Every October, National Seafood Month brings attention to the seafood reaching restaurants, retailers, hotels, and homes across the country. However, the story behind that seafood begins far from the plate. Consider a case of shrimp arriving at a foodservice kitchen.
Before delivery, it may pass through farms, processors, ports, refrigerated containers, warehouses, distributors, and multiple regulatory systems. Each step adds value. Each step also introduces new risks.
That makes National Seafood Month an opportunity to look beyond what we eat. It highlights an industry becoming increasingly important worldwide.
Seafood Has Become a Major Global Industry
The scale of the seafood industry is easy to underestimate. Global fisheries and aquaculture production reached a record 235 million metric tons in 2024, according to the FAO. Aquatic animals represented approximately 195 million metric tons of that production.
Meanwhile, international trade in aquatic animal products reached approximately $184 billion.
More than one-third of production now enters international trade. Therefore, seafood frequently crosses borders before reaching its final customer. The industry also supports more than 600 million livelihoods worldwide.
In 2023, commercial fishing and the seafood industry generated $173.4 billion in sales impacts across the U.S. economy. The sector also supported approximately one million full-time and part-time jobs.
Interestingly, seafood importers generated the largest sales and value-added impacts within the U.S. seafood supply chain. That reflects how connected American seafood consumption has become to global markets.
Global Demand for Seafood Is Still Growing
Global demand for fish and other aquatic foods intended for human consumption is projected to increase 13% by 2034.
Consumption could reach approximately 192 million metric tons by that point. Growth will not happen equally everywhere.
Asia is expected to represent most additional consumption. Meanwhile, Africa could experience some of the fastest overall demand growth. Population growth, urbanization, and rising incomes will influence those changes.
As incomes increase, consumers in many developing economies are expected to consume more animal and aquatic proteins. Therefore, the next decade will bring an important challenge.
The industry must supply more seafood without creating unsustainable pressure on wild fisheries. That is where aquaculture becomes increasingly important.
Aquaculture Is Changing Where Seafood Comes From
For decades, seafood production depended heavily on wild capture fisheries. That balance has changed. Aquaculture produced 103 million metric tons of aquatic animals in 2024.
For the first time, farmed aquatic animals exceeded 100 million metric tons of annual production. Aquaculture now represents approximately 53% of total aquatic animal production.
Additionally, it supplies over 59% of aquatic animal food production. This shift is likely to continue. The OECD and FAO project aquaculture production will grow approximately 20% by 2034.
Farmed aquatic animal production could reach 118 million metric tons. Shrimp and prawns are expected to experience especially strong aquaculture growth. Their production is projected to increase approximately 38% during the outlook period.
The Seafood Supply Chain Is Becoming More Complex
A seafood product can travel thousands of miles before reaching its customer. The product may be harvested in one country and processed in another. It can then enter another market for distribution and consumption.
FAO notes that aquatic products often cross several borders through complex global supply chains. That creates enormous commercial opportunities. However, it also makes seafood particularly sensitive to disruptions.
Transportation costs can change quickly. Trade restrictions can alter sourcing routes. Port congestion can delay temperature-sensitive products. Geopolitical events can also change which markets remain economically viable.
The OECD and FAO specifically identify trade tensions and changing trade policies as major uncertainties for seafood markets.
Climate Change Is Already Changing the Seafood Map
Some of the largest challenges begin before seafood enters the supply chain. Ocean conditions are changing.
Marine heat waves, changing water temperatures, extreme weather, and shifting ecosystems can affect where species live. They can also influence how much can be harvested.
Under higher-emissions scenarios, exploitable fish biomass could decline by more than 10% by 2050 in several regions.
Traceability Becomes More Important as the Industry Grows
Today’s buyers increasingly need to know where it came from. They may also need information about harvest methods, production areas, processing locations, certifications, and transportation.
That makes seafood traceability increasingly important. In the United States, NOAA’s Seafood Import Monitoring Program requires harvest information for certain seafood entering the country.
The program targets species considered particularly vulnerable to illegal fishing or seafood fraud. At the same time, broader food traceability requirements are changing expectations across the food industry.
For distributors and foodservice buyers, traceability can improve visibility throughout an increasingly complicated supply chain. It can also help businesses respond faster when questions arise.
National Seafood Month Is About the Entire Journey
National Seafood Month celebrates an important food category. However, it also represents a global economic system. That system connects fishermen, farmers, processors, importers, warehouses, distributors, chefs, and consumers.
At True Grade, that connection is central to how we approach seafood. We support customers through sourcing, procurement, traceability, warehousing, cold chain logistics, and distribution.
Each part supports the next. Because when seafood reaches a kitchen, its journey may appear finished. In reality, that successful delivery reflects hundreds of decisions made throughout the supply chain.
National Seafood Month gives us an opportunity to celebrate the product. It also gives the industry an opportunity to prepare for everything coming next.
