"They Might Disappear from the Table"... 'Fishflation' Leaves Ordinary Consumers Struggling

Prices Surge Due to High Exchange Rates and Sharp Decline in Catches

As the production of mackerel and squid-often referred to as the "nation's fish"-has dropped significantly, prices have surged, raising concerns over "fishflation" (seafood + inflation).

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On November 30, the Fisheries Outlook Center at the Korea Maritime Institute announced that last month’s mackerel production was 6,993 tons, a decrease of 61.5% compared to the same month last year and 45.3% lower than the average year. A center official explained, "The decrease in mackerel production is largely due to fewer fishing days caused by the Chuseok holiday and adverse weather conditions." High sea temperatures caused by global warming were also cited as a reason.

In particular, the cumulative catch share of medium and large mackerel-preferred by consumers-from January to October this year was 4.6%, only about one-third of last year’s 12.9%. This is also a significant drop compared to the average year’s 20.5%. The consumer price (fresh refrigerated) surged by more than 10%. Last month, the consumer price of mackerel was 12,131 KRW per kilogram, up 10.5% from last year and 16.8% from the average year.

The consumer price of squid (fresh refrigerated) also rose by 19.8% over the past year, reaching 23,187 KRW per kilogram. This is the result of a decline in catch, with last month’s coastal squid production at 926 tons, down 21.8% compared to the same month last year. The center explained that both coastal and offshore squid supplies have decreased simultaneously, leading to a sharp drop in overall production.

The consumer price of mackerel (fresh refrigerated) surged by more than 10%. The consumer price of squid (fresh refrigerated) also rose by 19.8% over the past year, reaching 23,187 KRW per kilogram.

Seafood is a category highly dependent on imports. According to the Korea Maritime Institute, as of 2022, the import dependency rate for mackerel and squid was 46.3% and 63%, respectively. For this reason, the high exchange rate has also contributed to the sharp rise in seafood prices. In addition, for mackerel, the Norwegian government’s implementation of a quota system limiting its own mackerel catch has reduced imports of Norwegian mackerel, further impacting price increases.

Other species such as pollock and croaker have also seen price increases. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT), as of the end of last month, the price of frozen pollock per fish was 4,217 KRW, up 9% from the average year. The price of one frozen croaker was 1,421 KRW, up 13.5% from the average year.

According to the National Data Office’s consumer price trend survey, the seafood price index in October increased by 5.9% compared to a year earlier. With the overall consumer price inflation rate in the mid-5% range, this marks the largest October increase in seafood prices in three years since October 2022, when seafood prices rose by 6.4%. Among the 15 items tracked by Statistics Korea, the prices of 11 items-including croaker (16.9%), mackerel (11%), shrimp (9.8%), seaweed (8.1%), squid (7.4%), gim (6.8%), octopus (5.3%), hairtail (4.4%), and crab (3.2%)-have all increased.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.