United States Seafood Consumption Declines; NFI Sees Health Risk

Shrimp is still America’s favorite seafood, but overall seafood consumption in the United States dipped to 16 pounds per capita last year, compared to 16.3 in 2007 and 16.5 in 2006 – and the lowest since 15.6 in 2002.

That’s bad news from a public health standpoint, said Jennifer McGuire, a registered dietitian with the National Fisheries Institute (NFI), after the McLean, Virginia-based trade association released the 2008 figures, based on data from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).

“Fish and shellfish fall in the rare category of foods Americans should be eating more of, not less,” she said. “Thousands of people die every year because they don’t get enough Omega-3s, and that’s a statistic that’s easily reversible.” According to research supported by the Centers for Disease Control, low Omega-3 intake is responsible for 84,000 deaths every year in the USA.

At 4.1 pounds per capita, consumption of shrimp last year was unchanged from 2007, but down from 4.4 in 2006. Canned tuna was up slightly from 2.7 to 2.8, most likely because it is relatively inexpensive. Salmon dropped from 2.36 to 1.84, and pollock from 1.73 to 1.34. But there were slight gains for tilapia, from 1.14 to 1.19; and catfish, from .88 to .92. Crab, cod and flatfish were all down, but clams went from .32 to .42 – enough to take ninth place from flatfish.

Market Nears $70 Billion

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Americans spent $69.8 billion on seafood last year – $46.8 billion at foodservice outlets and $22.7 billion at retail, with industrial seafood products accounting for the remaining $389.4 million. The year before, the figure was $68.4 billion – $45.8 billion at foodservice, $22.1 billion at retail, plus $474.2 million for industrial seafood products. Total US seafood supply (edible, round weight) was 11.8 billion pounds in 2008, down from 12.5 billion pounds in 2007.

US seafood imports (edible, round weight) were 10.5 billion pounds last year, off from 10.8 billion pounds in 2007, while exports (edible, round weight) totaled 5.3 billion pounds, down from 5.8 billion pounds. Total US seafood landings (edible, round weight) slipped to 6.6 billion pounds in 2008, compared to 7.5 billion the year before. Imports represented 88.3% of the total US seafood supply last year, up from 86.2% in 2007, 87.1% in 2006, and 86.3% in 2005.