By Atuna
Although canned tuna demand was said to be lower in Europe, French imports for 2009 managed to keep similar levels than the previous year, with a slight increase of 2%.
According to the European Union trade statistics, from 96.045 MT imported in 2008, France was up to 97.958 MT last year.
Canned tuna quantity could have been the same, but suppliers have changed. As showed below (see table), Spain has taken over the position as leading importer from Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) - which in itself is a historical change - after Ivory Coast has held this position for almost a decade.
France’s main EU-external supplier, Ivory Coast, saw its share drop by a damaging 30% in 2009; from 27.702 MT in 2008 to 19.434 MT.
African countries were usually the main suppliers of canned tuna to France. Countries such as Seychelles, Madagascar and Ghana managed to increase their shares slightly in line with the total growth.
Nevertheless, countries such as Ecuador, Thailand and Philippines had their market shares grow exponentially during the same period. Ecuador reached fourth position as canned tuna supplier.
The key reason for the shift away from Ivory Coast to Ecuador and Thailand has been the fact that leading French brand Saupiquet - owned by Bolton Alimentarie - has chosen to transfer its production to South America and Asia. The main reason is the political instability and turmoil in Ivory Coast the last few years, and the fact that the country has no longer any good access to skipjack raw material.
In cooperation with its partner, Tri-Marine International, Bolton has made a strategic shift in its buying partners for Saupiquet, choosing to outsource production instead of producing in its own factory in Ivory Coast. Recently Saupiquet also closed down a cannery in France.
