For years, the prevailing narrative has been that Europe needs more aquaculture to feed a continent with a growing appetite for fish and seafood. The latest European market report from EUMOFA challenges that assumption head-on.
European households are spending more on fisheries and aquaculture products, yet they are buying less fish and seafood. This is not a contradiction. It is the market’s new equilibrium.
The report also sends a clear signal to Mediterranean producers: their role has become critical in preventing a deeper market contradiction.
In 2024, household expenditure on fish in the EU rose once again. Not because Europeans are eating more fish, but because prices remain high. Between 2020 and 2024, fish prices across the EU increased by around 25%, a key factor behind the continued decline in consumption.
Fresh fish consumption has been falling steadily since 2021, with clear drops in the main consuming countries. Spain, Italy, Greece and Portugal – regions traditionally associated with fresh fish and seafood – are no exception. Consumers are still buying fish, but more cautiously: reducing quantities, shifting formats, and prioritising price and convenience.
The pressure is not evenly distributed across the sector. The report shows that the main decline is occurring in wild-caught products.
While consumption of wild fish has fallen to its lowest level in a decade, aquaculture consumption has remained broadly stable, at around 2.9 million tonnes live weight equivalent, in line with the ten-year average.
Put simply, aquaculture is not growing – but it is gaining ground because the alternatives are shrinking. Without species such as gilthead seabream, European seabass, mussels or trout, the overall decline in fish consumption would have been significantly sharper.
Prices stabilise, but pressure remains
Fish prices remain well above pre-crisis levels. This has brought more predictability to margins, but not necessarily comfort.
Feed costs, energy, labour and financing continue to shape day-to-day decisions at farm level. Volatility has eased, but structural pressure has not disappeared. In this new market context, one message stands out: producing more does not guarantee selling better.
The market is increasingly selective – on size, presentation, certification and positioning. Efficiency is no longer a competitive advantage; it is simply a baseline requirement.
What the report does not address is why consumers are drifting away from fresh fish. However, the evidence points not to a lack of interest, but to a combination of high prices, loss of cooking habits, lack of time, and increasingly aggressive competition from other proteins and ready-to-eat formats.
Under the current model and with today’s consumption habits, there is little reason to expect demand to recover on its own. If consumption is to return, some things will have to change.
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