Octopus, which showed signs of improved supplies, is now experiencing increasing demand in many markets. The same seems to be true for squid, though squid supplies are a bit tighter in some areas. The cuttlefish market remains dull. No great price increases are expected, in spite of the fact that demand is improving with the recovery of world economies.

Octopus

In Venezuela, a ban on octopus fishing went into force on 1 January and it is to stay in force until 30 June 2014. The authorities claim that sustainability concerns are behind this move. The Government of Venezuela has further introduced a number of regulatory measures, such as reserving the octopus fishery for artisanal fishers, introducing a minimum catch weight of 400 g and introducing new and stricter reporting requirements.

These measures will affect the market to some extent, but are largely balanced by increases in quotas and catches in other parts of the world. For instance, Morocco and Mauritania earlier increased their octopus quotas, and supplies from Mexico have also improved.

Japan’s imports of octopus continued to grow in the third quarter of 2013. Compared with 2012, imports were up by 39% during the first three quarters of the year, to 42 900 tonnes. The main suppliers, Morocco and Mauritania, both increased shipments to Japan. The most dramatic increase was registered for Morocco, which experienced almost a quadrupling of their octopus exports to Japan during the period. Mauritanian exports increased by a more modest 29%.  China, on the other hand, reduced shipments to Japan by 21.7%.

Octopus imports into Italy are stagnant. During the first nine months of 2013, a 1.3% decrease was registered. Again, Morocco was the main supplier, with a 40% share of total octopus imports.  Morocco’s octopus shipments  to Italy increased by over 108% during the period. Spain increased exports to Italy, while all of the other major suppliers reduced sales to Italy during the first three quarters of 2013.

Spanish octopus imports are back on track, as the country seems to be turning the economy around slowly. Imports during the first nine months increased by over 47%. Most of this increase was accounted for by an almost doubling of shipments from Morocco, and a significant increase (+400%) in shipments from Spain.  Only minor changes were registered for other suppliers.

Octopus prices have been remarkably stable over the past year, at least on the European market. With supplies being more stable, no great changes in octopus prices are expected.

Squid

Giant squid (or jumbo flying squid as it is also called) has become the object of significant marketing attention over the past few months. Peruvian landings were increasing, but have recently been hit by La Nina. In 2011, total landings of giant squid amounted to over 900 000 tonnes. This year, it is expected that total landings will be down. However, at the same time, demand for this species is growing.

In the face of decreasing supplies, increased efforts are now going into developing new products based on giant squid in a number of countries.

In Peru, one company has introduced breaded giant squid hamburgers, and squid tentacles are offered as an alternative to octopus tentacles. Other products include innovative cuts of various shapes. It is hoped that these new products may help improve profitability even with lower landings of giant squid.

In Spain, Cabomar is introducing pre-fried giant squid rings as a new product under the name anillas a la romana.  Other companies have also offered similar products on the Spanish market.

Peruvian companies are also targeting China as a new market for their giant squid products, and some companies are investing in setting up warehouses and other infrastructure to serve this market.

Viet Nam is expanding its markets for cephalopods, including squid, in Southeast Asia. Exports from Viet Nam to other ASEAN countries are up, while exports to more traditional markets like Japan, South Korea and the EU have been slipping lately. Thailand is now the most important market for Vietnamese cephalopods, accounting for about 79% of Vietnamese shipments to the ASEAN. Malaysia is the second largest market for Viet Nam, while significant growth in shipments to the Philippines has also been registered lately.

Although Japanese imports of giant squid have been reduced, total imports of squid are increasing. During the first nine months of 2013, Japanese imports increased by 22.7%, to 68 100 tonnes. By far the largest supplier to Japan is China, which accounts for 42% of total squid imports. Peru is the second largest supplier, with a 16% share of imports. Both China and Peru registered increases in their exports to Japan during the period.

Italian squid imports are also rising. During the first three quarters of 2013, imports were up by 17.5% compared with the same period in 2012. Spain and Thailand are the dominant suppliers, accounting for 

18 100 tonnes (32% of totals) and 12 400 tonnes (22% of  total, respectively). 

However, in Spain the picture is different. Imports of squid during the period decreased by just over 10% in 2013. Imports are totally dominated by shipments from China, which accounted for almost 70% of total imports. Shipments from China increased marginally, from 28 200 tonnes in 2012 to 30 400 tonnes in 2013.

US trade in squid products are fairly high, but somewhat stagnant. Over the past few years, the USA has played a more active role in the squid market, both as an importer and as an exporter. But in 2013, US imports of squid dropped by 4.4% during the first nine months.

China is the main supplier to the USA, accounting for over 58% of total imports. Other Asian countries like the Republic of Korea, India, and Thailand are other important suppliers, as is Peru. US exports of squid during the first three quarters fell slightly, from 61 600 tonnes in 2012 to 60 200 tonnes in 2013 (-2.2%). The export value fell by 2.8%, to USD 92.2 million.

Squid prices, which were on a relatively steady upward trend from early 2010, took a dive in the second half of 2012, but started climbing again in 2013. Over the past six months, prices have been rather stable, but showed some signs of rising at the end of 2013. In view of the improved supplies towards the end of last year, no big increases are expected.

Cuttlefish

On the cuttlefish market, things are quieter, and international trade is diminishing. Imports into all the major markets were down during the first nine months of 2013.

Japanese cuttlefish imports declined by over 20%, to just 10 000 tonnes. The main supplier, Thailand, shipped 18.6% less in 2013 than in 2012. Viet Nam also exported less cuttlefish to Japan in 2013.

On the European markets, imports declined even more. Spain saw a 14.6% reduction in imports, while Italy reduced imports by almost 14%. Morocco was by far the largest supplier to Spain, with a 50% share of total imports, but in Italy, Morocco was a modest supplier, accounting for only 9% of total imports.