Norway is in the first place in the list of countries exporting fish to Ukraine. From there, Ukraine imports herring, salmon, trout, and mackerel. Iceland is in second place, which also leads to mackerel and herring supply. Closes the TOP-3 of the largest exporting fish to Ukraine — the United States, famous for pollock and hake, wild Alaska salmon, and red caviar.
The market of Ukraine is developing, so, there is some room for development also for the imports from the state of Alaska to Ukraine. In Alaska, there are many different species of fish, which are brought to the country only in small quantities. These are commercial species of fish, such as flounder and Pacific cod, and premium products, such as halibut or scallops, and also value-added products — Alaska pollock fillets, single-frozen, or mince.
The most valuable from a consumer point of view in Ukraine is red fish, in particular salmon and trout. According to the State customs service, in 2020, Ukraine imported 42.400 tons of red fish for a total of $160.8 million, which is 31% higher than the same period last year. In general, over the past five years, the volume of imports of red fish increased by 2.1 times.
Ukraine imports 90% of frozen fish. The relative proximity of Norway allows importing chilled trout and salmon, and Turkey — sea bass and dorado. Basically, fish is brought in for retail sale or to factories for further processing into finished products.
Modern technologies of shock freezing allow preserving the freshness, taste, aroma, and texture of fish and seafood meat. The quality of frozen products often exceeds the quality of fresh ones because the latter is brought to the consumer for several days from the moment of catch.
