With Irish pork facing Chinese retaliatory tariffs and our beef frozen on the sidelines, Irish seafood exports offer a welcome respite from the negative news about Irish food exports to China. The growth is welcome, as it helps to reduce our reliance on European markets and bolsters diversification into Asian markets, particularly China. Early decisions in the seafood industry to align interests and pool resources in China is beginning to reap rewards.
In 2024, Ireland sold 6,300t of seafood to China, which is a 40% increase on the previous year. And 2025 seems to be carrying on in a similar vein. Shellfish is driving this surge. China’s appetite for brown crab and langoustine is well-renowned. These seasonal peaks and follow-through consumption are beneficial for the Irish industry.
Chinese consumers are interested in freshness, safety and nutritional value and the Irish industry is well-equipped to take advantage of that. The recovery of internal tourism and, indeed the increasing number of Chinese tourists visiting Ireland helps.
The demand for quality in food service is a strong growth driver that will favour Irish produce into the future. Indeed, a look through the Little Red book (a social media platform which was all the craze earlier this year, but has largely returned to a China-only platform) shows large numbers of posts about Irish seafood experiences in our restaurants and markets.
These Irish seafood experiences certainly connect to people when they make their domestic food choices in Shanghai, for example.
We are still, however, just a drop in the ocean when it comes to China’s seafood demand. According to Rabobank estimates, China’s overall seafood market will have an increase of a further 5.5m tonnes between 2025 and 2030, making the segment one of the most promising across the planet.
The industry had suffered dramatically during COVID-19 and in reality, only recovered last year.
While the prospects are promising, the environmental costs of supplying seafood to China will begin to become more acute in the coming period.
I have visited shrimp producers in China. While the domestic industry can produce up to 1.2m tonnes a year, China needs to import over 1m tonnes and consumers tend to prefer imported shrimp due to size, taste and quality. The stocking density and levels of disease and challenges continue to make production in China extremely challenging.
With Chinese producers stretched, Ireland is well equipped to pick up some of the projected growth. The direct flight between Beijing and Dublin and the other regular flights between China and Ireland have made logistics and transport more feasible even for Irish oysters.
Speaking to restaurant owners, while French oysters are still the dominant choice, Irish options are popular both in western fine dining, but also increasingly in fusion cuisine.
An Irish chef in Shanghai, Curt Evans, who has opened an Irish-themed restaurant named Yeats, is keen to showcase the best of Irish seafood.
In the last week of October, the world’s seafood industry converged in Qingdao and Ireland had a delegation led by the Minister of State with responsibility for Fisheries, Timmy Dooley where the good news from Irish seafood popularity and a busy agenda allowed for a welcome break from the tougher portfolios of beef, pork and dairy.
With Irish pork facing Chinese retaliatory tariffs and our beef frozen on the sidelines, Irish seafood exports offer a welcome respite from the negative news about Irish food exports to China. The growth is welcome, as it helps to reduce our reliance on European markets and bolsters diversification into Asian markets, particularly China. Early decisions in the seafood industry to align interests and pool resources in China is beginning to reap rewards.
In 2024, Ireland sold 6,300t of seafood to China, which is a 40% increase on the previous year. And 2025 seems to be carrying on in a similar vein. Shellfish is driving this surge. China’s appetite for brown crab and langoustine is well-renowned. These seasonal peaks and follow-through consumption are beneficial for the Irish industry.
Chinese consumers are interested in freshness, safety and nutritional value and the Irish industry is well-equipped to take advantage of that. The recovery of internal tourism and, indeed the increasing number of Chinese tourists visiting Ireland helps.
The demand for quality in food service is a strong growth driver that will favour Irish produce into the future. Indeed, a look through the Little Red book (a social media platform which was all the craze earlier this year, but has largely returned to a China-only platform) shows large numbers of posts about Irish seafood experiences in our restaurants and markets.
These Irish seafood experiences certainly connect to people when they make their domestic food choices in Shanghai, for example.
We are still, however, just a drop in the ocean when it comes to China’s seafood demand. According to Rabobank estimates, China’s overall seafood market will have an increase of a further 5.5m tonnes between 2025 and 2030, making the segment one of the most promising across the planet.
The industry had suffered dramatically during COVID-19 and in reality, only recovered last year.
While the prospects are promising, the environmental costs of supplying seafood to China will begin to become more acute in the coming period.
I have visited shrimp producers in China. While the domestic industry can produce up to 1.2m tonnes a year, China needs to import over 1m tonnes and consumers tend to prefer imported shrimp due to size, taste and quality. The stocking density and levels of disease and challenges continue to make production in China extremely challenging.
With Chinese producers stretched, Ireland is well equipped to pick up some of the projected growth. The direct flight between Beijing and Dublin and the other regular flights between China and Ireland have made logistics and transport more feasible even for Irish oysters.
Speaking to restaurant owners, while French oysters are still the dominant choice, Irish options are popular both in western fine dining, but also increasingly in fusion cuisine.
An Irish chef in Shanghai, Curt Evans, who has opened an Irish-themed restaurant named Yeats, is keen to showcase the best of Irish seafood.
In the last week of October, the world’s seafood industry converged in Qingdao and Ireland had a delegation led by the Minister of State with responsibility for Fisheries, Timmy Dooley where the good news from Irish seafood popularity and a busy agenda allowed for a welcome break from the tougher portfolios of beef, pork and dairy.
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