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FishWatch - U.S. Seafood Facts

 
U.S. Seafood Imports and Exports, in Value
How much seafood does the U.S. import and export? (By value)
 
U.S. Seafood Imports and Exports, by Volume
How much seafood does the U.S. import and export? (By volume)
 
U.S. Imports from Major Areas, 2006, by Volume
What areas does the U.S. import seafood from?
 
U.S. Imports from Major Exporters, 2006, by Volume
What countries does the U.S. import seafood from?
 
Shrimp Imports by Major Exporter, 2006, by Volume
What countries does the U.S. import most of our shrimp from?
 
Imports of Canned Tuna by Major Exporter, 2006, by Volume
What countries does the U.S. import most of our canned tuna from?
 
U.S. Aquaculture Production in 2005
What and how much does the U.S. produce through aquaculture?

Trade

In the U.S. in 2007, we consumed 16.3 pounds of seafood per person, down 0.2 pounds from 2006. Our domestic supply of seafood satisfies less than 20% of this high demand so we import over 80% of the seafood we eat. The U.S. imported a record $13.7 billion worth of seafood in 2007, $0.3 billion more than 2006.

About 5.3 billion pounds of seafood, were imported in 2007, 53.8 million pounds less than the quantity imported in 2006. The top species imported (by volume) include shrimp, tuna, salmon, groundfish, freshwater fish, crab, and squid. In 2007, the U.S. exported 2.9 billion pounds of seafood, valued at $4.3 billion, a decrease of 97.9 million pounds and an increase of $30.9 million from 2006. The major fresh and frozen exports were salmon, surimi, and lobsters; salmon was the major canned item exported.

U.S. Seafood Imports and Exports, in Value
U.S. Seafood Imports and Exports, in Volume

Top Countries We Import From:
U.S. Imports from Major Areas, 2007, by Volume
U.S. Imports from Major Exporters, 2007, by Volume

Top 10 Imports in 2007
By Value
1 - Shrimp (Fresh and frozen) $3.9 billion
2 - Salmon (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) $1.05 billion
3 - Crabs (Fresh and frozen) $847.5 million
4 - Freshwater (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) $764.7 million
5 - Tuna (Fresh and frozen - whole) $583.9 million
6 - American lobster (Fresh and frozen) $564 million
7 - Tuna (Canned) $524.5 million
8 - Salmon (Fresh and frozen - whole) $523.2 million
9 - Groundfish (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) $468 million
10 - Crabmeat (Canned) $441.9 million

By Volume
1 - Shrimp (Fresh and frozen) 1.2 billion pounds
2 - Tuna (Fresh and frozen - whole) 417 million pounds
3 - Freshwater (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) 407 million pounds
4 - Tuna (Canned) 378 million pounds
5 - Salmon (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) 318 million pounds
6 - Groundfish (Fresh and frozen - fillets and steaks) 215 million pounds
7 - Salmon (Fresh and frozen - whole) 204 million pounds
8 - Crabs (Fresh and frozen) 200 million pounds
9 - Freshwater (Fresh and frozen - whole) 133 million pounds
10 - Squid (Fresh and frozen) 125 million pounds

Shrimp Imports by Major Exporter, 2007, by Volume
Shrimp was the number one import in 2007 at a quantity of 1.2 billion pounds, 73.6 million pounds less than the amount imported in 2006, and at a value of $3.9 billion, making up 28% of value of total edible imports. Over 30% of the shrimp we import comes from Thailand.

Imports of Canned Tuna by Major Exporter, 2007, by Volume
Half of the canned tuna we import comes from Thailand.

The NMFS Office of Science and Technology has maintained a foreign trade database for several years. The office has developed a series of programs that summarize U.S. foreign trade in fisheries products dating back to 1989.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Offices of Seafood and Regulatory Affairs offer a useful resource called the Regulatory Fish Encyclopedia. It's a searchable database of over 1500 species of finfish and shellfish important in the U.S. and their acceptable market, common, vernacular, and scientific names.

Aquaculture
Aquaculture, or fish farming, is the propagation and rearing of aquatic organisms in controlled or selected environments for any commercial, recreational or public purpose. At least 40% of the seafood we import is farmed. Currently in the United States, freshwater aquaculture production (such as catfish) far outpaces marine aquaculture efforts. Domestic marine production makes up only 1.5% of U.S. seafood supply and is dominated by shellfish. Growth in domestic aquaculture can help reduce our dependence on seafood imports, meet the growing demand for seafood, create jobs, and provide additional economic opportunities for U.S. coastal communities.

NOAA's aquaculture efforts are focused on creating domestic seafood supply to meet growing demand for seafood products, within the context of NOAA's marine stewardship responsibilities. For more information, go to the NOAA Aquaculture Program website.

U.S. aquaculture production in 2006

 

 

 

 
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