreak of COVID-19. Therefore, maintaining and improving an appropriate occupational health environment in the process of food processing, distribution and consumption remains important.

It is difficult for fishermen who live on a fishing boat for a long period of time to live together and maintain physical distancing on board fishing vessels. If fishing vessels are forced to reduce the number of crew to or because of the difficulty in securing fishers, this may result in working for longer time that may cause fatigue and stress among the crew, and compromise safety measures. Also, as you know in the case of a cruise ship, it is difficult to land on a doctor even if a symptom of COVID-19 infection is suspected while on board.

In many developing countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented economic, social and health crisis for the most vulnerable groups, including female and seasonal workers and migrants involved in the fishing industry. These people, who are often not officially registered as workers, do not have access to social aid, which could increase the secondary damage of the pandemic due to poverty and hunger.

● Future outlook

In some areas, retail sales have increased as a result of stagnant food distribution. In some cases, canned seafood and dried products suitable for storage were bought up early in the pandemic, but there are reports that demand for retort foods and surimi products that are effective in storage is growing in Japan. Demand for such products exceeds their production capacities in some areas, and producers' efforts are continuing, such as focusing on the best-selling products for stable supply. On the other hand, new attempts are being made in terms of distribution, such as the construction of a direct sales system that replaces the existing fresh fish sales. Some fishermen are taking measures such as targeting the domestic market by changing the gear used and the species to be caught. These flexible responses are considered to be important for sustaining the community of fisheries personnel during and after the pandemic.

It is uncertain how long the pandemic will last and how severely it will affect the fisheries industry, but long-term market stagnation is likely to cause major changes in the fisheries sector. Extensive COVID-19 containment strategies threaten foreign currency depletion and food security for seafood imports and exports. But keeping the supply chain open is fundamental to avoiding the global food crisis.

References

FAO. Q&A: COVID-19 pandemic - impact on fisheries and aquaculture　

The Nihon Keizai Shimbun「ガーナの水産工場「1人から533人感染」　大統領発表」2020/5/12 

The Japan Food Journal「新型コロナ：水産練り製品、市場活況続く「良質タンパク」が追い風」2020/5/1　

Contributor: ABE Osamu (Director, Fisheries Division)