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Unwise fish resources exploitation should not be used as a means to push ahead the country’s economy. Fish catches should not be increased but processing of seafood products should be developed, Primorye’s Governor formulated as the main focus of the two-day international fishery forum in Vladivostok when addressing the participants on August 24.

The forum gathered more than 300 fishery professionals from 12 countries including the most packed delegations from Russia’s next door neighbors in the Pacific - Japan and South Korea, and a massive delegation came from Iceland which sent 23 representatives from 12 companies.

The forum participants openly demonstrated an intention to represent their companies and negotiate international deals. “We came from so far to collect factual information and get to know key players in the fishery industry in the Far East of Russia, “ a representative of Iceland delegation Jon Asbergsson revealed. “Russia is one of the major fish producers and consumers in the world and we are interested in establishing links, he added.

Discussions and seminars were organized to share views on Russia’s role in the international fish market and strategies on how to increase production and supply of value-added fish products onto the world market.” I came to the forum to share views with my colleagues and solve problems collectively,” reported William Turner, director of a Seattle-based UniMak Maritime commercial fishing company.

“Currently Russia throws raw materials at the market causing waves of instability. Increasing the value of the product rather than just shipping it to China should become a key goal for Russia. In other words, Russia, one of world’s largest producers and suppliers of sea products, needs to process its own products,” he stressed.

Russian participants understand the problem no less and intend not to underestimate it. “During the past five years Russian fish exports grew 30 percent while imports increased two-fold,” deputy Agriculture Minister Vladimir Izmailov revealed at the forum.” The worrying signal is that export prices tend to fall while import prices keep growing,” he added.

Another abnormal practice is that China and South Korea export much of Russia’s raw fish and then sell the value-added products from it back to Russia. “In case we do not take steps to change the situation, the domestic fish market will be ruined and the international market will have no place for Russia,” Izmailov categorically stressed.

Head of Primorye’s association of fisheries Dmitry Glotov suggested that a sound quota policy, the government’s control over fish resources and processing of fish domestically can solve the issue. “We might incur short-term losses but they will be then compensated by increased prices for value-added products,’ he noted.

Mitsuri Kitamura, manager of Russia’s operations section for Tokyo-based Maruha Corporation, revealed that, “If Russia wants to manage its fish resources effectively, it should take further steps to organize its own processing.”

“We have brought to this fishery forum the presentation of Maruha Seafood processing plant in North America to show how it operates in Alaska and prove that a similar plant can successfully work in Russia,” Mr. Kitamura said.

Russia would have to compete with its main trading partner China if she wants to get onto the stage of fish processing. China can boast a cheap labor force but Russia has abundant fish resources and can use this advantage. The higher price of value-added fish products coming from Russia’s plant can be compensated for by higher quality and there will be always consumers willing to pay for quality, Mr. Kitamura highlighted.

Finalizing the discussions at the fishery forum, Russian participants on August 25 signed unanimously the forum’s resolution stating Russia’s firm readiness to step forward as a stable supplier of the secondary processing products.