Minister Sergio González said the fisheries sector will be a determining factor for Peru's economic growth in 2025.
Photo: Produce.
Five days ago, Peru closed the second anchovy fishing season in the north-central zone to protect the spawning stock. At that time, the Peruvian Ministry of Production (Produce) reported that 95% of the quota of 2.51 million tons allocated for the second season had been exceeded. Its head, Sergio González, later confirmed that the campaign had generated USD 1.4 billion (EUR 1.3 billion) in exports for the country.
"The balance of the second fishing season has been quite important," González said. "A quota of 2.51 million tons was established, of which to date 95% of the catch has been exceeded; that is, more than 2.4 million tons, which is the highest catch level in second seasons in the last decade," he noted.
As mentioned, the Peruvian Minister of Production also highlighted that this level of catches implies a growth in exports of more than USD 1.4 billion, and not only that but, as he also pointed out, this second anchovy fishing season was also key in job creation.
"This result is also due to important sources of employment, approximately 50 thousand jobs directly and indirectly provided by the fishing industry for indirect human consumption in our country," the head of Produce said.
According to the Environmental Performance Index 2024 (EPI 2024) by the Yale University and Columbia University science centers with the support of the McCall MacBain Foundation, Peru is one of the best fishing performance countries in the world, and the best fishing performance country in South America.
Taking stock of the anchovy fishing season just ended, Sergio González went on to state that the high level of catch achieved is likewise due to responsible and sustainable management of the fishery authorized by his ministry. Produce follows the scientific recommendations of the Peruvian Institute of the Sea (Imarpe) both in setting quotas and ordering the end of the season even if those quotas have not been reached.
This was also the case last week when it ordered the closure of the anchovy season to protect spawning and guarantee the sustainability of the resource, as explained by Peru's Vice-Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Jesús Barrientos, at the time.
"Caring for anchovy during reproduction is not only a biological necessity but a responsibility to ensure that this resource, a pillar of our industrial and artisanal fisheries, continues to generate economic, social, and nutritional benefits. Sustainability is not an option, it is a priority," he stated.
Now, his superior, the Minister of Production, said that Imarpe is already carrying out scientific evaluations of different species, both in the northern and southern zones, and everything points to positive prospects for the sector.
"The prospects for 2025 are important, we think that this year's economic growth will also have the fishing sector as an important factor," Minister Sergio González concluded.
