South African fish exports are making major inroads in the European Union (EU) market thanks to the economic partnership agreement (EPA) between the region and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
According to Jeremy Marillier, executive director of Fish SA, Cape hake makes up more than half of total volumes.
“Half of all fish exported by South Africa goes to the EU with hake being the most traded fish, followed by cephalopods,” said Marillier. “The EPA is gradually liberalising all Cape hake lines. By 2021 there will be 0% duty on fillets that currently carry a duty of 4%, while fresh hake will go from 11.5% duty to 0%.”
Some 600 000 tons of fish is harvested in South Africa every year across 22 fishing sectors. Wild capture fisheries contribute around 0.2% to the national GDP and at least 1.4% to the Western Cape GDP.
Several government programmes are under way to get smaller producers ready for export, according to Marillier. But he said the fish industry was extremely capital intensive, putting severe pressure on smaller companies and small producers to actively compete with the big companies in the sector.
Also challenging for smaller producers was the ability to achieve the necessary volumes to make export worthwhile. He said Africa offered real potential for fish exports – and also for expansion – with some of the bigger players in the country having established a foothold in countries like Angola and Mozambique where large fishing factories had been constructed.
According to Marillier, one of the biggest challenges in the African fishing sector, which has had a direct and severe impact on export, is poaching.
“There is no handle on it at present and it is getting worse. It impacts significantly on the volumes achieved.”
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The duty on fresh hake by 2021.
