The UK is home to many fish species and the industry contributes largely to the economy. Surrounding this island nation is the Atlantic Ocean on the west, and the North Sea on the east. The
are mackerel and herring. The fishing industry, while historically important in the United Kingdom, has faced many challenges in recent years. While fishery and aquaculture feeds a large majority of the world’s population, over-fishing has become increasingly persistent and threatens both the environment and global food supply. In 2023,
amounted to around 4.05 billion British pounds, down from over 4.2 billion British pounds in 2022.
Seafood retail in the UK
As of 2022, there were 1,265
UK enterprises that specifically sold fish, crustaceans, and mollusks. There was an ongoing downward trend since 2008, however, from 2019 figures began to pick up again. That same year, the majority of seafood consumers in the UK purchased their fish chilled. In 2023, over 60 percent of
retail sales in the seafood market were chilled products. Of these chilled seafood products, the
largest chilled segment were fresh and natural products, without any breading or other preparation.
International seafood trade with the UK
The
import value of fresh fish into the UK has fluctuated in recent years before decreasing to just under 17.4 million British pounds in 2023. The
import value of frozen fish has generally increased, peaking in 2019. Salmon, cod, and tuna were amongst the
most imported type of fish. Cod fishing is highly regulated in the UK, as cod stocks previously plummeted and once came very close to collapsing. The demand is still there, however, as cod is often the fish of choice in their famous and
well-loved dish of ‘fish and chips’.
Consumer expenditure in the UK on fish & seafood
Since 2003, the
consumer price index (CPI) on fish in the UK has risen considerably, meaning households are paying more today for the same amount of fish compared to 2003. The consumer price index on fish in the UK totaled 63.8 points in 2003, however, in 2023 it stood at over 136. Several factors previously touched on are thought to influence the performance of the industry, and the corresponding CPI. People in the UK in the age bracket between 50 and 75 are the
largest consumers of fish, spending upwards of 3.3 British pounds per week on fish products. This is in contrast to those under 30 years of age, who spend on average just 1.8 British pounds.
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