The ban on importing fish into the US will be felt by consumers, not Russian fishermen – Kommersant

The US ban on the import of fish from Russian waters will primarily hit American consumers, says German Zverev, president of the All-Russian Association of Fish Industry (VARPE). He noted that the import of pollock from the Russian Federation to the United States has been declining since 2014 and Russian fishermen have not sought the American market.

“Imports of pollock from Russia to the United States have gradually dried up since 2014. Russian fishermen have not previously sought to enter the American pink salmon market. So the painful shock from the decision of the US government will be felt by American consumers, and not Russian fishermen,” Mr. Zverev told reporters.

The head of VARPE noted that an acute “crab shortage” previously occurred in the United States after the introduction of bans in 2022. This led to an increase in prices for crabs in retail and HoReCa in the USA itself. In addition, in the United States over the past 10 years, cod catches have halved and “the balance was maintained, among other things, by imports.”

A ban on seafood imports from Russia to the United States was introduced in the spring of 2022. In December 2023 was introduced embargo on seafood obtained in Russian waters by third countries or processed by them. Russia has limited imports of some seafood from the United States in July 2023.

Read more about Russian sanctions in the Kommersant article. “Boundaries are placed on wine and fish”.

Leonid Uvarchev