Russia’s fishmeal exports forecast to reach $160 million in 2026

Exports rise 34% in the first four months

Russia’s fishmeal exports increased by 34% year on year in value terms during January-April 2026, reaching $100 million, ZOL.ru reported. Agroexport expects the full-year figure to reach $160 million. The forecast points to another year of substantial foreign sales for a product used primarily as a protein-rich ingredient in animal and aquaculture feed.

The relationship between the reported four-month result and the annual forecast deserves attention. If the $160 million projection is met, exports during the remaining eight months would amount to $60 million. This means the pace recorded between January and April does not have to continue through the rest of the year for the forecast to be achieved. The source does not provide shipment volumes, average export prices or a comparison between price and volume growth, so the 34% increase cannot be attributed solely to either stronger physical sales or higher prices.

Asian buyers lead demand

Russian fishmeal is in demand in China, Japan, South Korea and Turkey, according to ZOL.ru. Three of the four identified markets are major Asian destinations, placing the trade close to large aquaculture and feed-manufacturing industries. Turkey adds a market connecting the Black Sea, Mediterranean and wider regional feed sectors. The source does not disclose the value or tonnage shipped to each country, preventing a ranking of individual buyers.

For Russian producers and exporters, this group of destinations provides several sales channels rather than dependence on a single named market. For importers and feed processors, access to Russian material can broaden procurement options for a feed input whose demand is linked to fish and animal production. However, without country-level volumes, prices or contract data, it is not possible to determine which destination is driving the current increase or whether the growth is evenly distributed.

Aquaculture could expand fishmeal’s export role

Growth in global aquaculture production is stimulating demand for Russian fishmeal, the report said. The All-Russian Association of Fisheries Enterprises, Entrepreneurs and Exporters forecasts that aquaculture output worldwide will increase by 20% over the next ten years. That expansion would raise feed requirements and could support demand for fishmeal, although the source does not specify how much of the additional market Russian suppliers could capture.

The association estimates that fishmeal currently accounts for about 3% of Russia’s fish exports and that its share could rise to 12.6% by 2030. This would make fishmeal a materially larger part of the country’s fisheries export portfolio. The outcome will depend on producers’ ability to supply consistent quality and serve buyers in China, Japan, South Korea and Turkey. The figures presented concern export value and portfolio share; no production-capacity data are provided. For feed-industry participants, the central signal is therefore rising commercial importance rather than a confirmed expansion of physical output.