Photo: courtesy El Universo

What influences Ecuador to sell more shrimp in the United States?

ECUADOR
Friday, April 16, 2021, 06:00 (GMT + 9)

Shrimp sales to China, one of the main markets, have fallen in this pandemic year and that has pushed exporters to try to compensate for those falls by looking for sale options in the United States.

The Ecuadorian shrimp sector is striving to serve segments such as retail (supermarkets and sales through online channels) and others that demand shrimp tails and value-added products

"This effort implies investments and increases in the processing costs of this shrimp that was previously sold whole to other countries and distribution channels," says José Antonio Camposano, president of the CNA.

Web portals specialized in sales of aquaculture products indicate that prices and a change in buyer behavior have favored the sale of Ecuadorian shrimp in North America.

Willem van der Pijl, a consultant for the Shrimpinsights portal, argues in an analysis that many buyers have moved from Indonesia to - for example - Ecuador because Indonesian growers tend to focus on larger sizes, while these US buyers actually require larger sizes. little ones.

This publication notes that the National Chamber of Aquaculture (CNA) and Sustainable Shrimp Partnership have been aggressively promoting Ecuadorian shrimp and aim to differentiate it from its Asian competitors, claiming sustainability and superior quality.

"With this strategy, Ecuador tries to enter the retail markets of the United States and Europe, which until now have been dominated by Asian suppliers," says Shrimpinsights.

The president of the CNA indicates that the Ecuadorian product has a higher standard than the competition in that market since antibiotics are not used in Ecuador. “The Asian competition is very tough, but it has serious problems of rejections due to the presence of antibiotics. Ecuador has a clean record ”, assures Camposano.

Being geographically closer and having a stable supply all year round have also helped the sector improve its shipments to North America. The sector expects to continue growing in the North American market while demand has suffered a contraction in others. (I)

Author: Jorge Villón Reyes / El Universo | Read the full article by clicking here (Only available in Spanish)

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