Seafood: A global commodity

Seafood is the most traded major food with an actual trade share of 39% and 77% of all production exposed to international trade. There is also a substantial increase in the global trade, fueled by a rapid production growth in aquaculture, the world´s fastest growing food production technology in recent decades. Changes in the retail sector, with the growth of the retail chains and larger companies in the catering sector have also contributed to significantly change the supply chains for seafood products. Focus on efficient logistics and economies of scale and scope has led major markets like the US and EU to be dominated by imported seafood. These changes has led the supply chains for many seafood products to become more similar to other foods in many aspects, like globalization and standardization of products, global sourcing, the use of contracts, development of futures markets and supply chains with deeper relationships but also differentiation with emphasis on ecolabels and sustainability. At the same time leading other foods in the globalization of markets for highly perishable food products such as fresh fish, berries and exotic fruits. A conference with seafood as a global commodity as the main topic will shed light on this development. This will improve our understanding of why larger and larger companies are formed in the seafood sector including their valuations, the development in trade flows and why price volatility for aquaculture products are being reduced relatively to wild fish and are obtaining characteristics more similar to other foods. While US is a leading importer of seafood, Norway is increasingly important as an exporter and producer, but even more so in how Norwegian companies are leading in the application of knowledge at all levels in the supply chains. The conference targets 25 presentations by a combination of leading experts on seafood production and trade and on the development of modern supply chains for food products.