Feed ingredients body cheered by Peruvian anchovy catch

The second fishing season in the North-Centre coastal region of Peru has ended with the anchoveta fleet having landed almost all of its 1.63 million tonne quota, marine ingredients organisation IFFO has announced.

Oil-rich anchovies are regarded as the gold standard for inclusion in feed for salmon and other farmed fish.

“This is positive news,” said IFFO market research director Dr Enricho Bachis. “While data still needs to be confirmed for the full year, we expect 2025 [in Peru] to have delivered [only] slightly lower production of both fishmeal and fish oil compared with 2024.” 

IFFO data are based on statistics shared by IFFO members in Chile, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Iceland, Ivory Coast, Mauritius, Norway, the UK, the US, Peru, South Africa and Spain, accounting for 40% of global fishmeal production and 50% of fish oil output.

Fishmeal up 2%, oil up 7%

Using these data as a guide, IFFO has calculated that by November 2025, the global cumulative annual fishmeal production rose by approximately 2% compared to the same period in 2024. This increase was driven by higher output in most regions, except for the African countries and Iceland and North Atlantic area, which reported a year-on-year decline.

Similarly, cumulative fish oil output through November 2025 showed a year-on-year increase of around 7%. Most countries recorded positive trends compared to January-November 2024, with the exception of Peru, where lower oil yields in 2025 played a significant role in the decline.

Less in China

IFFO sais that China’s marine ingredients production was significantly lower in 2025 compared with 2024, leading to increased imports.

China’s production of marine ingredients remains constrained by higher costs and lower profitability for local producers. With the peak fishing period already over, there are limited expectations for improvement through the rest of the season up to April 2026. Fishmeal and fish oil production in 2025 is projected to fall by 20%-30% from 2024 levels. Through 2025, China's global fishmeal imports increased by about 5% compared to the previous year, with Peru, Vietnam, and Chile as the top three suppliers.

Domestic aquaculture production continues to expand in China, with 2025 output expected to exceed 2024 levels. Fishmeal demand from aquaculture -driven mainly by white-leg shrimp farming in South China (Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan) - is set to rise gradually ahead of the March-April 2026 season.