Estimates of illegal and unreported seafood imports to Japan

An investigation of illegal and unreported fishing in source countries indicates that 24-36% of 2.15 million tonnes of wild-seafood imports to Japan in 2015 were of illegal and unreported origin, valued at $1.6 to $2.4 billion, out of a total import of US$ 13 billion. A supply chain case study of crab imported from Russia illustrates the intricacies of trade in illegal seafood products in this region. Weakly framed import regulations and outdated fisheries policies appear to be driving an inadvertent trade of illegal and unreported seafood products into the Japanese market. A multilateral approach could extend the strict requirements for food safety to the country of origin and provide more complete supply chain traceability for all commercial seafood species imported by Japan.