The outlook for squid from South Africa (Loligo Reynaudi) is not promising. Following the closure of the fishery from April to June, catches in July have not turned out as expected, with a continuance of the downhill trend noted in the last seasons.
Everything points to the fact that change in water temperature is affecting availability of the resource, which has now had three years of low catches, leaving the 10,412 tonnes recorded back in 2010 far behind. The scarcity in supply of South African loligo has also been echoed in the export figures. In fact, exports to the EU fell from 18,682 tonnes in 2012 to 3,854 tonnes in 2013.
Faced with this lack of supply, prices have increased by over 60% over the past few years, and it is expected that as long as low catches continue, prices will carry on increasing.