Low-Income Fish Consumers’ Subsidies to the Fish Reduction Industry: The Case of Forage Fish

Forage fish, a crucial source of nutrition in developing countries, are, unfortunately, primarily used for fishmeal and aquafeed production for aquaculture, which mainly serves consumers in developed countries. Industrial fish use leaves a meager portion of the catch available for direct human consumption in these fish-producing countries, leading to inflated fish prices locally. Overfishing forage fish due to the needs of the reduction fishery industry disrupts the ecosystem, diminishes the catch of larger fish, such as mackerel, and marginalizes local artisanal fishermen. This article briefly appraises the financial and nutritional impacts of elevated fish prices on low-income consumers in forage-fish-producing countries, drawing attention to the ethical implications of this situation. By reducing the supply to the industry, a hypothetical 10% boost in the annual supply of fresh forage fish to the current global supply of 5 million Mt (metric tons), markets could save consumers annually hundreds of millions of US dollars globally, tens of millions of US dollars nationally, and several dollars for families while improving the nutrition of families that depend on forage fish. The numbers suggest that even a modest supply shift from industry to the supply of forage fish to fresh fish markets could significantly benefit fish-producing nations and consumers. In some countries, such as South Africa, the orders of magnitude of these sums approach those of the entire value of local fish reduction industries. Increased fish prices could be considered involuntary subsidies by low-income consumers to the aquafeed and aquaculture industries. In summary, the current use of captured forage fish in reduction industries and aquaculture warrants further scrutiny, as it inadvertently burdens disadvantaged societies financially and nutritionally. This article proposes using alternative protein sources and cultivating non-carnivorous fish, among several optional measures, to ensure the equitable distribution of forage fish resources.