Worldwide prices for fish oil and meal are expected to ease this year compared to last year’s high due to increased supply, according to a report by Rabobank.
Fish meal prices in 2022 reached US$1,600/tonne, which was well above recent levels, and fish oil prices surpassed the US$3,000/tonne mark for the first time, almost double the price levels of late 2020 and early 2021, the ‘Global Animal Protein Outlook 2023’ report said.
The Peruvian Ministry for Produce had announced a 2.283M tonne quota for the December to March period, Rabobank said, which was 11.5% higher than the quota in the same period last year.
In addition, improving quotas in Europe contributed to a positive supply outlook, the report, published in December, said.
However, with soyabean meal and soyabean oil prices reaching a peak in the first half of last year and then starting to ease off, Rabobank expected this to also influence fish meal and fish oil prices.
“This price correction should not be overstated, however, as terrestrial feed commodities remain in tight supply and high prices are only marginally declining. Any unforeseen issues in the supply of either terrestrial or marine commodities would provide renewed price support,” the report said.
China’s fish meal stocks in the third quarter of 2022 were slightly below 2021’s level, which suggested Chinese buyers might not be willing to commit to much higher price levels once Peruvian supply from the December 2022 to March 2023 quota was delivered in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of this year.
