IFFO estimates 5.6 million tons of fishmeal and between 1.2 and 1.3 million tons of fish oil for 2025.
Photo: Produce.
Last month, IFFO, The Marine Ingredients Organisation, reported that the total cumulative fishmeal and fish oil production in March 2025 had increased compared to the same period in 2024. Now, April data shows that Peru's anchovy season heralds steady production for 2025 in the South American country, ensuring global production progress this year.
As reported by WeAreAquaculture, the first anchovy fishing season in the north-central region of Peru started on April 22, 2025. Although it did so one week later than in 2024, the season started already with very good prospects not only in terms of catches, but also concerning other indicators such as its contribution to the fishing GDP, which is expected to be 49% of the total, equivalent to an added value of PEN 1,177 million (USD 317.2 million), or the approximately 50,000 direct jobs in the whole chain of the extractive fishing activity that it will generate.
Regarding the total allowable catch (TAC), this year's was the highest in the last seven, 3,000,000 tons. According to IFFO, to date, approximately 70% of that quota has been met. Resources that, as The Marine Ingredients Organisation reminded once again, are key for the production of fishmeal and fish oil, since Peru contributes an average of 20% to world production.
According to IFFO's market intelligence reports - based on statistics shared by IFFO members in Chile, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Ivory Coast, Mauritius, Norway, the UK, the USA, Peru, South Africa and Spain, accounting for 40% of global fishmeal production and 50% of fish oil output - in April 2025, total cumulative fishmeal production increased by approximately 3% compared to the same month last year.
This increase, IFFO said, was driven by growth in all regions in which the organization's members operate, except in Northern European countries, the only area to record a negative performance compared to January-April 2024.
As for fish oil, through April 2025, total cumulative production for the year increased by 14% year-on-year. As with fishmeal, almost all countries reported a positive trend in cumulative fish oil production compared to January-April last year, with the exception of European countries.
"IFFO's 2025 estimates for fishmeal and fish oil are at 5.6 million tons of fishmeal and 1.2-1.3 million tons of fish oil," IFFO's Market Research Director, Dr Enrico Bachis, commented on the outlook for the rest of the current year.
While this is happening in the member countries of IFFO, The Marine Ingredients Organisation, as already happened in 2024, in China, fishmeal seems to follow the opposite trend: as Peru goes up, the Asian giant goes down.
During the first five months of 2025, China's domestic production of marine ingredients is estimated to be lower than the same period of the previous year, as fishery closures are currently in place and most local fishmeal plants are inactive. Thus, for the time being, the main raw material for fishmeal and fish oil production in the country will come from frozen fish, imported sardines, and by-products from processing facilities.
Nevertheless, according to The Marine Ingredients Organisation, continued growth is expected in Chinese aquaculture production and, as a consequence, also in the demand for aquaculture feed and the use of marine ingredients through 2025.
Chinese official sources have reported an increase in aquaculture production in the country until April 2025, so IFFO considers it likely that domestic aquaculture feed production will also grow year-on-year during the first four months of the year.
IFFO added that anticipated harvest profits in the third and fourth quarters, particularly for species with high dietary fishmeal requirements, are also contributing to this positive trend.
