About 60% of fish used in Iran’s canned tuna production (about 50,000 tons) are imported, the secretary of the Syndicate of Canning Industry said.
“Fish imports mainly come from China, but before [US] sanctions were imposed, we imported tuna from Thailand, Spain, South Korea and some European countries,” Mohammad Mir-Razavi was also quoted as saying by ILNA.
A total of 130 factories currently produce canned tuna in Iran.
The official noted that Iranian canned tuna is very popular among Central Asian countries, Persian Gulf counties and Iraq.
Iranian producers use local fish similar to tuna species mainly caught from the southern waters in their canning industry. The product is colloquially still referred to as tuna in Iran.
“Around half of canned tuna fish factories have been forced to shut down as most of those still open are operating at 50% of their full capacity,” Masoud Bakhtiari, the deputy head of Iran’s Conserve Industries Syndicate, said recently.
“This has led to a gradual but considerable increase in prices over the past few years. Given that Iranians have experienced a decline in their purchasing power, canned tuna has lost most of its customers,” he was quoted as saying by the news portal Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture.
According to the official, up until four years ago, an average of 600 million cans of tuna used to be produced every year, but the figure dropped close to 300 million during the last Iranian year (March 2020-21).
“We estimate the production of canned tuna to reach 200-250 million cans this year,” he added.
Bakhtiari noted that previously tuna was the main source of protein for the middle- to lower-income households, but unfortunately they have been compelled to reduce the share or omit the food product altogether from their consumption basket.
“Tuna production firms have no choice but to increase their end prices because production costs have grown significantly. Part of the fish used in the industry is imported. Over the past few years, imports have been limited and prices have gone up. This has also impacted the prices of locally-supplied tuna,” he said.
The official stated that despite the fact that end prices are already high, canned tuna factories have asked the Consumer and Producer Protection Organization to consider another price increase.
“Right now, some factories have closed down and are waiting to resume activity in late October or early November when harvest season begins and prices become more reasonable,” he added.
A total of 6,210 tons of canned tuna worth $24 million were exported from Iran during the last fiscal year (March 2020-21), registering a 99.3% jump in weight and a 60% hike in value compared with the year before, according to Isa Golshahi, an official with Iran Fisheries Organization.
“Our main export destinations over the period under review were Iraq, Armenia, the littoral countries of Persian Gulf and the members of the Commonwealth of Independent States,” he was quoted as saying by IRNA.
The official further said production has experienced a slight decline this year due to a fall in tuna fish harvest in Iran’s southern waters.
